UPDATED October 16 with a statement from the district.
Embattled Superintendent Jorge Arredondo is fighting back against Grand Prairie Independent School District’s plans to terminate his employment after just a few months on the job, alleging he is the target of racial discrimination by certain trustees.
Arredondo filed a lawsuit against the district on Monday claiming he was wrongfully placed on administrative leave and targeted for termination without being told the reasons—an alleged violation of his contract.
He also secured a temporary restraining order that stops the district from moving ahead to fire him.
Trustees were set to vote on terminating Arredondo at their next school board meeting on October 17.
Arredondo started as superintendent of the district on July 1 with unanimous support from the board of trustees, who gave him a three-year contract paying $317,000 a year.
But he’s been on paid administrative leave since September 4 while trustees conducted a secretive investigation of the superintendent.
During a special meeting on October 2, trustees voted 4-2 to “move forward” against Arredondo, citing “violations” of a board policy prohibiting discrimination, harassment, and retaliation against district employees.
Trustees did not publicly discuss the specifics of Arredondo’s alleged policy violations or what action the board would take, but Arredondo’s contract allows the board to dismiss him for “good cause” including “failure to comply with written Board Policies.”
Board President Amber Moffitt and Trustees Nancy Bridges, Terry Brooks, and Emily Liles voted to move forward with terminating Arredondo. Trustees Gloria Carrillo and David Espinosa voted against the move, while Trustee Bryan Parra abstained.
According to the complaint, “Superintendent Arredondo was never given sufficient details about any alleged complaint, he was never given a full and fair opportunity to respond, or to present any evidence or witnesses in his defense. He was not even provided with a written statement of the reasons for his suspension.”
Arredondo’s lawsuit describes the investigation as a “witch hunt” orchestrated by Trustees Moffitt and Liles to discredit him.
The lawsuit alleges Arredondo faced “resistance and interference” from board members, particularly Liles and Moffitt.
The complaint states that Liles and Moffitt questioned the new superintendent’s decisions regarding reassigning staff and allocating district resources, and it accuses the two trustees of making “disparaging and discriminatory remarks” about Arredondo.
Arredondo’s lawsuit makes note of the fact that he is a “Hispanic male originally from Mexico” and that Grand Prairie ISD is a majority-Hispanic school district. Liles is white, and Moffitt is black.
According to the complaint, Arredondo filed a grievance against the school board but trustees failed to respond or schedule a hearing.
Instead, the district’s outside law firm Walsh Gallegos emailed Arredondo’s lawyer that the district officers “authorized to negotiate possible resignation terms” had rejected Arredondo’s offer and intended to proceed with the superintendent’s proposed termination on October 17.
Arredondo is suing the district for breach of contract, violations of due process under the Texas constitution, and defamation. He is seeking monetary damages as well as specific performance of his superintendent contract.
Grand Prairie ISD’s Public Information Officer Sam Buchmeyer told Texas Scorecard that the district was aware of reports regarding the lawsuit and would review any formal filings once they were received.
“As always, the district is committed to acting in the best interests of our students, staff, and community, and we will respond to any legal matters appropriately through the court system,” Buchmeyer wrote in a statement. “Given that this involves potential litigation, we are unable to comment further at this time.”
