District pays $325K to former teacher; claims she was forced to digitally edit student’s Trump T-shirt in yearbook

A New Jersey school district is paying $325,000 to a former teacher who claimed she was forced to digitally edit a former President Donald Trump T-shirt worn by a student in a yearbook photo.

News 12 Staff

Mar 18, 2021, 1:12 PM

Updated 1,202 days ago

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A New Jersey school district is paying $325,000 to a former teacher who claimed she was forced to digitally edit a former President Donald Trump T-shirt worn by a student in a yearbook photo.
The Wall Township school board approved the settlement agreement with Susan Parsons on Tuesday, NJ Advance Media reported. The district made no admission of wrongdoing or liability. The money will be paid by the district's insurance carrier.
Parsons was the high school's yearbook adviser when she said a secretary acting on behalf of the principal ordered her in 2017 to remove "Trump Make America Great Again” and make it appear as if the student was wearing a plain navy blue T-shirt.
"That has to go,” the suit alleged Parsons was told.
Parsons, who said she voted for Trump in 2016, said she was made a scapegoat and received death threats. She was suspended with pay after the incident. She claimed she regularly complained about being forced to alter photos.
Parsons will receive about $204,000, and the remainder of the settlement will cover attorney fees, according to the agreement.
The school district reissued the yearbook with the original unaltered photo.
AP wire services heled contribute to this report.


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