Investigation into former Ridgefield schools chief found pattern of mistreatment after female employees speak out (2024)

Griffin ReillyThe Columbian

A 2023 investigation into former Ridgefield School District Superintendent Nathan McCann found he exhibited a pattern of mistreating female employees throughout his nine-year tenure, but that such behavior did not amount to a violation of Title IX.

With two years remaining on his contract, McCann resigned in August 2023 and negotiated a lump sum payout of $318,202 upon his departure.

In March 2023, the district initiated a Title IX investigation after Brynan Shipley, Ridgefield’s athletic director, reported that McCann “berated” her about an attendance policy that would cause his son to miss a sports game. Title IX is a federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on gender in education programs and activities.

Shipley’s complaint alleged the conversation, as well as several others McCann had with female employees in the past, revealed a pattern of gender discrimination.

The investigation, which was reviewed by former Vancouver Public Schools Administrator Kathy Everidge, found McCann had not committed any acts of sexual harassment or explicit gender-based discrimination, in part, because several of the incidents that were brought forward were not submitted as formal complaints when they took place. However, she concluded McCann contributed to a potentially hostile work environment for women.

The Columbian recently obtained copies of the investigation and related email exchanges under the state’s Public Records Act. The district, per Title IX regulations, redacted several names of people involved in the investigation, but in at least one instance named McCann and Shipley explicitly. The documents frequently referred to McCann as “Respondent” and Shipley as “Complainant.”

“Although I have concluded that the evidence does not support a determination that Respondent (McCann) treated female employees differently based on their sex, it is concerning that numerous female leaders in the district have voiced their perception that women are being treated less favorably,” Everidge wrote. “Such employee concerns can lead to loss of talented and experienced employees.”

Eight women in total stepped forward to share incidents in which they felt McCann had gotten inappropriately angry with them between 2016 and 2023. Several indicated they felt McCann spoke to male employees differently than he did with women.

“He does not like to be told he can’t do something that he is passionate or interested in,” one female employee said. “His behavior actually encourages (other male leaders) to have the same behavior. This makes for a difficult work environment for me and my fellow colleagues when you have a boss and other male employees that treat you like that openly.”

Resignation

In an interview Friday, McCann said the investigation didn’t directly lead to his decision to resign but that he felt his time in the position had “run its course.”

Currently, McCann works as a leadership consultant for MacPherson & Jacobson, a national firm that helps school districts identify superintendent candidates. McCann recently aided the Kalama and Toutle school districts with their superintendent searches in the past year, according to the Washington State School Directors Association.

McCann said repeatedly that while he was not found guilty of Title IX violations, it has led to personal reflection since.

“I like to think I’m better today than I was yesterday, and my goal is to be a little bit better tomorrow,” he said. “Every experience helps to shape us and help us grow.”

The investigation recommended that McCann issue apologies to Shipley and the several other women interviewed, as well as seek mediation with Shipley and enroll in a conflict management course.

McCann said because of “how soon he left the district” after the investigation, he wasn’t able to speak with several of the people who came forward.

District spokesman Joe Vajgrt said a culture of trust and transparency is critical in Ridgefield, and the district completed a fair investigation.

“We hold ourselves and our staff to the highest standards of conduct, with a clear expectation that everyone in our schools — students and staff alike — is treated with dignity and respect,” Vajgrt said.

Vajgrt said all district employees receive “annual mandatory training which reinforces expectations regarding harassment, intimidation and bullying, discrimination, and conflict de-escalation.”

This investigation, however, did not specifically prompt the addition of any new trainings in these principles, he said.

About the investigation

On March 15, 2023, McCann’s son missed class for an appointment and did not present a medical note, which rendered him ineligible to participate in high school sporting events that day. Later that day, McCann called Shipley, the school’s athletic director, to question the policy, which was written into the district’s athletics handbook.

Shipley detailed the conversation in an email complaint to district leaders two days later on March 17, 2023, writing that McCann’s anger about the situation “escalated into what I can only characterize as a startlingly belligerent, offensive attack.”

Shipley reported the conversation drove her to tears, and she took notes of comments he made throughout. In the email, she wrote that the incident mirrored a pattern of disrespect against female employees she had witnessed during her time in the district and that such a pattern should be investigated.

“This outburst went far beyond simple unprofessionalism and disrespect. It was disparaging and accusatory,” Shipley wrote in her email about the call. “While (McCann) did not threaten violence, his tone and language was aggressive and I felt defenseless.”

Assistant Superintendent Chris Griffith fielded the complaint; he served as the district’s Title IX coordinator at the time. On March 22, 2023, Griffith instructed Jill Smith, a lawyer with experience as a Title IX investigator in K-12 schools at Puget Sound-based law firm Simmons Sweeney Freimund Smith Tardif PLLC, to evaluate Shipley’s complaint and identify other witnesses to McCann’s behavior.

Smith interviewed 27 witnesses for her investigation, including eight women and 14 allegations of McCann’s unprofessional behavior toward them. Following the investigation’s conclusion on May 31, 2023, the district tapped Everidge as a third-party decision-maker given her background in local school administration.

Everidge wrote in her findings that she found Shipley’s recollection of the call to be credible but did not find that McCann made comments that were strictly related to gender. McCann apparently “did not recognize that he and Complainant (Shipley) were having a conflict during the call.”

“Based on my decades of experience as a school administrator, a typical school employee would view Respondent’s (McCann’s) behavior during the telephone call as an uncivil and inappropriate interaction with a colleague, particularly a subordinate,” Everidge wrote.

Other allegations

Everidge evaluated several other allegations of similar misconduct between 2015 and 2023, most of which were summarized as a “display of anger toward female” or “intimidation.” Several such incidents occurred in February and March of 2023, around the same time Shipley filed her complaint.

Most of the outbursts detailed came after a perceived challenge of McCann’s authority as superintendent or perceived mistreatment of his own child, Everidge wrote.

In fall 2021, McCann called his son’s school after learning that his son arrived late on the date of state testing and was sent to the library. A female employee reported McCann was angry about his son’s situation and made a statement along the lines of, “If this is how the (superintendent’s) kid is treated, I can’t imagine how you treat everyone else.”

Everidge also evaluated several incidents with a female employee in September 2022 and the following February. Two of the incidents in September 2022 came as the district was finalizing a new contract agreement with the Ridgefield Educators Association, which had been on strike for more than a week that month.

In each situation, McCann reportedly resorted to yelling at the employee when she questioned specific changes to the contract. In the February 2023 incident, which was unrelated to bargaining, the employee informed McCann that the district’s booster club couldn’t use a specific truck for an event, to which he allegedly replied, “You always do this to me. You always say no.”

“Again, these incidents are part of an overall pattern of Respondent (McCann) reacting poorly when subordinates disagree with him, whether male or female,” Everidge wrote. “I recommend that the Board ensure that appropriate measures are taken to address this workplace conflict between Respondent (McCann) and (the employee).”

Investigators interviewed the female employees about their experiences, explicitly asking whether they felt McCann treated male and female employees differently.

Almost all responded that they either believed McCann treated male and female employees differently or that they hadn’t witnessed such behavior directly but had heard stories of such behavior. One employee said she felt McCann would go as far as to not include female leaders in making major decisions.

“I have direct experience with the intimidating and aggressive (attitude) when he is not happy with (a) situation,” said another female employee. “I feel he only treats women in this manner. I hear of many stories, all from women.”