Iowa City school district ousts liaison to homeless

IOWA CITY - The Iowa City school district will not renew the contract of a liaison to homeless students after she was put on paid leave in April following an unauthorized tour of special education classrooms.

Stephanie Van Housen's letter of assignment will not be renewed for the year starting July 1, said Jim Pedersen, chief human resource officer for the district. She's on paid leave through the end of the month, he said.

'We have rearranged some assignments,” Pedersen said. 'We will make sure that need is fulfilled.”

Van Housen, who started working for the district in 2008, was placed on leave April 8 after she showed community members a behavior disorder classroom at Grant Wood Elementary and complained about school officials not letting her reserve a room partially funded through Iowa City. This is according to documents Van Housen filed with a May 12 request for a court injunction to prevent her firing.

'Concerns were expressed by various district employees that you were sharing disparaging remarks about either district personnel and/or district programing [sic],” Pedersen wrote in an April 13 reprimand included with court records.

'You gave unauthorized tours of special education rooms to community members at Grant Wood Elementary and shared your negative views of the district's special education program. This included pictures that were distributed throughout the community and now have become a public document,” Pedersen wrote.

An Iowa City parent concerned by the use of special ed seclusion rooms sent photos to other community members, including Rep. Mary Mascher, D-Iowa City.

Van Housen's injunction request asserted she had been put on leave as retaliation for whistle-blowing.

Iowa law says public agencies can't fire an employee for sharing information with a lawmaker, state and city official or law enforcement officer 'if the employee reasonably believes the information evidences a violation of law or rule, mismanagement, a gross abuse of funds, an abuse of authority, or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.”

Van Housen, who did not return a call Monday afternoon, dismissed her motion for injunction Friday. She reported last month she also filed a complaint with the Iowa Public Employment Relations Board. Van Housen's annual salary is $48,284.