Baldridge v. Kan. City Pub. Sch.

• Decision Date: 24 April 2018
• Docket Number: C/w WD 80320,WD 80289
• Parties: Joseph D. BALDRIDGE, Appellant-Respondent, v. KANSAS CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, et al., Respondents-Appellants.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

552 S.W.3d 699

Joseph D. BALDRIDGE, Appellant-Respondent,

v.KANSAS CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, et al., Respondents-Appellants.

WD 80289

C/w WD 80320

Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District.

OPINION FILED: April 24, 2018

Motion for Rehearing and/or Transfer to Supreme Court Denied May 29, 2018

Application for Transfer to Supreme Court Denied August 21, 2018

Amy K. Maloney, Kansas City, MO, for appellant-respondent.

Kevin W. Prewitt, Kansas City, MO, for respondents-appellants.

Before Division Three: Victor C. Howard, Presiding Judge, Cynthia L. Martin, Judge and Gary D. Witt, Judge

Gary D. Witt, Judge

Joseph Baldridge ("Baldridge") appeals from the Jackson County Circuit Court's order granting Kansas City Public Schools' ("KCPS") Motion for a New Trial. KCPS cross-appeals the order of the trial court denying its Motion for Judgment Notwithstanding the Verdict ("JNOV"). We affirm in part and reverse in part.

Background¹

Baldridge is a C4-C6 quadriplegic² due to a car accident when he was sixteen years old in approximately 1976. He has no functional hand movement, limited upper body strength and use, and no use of his lower extremities. He has used a power wheel chair for mobility for over forty years and uses a customized splint on his arm for limited writing tasks. Baldridge has a bachelor's degree from University of Arizona, a master's degree in Arts and Teaching from Drake University, and a master's degree in Community Health from University of Missouri-Kansas City. Baldridge was hired by KCPS in 2002 to work as a counselor at an alternative school program for students who were suspended from classes for short or long-term periods. During Baldridge's first position with KCPS he worked in an alternative setting where he worked in a room with two co-employees that were available to assist him with tasks whenever it was necessary. When that program was discontinued, KCPS reassigned Baldridge to a traditional school guidance counselor position at James Elementary. Due to Baldridge's inability to scan, copy, and write, he was provided with a dedicated paraprofessional to assist him with tasks he could not perform due to his disability.

Betty Hatcher ("Hatcher") replaced Baldridge's original dedicated paraprofessional in 2008. When Hatcher was assisting Baldridge she would retrieve disruptive or distressed students from classrooms, console them or escort them to the office to meet with Baldridge, review folders and ensure compliance with guidelines, help create the curriculum, set up a room for agitated students to come in and cool off, prepare materials for instruction, arrange lesson plans, take notes, write on whiteboards, and file. Hatcher also assisted Baldridge in attaching his arm brace at various times so he could eat and drink, administering personal medication, adjusting his chest brace, and at the end of each day securing him into his vehicle with a seatbelt and attaching a brace to his arm that allowed him to steer his vehicle. She did not counsel students and was not present during any of Baldridge's confidential counseling sessions with students. Hatcher had other duties outside of assisting Baldridge such as filling in for the school secretary on the secretary's lunch break and monitoring classrooms in case a teacher had to leave due to an emergency.

In December 2012, Baldridge experienced a workplace injury which is not at issue in this case but did require him to be off of work for an extended period of time. In the summer of 2013, he was due to return to work for the 2013-2014 school year. He was advised by KCPS Employee and Labor Relations Specialist Marilyn Overton ("Overton") that KCPS was reviewing his accommodations and she needed him to complete some paperwork. Baldridge provided Overton information regarding his physical limitations. Baldridge also suggested that KCPS obtain a vocational assessment from the Rehabilitation Institute of Kansas City ("RIKC") to assist in evaluating alternative accommodations to meet his needs, which KCPS agreed to do.

After reviewing Baldridge's current accommodations and learning the scope of Hatcher's duties, KCPS' Human Resources Director Mary Laffey ("Laffey"), KCPS' interim superintendent Al Tunis ("Tunis"), and Overton decided to withdraw the accommodation of Baldridge's dedicated paraprofessional. On October 2, 2013, Baldridge and Hatcher were called into a meeting with Overton, a representative for the teachers' union Andrea Flinders, Principal Jo Nemeth ("Nemeth"), and Assistant Superintendent of School Leadership Darrell Davis ("Davis"). Baldridge was told that his paraprofessional accommodation was being removed immediately and that other options would need to be explored, although those new accommodations had yet to be determined. He was placed on administrative leave with pay, effective immediately, and both Baldridge and Hatcher were ordered to pack up their belongings and leave school property. He also received a subsequent letter from KCPS that he was not to enter upon any KCPS properties or he would risk violating KCPS policy.

Pending the vocational assessment at RIKC, Laffey identified a modified assignment at East High School for Baldridge that did not require the same clerical responsibilities as his previous position. She developed a plan with Baldridge for the spring semester so that he could return to work after the winter break. Baldridge accepted the new position. The position was not a counseling position but instead he was assigned to work with severely disabled students. When suggesting the position to Baldridge, Laffey stated that she thought the disabled children might be more comfortable with him due to his own disability. During his time at East High School, he was not included in any professional level development seminars or meetings, was isolated from the counseling department, and was not provided with any formal accommodations. He was also not included in an email regarding a professional development day scheduled for late January 2014. Due to not being informed that it was a professional development day, Baldridge waited outside the school in the cold for a significant period of time for someone to let him into the building. After a custodian let him into the building, Baldridge sat in his assigned classroom for several hours, where he was physically unable to obtain food or drink, remove his coat, or turn on the lights. Finally, he texted his supervisor indicating he needed someone to let him out of the building so that he could return home.

On February 14, 2014, Erin Brown ("Brown") of RIKC conducted Baldridge's vocational assessment. Brown recommended the following list of accommodations to assist Baldridge in fulfilling his job duties:

a. Use of AudioNote iPad app, or another recording device for meetings if a note taker is unavailable.

b. Converting as much paper to electronic format to allow Mr. Baldridge independent access through a computer.

c. Placement in a school that does not require use of an elevator.

d. Use of a paraprofessional or administrative assistant to assist with the management of paper that can't be digitized, as well as being available to assist students to and from the classroom if an elevator is required. This position would not need to be full-time if other accommodations were met.

e. Use of headset or Bluetooth headset for phone conversations. Someone would need to be available to put the headset on at the start of the day and take it off at the end of the day.

She also recommended a paraprofessional be available to assist him with some of his other job responsibilities.

Following Brown's assessment, KCPS reassigned Baldridge to a school guidance counselor position at Phyllis Wheatley Elementary ("Wheatley") for the 2014-2015 school year. This remained his position at the time of trial. KCPS limited his initial assignment to students in classrooms on the same floor as Baldridge's office to avoid use of an elevator. KCPS also implemented a "team-approach" accommodation at Wheatley. Whenever Baldridge needed assistance he was told to contact the Principal, Jose Verduzco ("Verduzco"), who would send someone to assist Baldridge. However, when Baldridge would text or email Verduzco, Baldridge would be told that someone would come help him when they became available. Baldridge never knew which person would be sent to help him and was unsure how long he would have to wait to receive assistance. KCPS also routed Baldridge's computer to the main office printer so the staff there could retrieve printed materials for him.

As a result of Baldridge's transfer to Wheatley, that school had more counselors than the applicable regulations required. This resulted in Baldridge sharing an office with Shirley Washington ("Washington"), another counselor at Wheatley. Over time, Washington voluntarily assumed some daily tasks assisting Baldridge in addition to her own responsibilities. However, KCPS instructed Washington that she could not assist Baldridge with getting into his vehicle and putting on his seatbelt because they were concerned about the potential risk of harm to Baldridge and the public. Baldridge also did not always have assistance in putting on his hand brace for eating, resulting in him sometimes skipping lunch or being only able to eat certain cold foods that he could eat without his brace. He was unable to open doors for himself, which required him to call ahead to the classroom or bang his wheelchair into the classroom door until someone opened the door.

While at Wheatley, Baldridge made multiple unanswered requests for a Bluetooth headset to remedy the telephone issue. Baldridge did receive the software he requested but was not provided the training to utilize it. Overton stated at trial that a training date for the software was set up but Baldridge was absent under the Family Medical Leave Act ("FMLA") at the time it was offered. His position at Wheatley eventually required frequent use of an elevator as he was...