Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-azd-4_74-cv-00090/USCOURTS-azd-4_74-cv-00090-32/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 440
Nature of Suit: Other Civil Rights
Cause of Action: 28:1331 Federal Question: Other Civil Rights

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

Roy and Josie Fisher, et al.,

Plaintiffs,

v.

United States of America,

Plaintiff-Intervenor,

v.

Anita Lohr, et al.,

Defendants,

and

Sidney L. Sutton, et al.,

Defendants-Intervenors,

CV 74-90 TUC DCB

(Lead Case)

Maria Mendoza, et al.,

Plaintiffs,

United States of America,

Plaintiff-Intervenor,

v.

Tucson Unified School District No. One, et al.,

Defendants.

CV 74-204 TUC DCB

(Consolidated Case)

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 1 of 8
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-2-

SPECIAL MASTER’S REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION REGARDING 

RACIAL DISPARITIES AMONG FACULTY IN TUSD SCHOOLS

THE PROBLEM

Section IV.E of the USP provides that the District shall seek to have a racially and 

ethnically diverse staff in each school and defines diversity as a no more than a 15 percentage 

point variance from the District average at comparable grade levels. This provision in intended to 

implement one of the key standards established by the United States Supreme Court in Green v. 

County School Board of New Kent County (1968) to determine whether a school district has met 

its obligations under the Constitution of the United States to remedy the vestiges of segregation. 

Meeting this standard is essential to the award of Unitary Status by the Court.

Given the small number of African American teachers in TUSD, ensuring that African 

American teachers are distributed evenly throughout the District does not seem wise and there are 

no examples of concentrations of African American teachers in any particular school. Using the 

15 percentage rule by grade structure, at least 19 of 49 elementary schools do not meet the 

diversity criterion nor do 8 of 14 K-8 schools. Two middle schools do not. University High 

School and Pueblo High School do not meet the 15 percentage points rule but both are close.

Clearly, there are still substantial numbers of schools with “significant disparities.” It is 

essential that the District move to address this problem as soon as possible because each new hire 

and each transfer of teachers from one school to another represents a potential opportunity to 

remedy disparities.

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 2 of 8
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-3-

RECOMMENDATION

The Court should direct the District to immediately develop and implement a plan to 

reduce by half by the beginning of the 2016-17 school year the number of schools in which there 

are existing racial disparities, as defined by the USP, among the teaching staffs. This plan shall 

include, but not be limited to the following practices:

1. School transfers by TUSD teachers shall not create or add to racial disparities in 

any school.

2. School transfer requests that contribute to the elimination of racial disparities shall 

have priority.

3. Incentives shall be used to motivate voluntary transfers. These incentives shall 

include, but not be limited to, financial incentives, reduction or modification of 

workload, and enhanced opportunities for professional advancement.

4. Beginning teachers may be assigned to schools at which students are achieving 

above the district average when such assignment will increase faculty diversity.

5. As necessary, the district shall actively recruit teachers to transfer to new schools 

when such transfers will bring about compliance with the relevant provisions of 

the USP.

The Court should also order the district to develop and implement a plan to eliminate all 

significant disparities in 2017-18 using the practices outlined above and such other practices as 

the District may deem appropriate. Given the experience in implementing the plan for the 

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 3 of 8
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coming school year, the District may amend the plan submitting it for review and comment to the 

plaintiffs and the Special Master.

None of the parties have objected to this proposed order.

Respectfully submitted,

________/s/_____________

Willis D. Hawley

Special Master

Dated: March 22, 2016

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 4 of 8
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on, March 22, 2016, I electronically submitted the foregoing SPECIAL 

MASTER’S REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION REGARDING RACIAL 

DISPARITIES AMONG FACULTY IN TUSD SCHOOLS for filing and transmittal of a 

Notice of Electronic Filing to the following CM/ECF registrants:

J. William Brammer, Jr. 

wbrammer@rllaz.com

P. Bruce Converse 

bconverse@steptoe.com, 

Oscar S. Lizardi 

olizardi@rllaz.com

Michael J. Rusing 

mrusing@rllaz.com

Patricia V. Waterkotte

pvictory@rllaz.com

Rubin Salter, Jr.

rsjr@aol.com

Kristian H. Salter

kristian.salter@azbar.org

Zoe Savitsky

Zoe.savitsky@usdoj.gov

Anurima Bhargava

Anurima.bhargava@usdoj.gov

Lois D. Thompson

lthompson@proskauer.com

Andrew H. Marks for 

Dr. Willis D. Hawley, 

Special Master

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 5 of 8
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-2-

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

DISTRICT OF ARIZONA

Roy and Josie Fisher, et al.,

Plaintiffs,

v.

United States of America,

Plaintiff-Intervenor,

v.

Anita Lohr, et al.,

Defendants,

and

Sidney L. Sutton, et al.,

Defendants-Intervenors,

CV 74-90 TUC DCB

(Lead Case)

Maria Mendoza, et al.,

Plaintiffs,

United States of America,

Plaintiff-Intervenor,

v.

Tucson Unified School District No. One, et al.,

Defendants.

CV 74-204 TUC DCB

(Consolidated Case)

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 6 of 8
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[PROPOSED] ORDER

Upon consideration of the Special Master’s Report and Recommendation Regarding 

Racial Disparities Among Faculty in TUSD Schools, and good cause having been shown.

IT IS ORDERED that the Special Master recommendations as follows:

1. School transfers by TUSD teachers shall not create or add to racial disparities in 

any school.

2. School transfer requests that contribute to the elimination of racial disparities shall 

have priority.

3. Incentives shall be used to motivate voluntary transfers. These incentives shall 

include, but not be limited to, financial incentives, reduction or modification of workload, and 

enhanced opportunities for professional advancement.

4. Beginning teachers may be assigned to schools at which students are achieving 

above the district average when such assignment will increase faculty diversity.

5. As necessary, the district shall actively recruit teachers to transfer to new schools 

when such transfers will bring about compliance with the relevant provisions of the USP.

The Court also orders the district to develop and implement a plan to eliminate all 

significant disparities in 2017-18 using the practices outlined above and such other practices as 

the District may deem appropriate. Given the experience in implementing the plan for the 

coming school year, the District may amend the plan submitting it for review and comment to the 

plaintiffs and the Special Master.

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 7 of 8
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. 

Dated this _____ day of March, 2016.

_____________________________________

David C. Bury

United States District Judge

Case 4:74-cv-00090-DCB Document 1913 Filed 03/23/16 Page 8 of 8