Opinion ID: 2678967
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Brown’s Work at Banana Kelly

Text: Jayquan Brown graduated in 2006 from DOE’s New School for Arts and Sciences (‚New School‛), located in the South Bronx. At that time, New School shared physical space with Banana Kelly so that Brown came to know staff at both schools. Brown was unable to secure paid employment after graduation. He did, however, assist his brother who was working as a group leader for younger students at an after-school program at C.S. 92.1 On a visit back to New School in or about October 2007, Brown mentioned his ‚mentoring‛ work at C.S. 92 to Daniel Jerome, Banana Kelly’s director of student life. Jerome asked Brown if he would be interested in mentoring students at Banana Kelly. When Brown responded affirmatively, Jerome raised the matter with principal Laub. 1It is not clear from the record whether Brown’s brother was paid for his work at C.S. 92. Brown himself was not. 4 Laub determined that Brown lacked the higher education and personal criteria necessary for a paid staff position; nevertheless, Laub ‚bent some rules‛ to create what he described to Brown as a ‚volunteer internship.‛ J.A. 467–68. At his deposition, Laub stated that he did this to advance Brown’s career opportunities. Meanwhile, Brown has professed not to have ‚fully appreciated+‛ what was meant by the terms ‚intern‛ and ‚volunteer.‛ Id. at 468. He acknowledged, however, that he was never required to provide any qualifications for employment at Banana Kelly and was never told by any school official that he would be paid for his work. Nor did Brown himself initially inquire as to compensation. Rather, he accepted Laub’s offer in order (1) to build his résumé; (2) to model himself on Jerome, whom he admired; and (3) to be a person who could ‚stand up, and make a change, and show the kids that we do care.‛ Id. at 547. Brown worked at Banana Kelly from the fall of 2007 through December 2010.2 He generally spent five days a week (and frequent Saturdays) at the school for approximately forty hours per week and, in 2009, also assisted during 2Brown was asked to stop coming to Banana Kelly when his verbal interaction with a freshman girl triggered a DOE investigation. See Brown v. N.Y.C. Dep’t of Educ., 2012 WL 6186496, at . Those circumstances are not relevant to the challenged judgment and, therefore, warrant no further discussion in this opinion. 5 the summer session. Brown explained that Jerome told him he was needed five days per week; therefore, he did not think that he had any choice but to come in that frequently because ‚if I didn’t, I would be letting him [i.e., Jerome] down, and I would be letting the school down.‛ Id. at 595. Brown acknowledged that on the few occasions when he was absent, he was neither criticized nor disciplined. Brown was initially assigned to Banana Kelly’s ‚Intervention Team‛ (‚I- Team‛), a group of salaried employees tasked with student conflict resolution. On this team, Brown performed various duties associated with lunchtime supervision, detention, parent contact, and student escort. He also answered the telephone and handed out report cards and progress reports. Only in 2010 was Brown given any student mentoring responsibilities. On various occasions, Brown asked Laub for a paid position. Laub generally responded negatively, citing budget constraints and Brown’s lack of higher education. Laub did consider the possibility of offering Brown a parttime paid position and, on one occasion, told Brown that he would search the budget for the necessary money. Nothing materialized, however, and Brown has admitted that neither Laub nor Jerome ever told him that he was going to be paid 6 for his work. Nevertheless, Brown asserted that Laub and Jerome created an impression that money to pay him was forthcoming when, in 2010, Jerome informed the I-Team that Laub had applied for a $170,000 grant to support its work by, among other things, providing stipends for interns. Apparently, no grant was ever received. Meanwhile, when Brown inquired as to a paid position as a ‚school aide,‛ Laub and Jerome encouraged him to seek such a position at another DOE school. Brown did seek aide positions at other schools because he ‚wanted to get paid.‛ Id. at 610. Further, in 2009, with a letter of recommendation from Jerome, Brown secured a paid part-time evening job with a security company. From time to time—but on fewer than five occasions in total—Laub gave Brown cash in amounts ranging from $40 to $50, telling him that he was doing a great job and should keep up the good work. Brown testified that he did not know why Laub was giving him this money and did not think it was for his work. Meanwhile, Brown asserted that in recognition of his ‚working all day‛ without pay and doing a ‚great job,‛ Jerome gave him $60 per week approximately 10 to 20 times, as well as occasional MetroCards and subway fare. Id. at 476. Both Laub and Jerome sometimes paid for Brown’s meals. 7