Rocori settles lawsuit with Cold Spring family that said district failed to respond to racism

The Rocori school district has agreed to pay $140,000 to settle a lawsuit with a Cold Spring mother who sued the district last year on behalf of two of her children.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court last January by Andrea Robinson, described the district's "deliberate indifference and failure to respond to multiple acts of racial harassment and discrimination" directed at her children, who are Black, by both students and staff.

The school district denied the allegations but agreed to settle the claims following mediation in December. Last week, a judge signed off on the settlement, which will be distributed among the children and attorney's fees.

"The school district has consistently denied any wrongdoing, and the terms of the settlement agreement reflect that there is no admission of liability and it is merely the settlement of a disputed claim by the school district's insurer," said Tim Sullivan, attorney for the district, in an email. "The school district looks forward to moving beyond this matter and continuing to provide an excellent education to all of its learners."

The lawsuit alleged violations of Title VI and Title IX of the 1964 Civil Rights Act that deprived Robinson's children of full access to educational opportunities required by the act. It listed several instances of harassment in classrooms, hallways and buses that included the children being called racial slurs and being threatened.

The filing also alleged the district failed to reasonably intervene after Robinson's high school-age daughter was bullied on Snapchat with references to lynching. Robinson brought up the incidents with district leaders several times but the students involved in the harassment were rarely disciplined, the lawsuit said.

Robinson said the settlement validates her children's experiences, which is important to their healing.

"On the other hand, it never needed to go this far and I hope the school takes additional steps towards accountability, including transparency with their investigation and a commitment to meaningful change," she said, referencing an independent investigation into allegations of racism in the district.

The board ordered the investigation in May 2021. Last February, the school board chair said the board had been able to review the investigation but it was classified as nonpublic due to the lawsuit. It has yet to be made public.

Over the past two years, Robinson has been vocal about the racism her family endured in both the Cold Spring community and the Rocori school system, which has students from Rockville, Cold Spring and Richmond.

In July 2021, she spoke at a Cold Spring City Council meeting after a Stearns County man crashed a stolen car into their house. Dozens of people rallied around the family at the meeting and the council created an ad hoc committee on equity and diversity. That November, Robinson applied for, but was not appointed to, an open seat on the council.

Last November, Robinson ran unsuccessfully for the Minnesota House 13A seat. That same month, the man who crashed the car into their home was sentenced to nearly nine years in prison for stalking and assaulting the family because of their race.