Suit accuses Montco educator of sex harassment

A woman who works for the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit (MCIU) has accused the agency's director of sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliating against her after she filed a complaint.

Kendall Glouner filed the lawsuit against Jerry Shiveley this month in U.S. District Court. Shiveley is head of the IU.

The suit alleges that Shiveley commented on Glouner's appearance, made disparaging remarks about her pregnancies, and made sweeping sex-based statements, such as telling her that "you women have such a hard time keeping your mouth shut."

After Glouner filed a sex-discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in January 2012, she alleges that she was cut out of meetings that pertained to her job, given a punitive performance evaluation, and eventually demoted, which led to a salary freeze.

Jeffrey Sultanik, an attorney for the MCIU, said he would not discuss personnel matters or pending legal matters, but said the agency planned a "vigorous defense."

Marjory Albee, an attorney for Glouner, also declined to comment.

The MCIU, one of several dozen such educational agencies throughout the state, provides Montgomery County schools with various social and educational services. IUs are governed by boards of directors and are separate from the districts they serve.

Glouner was hired in September 2007 as an assistant director of curriculum, instruction and professional development, according to the lawsuit, and promoted to director a year later.

After she began reporting to Shiveley in October 2011, the suit alleges, he began making offensive statements to her, including commenting on her looks in front of others, saying she needed a "wealthy husband," telling her that if she left his employ he would "hunt her down and shoot her," and asking, "Are you going to get pregnant on me again?"

Other colleagues told Glouner that Shiveley liked her because she was "young and beautiful," she said, and after she attended a work-sponsored charity event with a male guest, Shiveley told other colleagues that she had acted inappropriately with her guest at the event. He also has made discriminatory statements in front of other employees, the suit claims, such as saying that women "always feel the need to interrupt."

After Glouner filed the discrimination complaint, the lawsuit states, the agency systematically undermined her ability to do her job. She was excluded from projects and meetings she had previously been involved in and then given an "unsatisfactory" performance rating at her year-end review. In the previous year, the suit states, she received a performance rating of "excellent."

The suit also states that several other women have left work at MCIU because of Shiveley's behavior and that Glouner reported the harassment to human resources before filing the complaint.

"To [Glouner's] knowledge, defendant MCIU took no action regarding her complaints," the suit states.