Camden school clerk alleges attendance inflation

An attendance clerk at Woodrow Wilson High School filed a lawsuit Wednesday in Superior Court in Camden County alleging attendance inflation by her superiors and the Camden School District.

Roxanne Garrett also accuses former Wilson principal Tyrone Richards of sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment.

Richards did not return calls for comment Wednesday.

In a six-page complaint, Garrett describes a district with an "everyone should fear for their job" mentality. Garrett, who has been in the district for 23 years, claims to have been subjected to sex as a condition of employment while working with Richards from 2008 to 2012 and also being pressured to change attendance records.

Garrett's attorney, Matthew Wolf, said Garrett, whose job was to document daily attendance, never changed any records but believes that the data were regularly changed.

"She believes her supervisors did and continue to fudge attendance records," Wolf said Wednesday.

Garrett, 46, observed her supervisors inputting students in the system as present when she knew they weren't, he said.

Garrett remains employed as an attendance clerk at Wilson. Her attorney declined to make her available for an interview.

Camden schools interim Superintendent Reuben Mills said Wednesday that "this is the first I'm hearing of this," and asked to be interviewed again after he spoke to the staff at Wilson.

"This is serious," he said.

In the complaint, Garrett alleges that starting in 2009, Richards would "berate and denigrate" her while also flirting with her and asking her to wear skirts but not stockings to work.

In October 2009, Richards "initiated sexual contact" with her while the two were working in his office, according to the complaint. Garrett submitted to intercourse "out of fear of losing her job."