Former Fort Lee students say school failed to protect them from abuse by teacher
Two former Fort Lee students have filed a lawsuit against the school district and Board of Education after they said a former teacher inappropriately touched them.
Kaylie Quezada and another unnamed former student said they were sexually assaulted and harassed by a former special education math teacher, Howard Sidorsky, in 2012 and 2017. Both girls were students at Lewis F. Cole Middle School.
In April 2019, Sidorsky was found guilty of harassment for "offensive touching" after Quezada's mother filed a complaint against him in Fort Lee Municipal Court. He appealed, but the conviction was upheld. Sidorsky's teaching certificate was revoked in December 2020. Additionally, an investigation by the Institutional Abuse Investigation Unit of the Division of Child Protection and Permanency found that Quezada's accusations were substantiated.
The lawsuit said the Fort Lee school district and the Board of Education were responsible for protecting Quezada and the other student. District regulations prohibit "inappropriate" conduct, comments, language or expression, "sexual harassment," "hostile environment sexual harassment" and "quid pro quo sexual harassment" from employees.
Any employee who has reason to believe a staff member is attempting to have a relationship beyond being a teacher is supposed to be reported, the suit said.
Fort Lee Schools Superintendent Robert Kravitz did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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The unnamed student said she was subjected to "physical, emotional, psychological and financial damages" because of "sexual overtures, sexual harassment, abuse, assault, offensive touching and contact and discriminatory behavior" while she was a seventh grader at Lewis Cole Middle School in 2012.
The student was 12 at the time and said Sidorsky groomed her, making inappropriate comments and staring at her private area. She said he also touched her in a "sexually offensive manner."
She said her "educational and youthful experience" was impaired after what Sidorsky did to her. She said she continues to suffer from panic attacks, anxiety, depression, fear and humiliation. Because of this, she has been diagnosed with anxiety and depression, the suit said.
The lawsuit said the student's mother told two of the middle school's principals about Sidorsky's behavior in 2012 but the administration did not speak to the daughter about what happened, nor did they report the mother's complaint to child welfare authorities.
The suit said the district failed to do its statutory duty of reporting the complaint to the police and the state's Division of Youth and Family Services/Child Protection and Permanency Institutional Abuse Investigation Unit and failed to file a harassment, intimidation and bullying report.
The unnamed student said it has been a long journey for her to heal.
"I trusted both the perpetrator and my school and hope that the school, which has protected predators for several years and shamed little girls from stepping forward, will finally face responsibility," she said in a statement. "I hope that we can all move forward from this feeling vindicated, self-confident and stronger than the little girls we were."
Quezada was a 13-year-old student at the middle school in 2017 and Sidorsky was her teacher. She said that in September, he began to groom her by touching her. Similarly to what the other student described, she said Sidorsky would enter her personal space, touching her in several places. Quezada said Sidorsky would "rub, touch, caress and massage" her shoulders, back, waist and upper breast/chest area during class and around the school.
According to the lawsuit, the touching happened in the presence of another teacher in the classroom. Quezada said she similarly suffers from panic attacks, anxiety and depression and has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
“The abuse and discrimination I suffered in middle school had lasting effects on me, my education and my entire family," Quezada said in a press release. "At the age of 13, I experienced abuse that no child should ever have to face and I am now coming forward publicly to hold the Fort Lee School District accountable for ignoring our complaints and to make sure this never happens to another student."
The lawsuit said the district made a report only after it learned Quezada was going to file a report with the police.
Over two years later, the suit said, the school board did its "untimely" HIB investigation, concluding that Sidorsky's conduct was an incident of HIB.
The pair are seeking damages jointly and individually, with interest, attorney fees and cost of the suit.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Fort Lee NJ schools' former students claim abuse by teacher
