PORTLAND PUBLIC SCHOOLS

501 N. Dixon, Portland, OR 97227

(503) 916-2000

November 16, 2015

VIA EMAIL
Dear Ms. Sordyl,
On November 6, 2015, you sent an email to a teacher, a District administrator, and numerous parents of
District students that contained this statement:
"Sascha Perrins engaged in a cover-up of child abuse at a PPS school. The abuse led to
lasting medical problems for students. He is not trusted by the community to be honest,
competent, or keep students safe. PPS shuffled Sascha and the abuser off to different
positions after the public embarrassment of his actions. He will have only a negative
impact on this issue of race and gender discrimination against students."
When the Districts attorney asked you to retract the statement, you responded:
"Shouldn't you be spending your time brushing up your rsum?
If you again accuse me of claiming 'child abuse' as defined under Oregon law, I will
speak out publicly."
Your statement about Mr. Perrins is false and defamatory, as is your statement about the teacher.
You have explicitly stated that Mr. Perrins covered up child abuse, and have accused a teacher of
child abuse. These are extremely serious allegations. When asked to retract your statement, you
refused to do so, and instead responded in a threatening and mocking manner.
This incident is not isolated. Over the past year, you have made numerous accusatory and
unwarranted statements in social media about specific PPS employees that characterize them as
"stupid," "unethical," "dishonest," and incompetent."
Responding to defamatory statements and other personal attacks distract staff from performing the work
necessary to serve our students, and interfere with staff's ability to do their jobs. Such statements and
attacks also create potential liability for the district, as employees have the right to file workers'
compensation claims for the stress associated with being the target of public attacks and ridicule.
Public employees such as teachers, central office employees, administrators, and department heads
should not have to tolerate being routinely subjected to slanderous attacks and false accusations and,
frankly, just cruel statements in social media -- as a condition of their public employment. These
accusatory and false statements create recruiting and retention challenges for district staff and create
distractions from the work of serving students.
1