LIBERTY TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A teacher with Lakota Local Schools is suing the district, claiming she was unfairly denied time off to obtain a service dog, according to a lawsuit filed on June 23.
The lawsuit alleges Andrea Tumbleson, a teacher in the district since 1997, suffers from two conditions that have caused her to become legally blind, as well as deaf. According to the lawsuit, Tumbleson suffers from Usher Syndrome, a genetic disease that causes "progressive degeneration of hearing and eyesight," alongside retinitis pigmentosa, a rare disease that also causes vision loss.
Between the two conditions, Tumbleson is legally blind and requires a cochlear implant to hear.
The district has known about Tumbleson's degenerating eyesight and hearing since 2021, when she requested brighter lightbulbs in her classroom to help with her vision, the lawsuit says.
In August of 2022, Tumbleson reached out to Leader Dogs for the Blind, a non-profit organization in Michigan. Through the organization, she enrolled in a week-long course on using a cane to help navigate — one of two courses provided for people approved for a service dog, the lawsuit says.
Though Tumbleson was granted paid sick leave for that week-long training, she was denied leave for the second training in January 2023, according to the lawsuit.
"Because a dog had already been chosen for her, Ms. Tumbleson was scheduled to attend the spring training session, which was to be held during the period from May 6 to May 20, 2023," reads the lawsuit.
Tumbleson alerted her principal that she was approved for a service dog and requested leave for the three weeks of required training. But, despite Tumbleson having accrued sufficient paid sick leave to cover the time, she was notified that HR for Lakota requested additional information to justify she needed to take leave for the training.
After submitting a detailed report outlining her conditions, disabilities and the necessity of a service dog for her to perform her essential job duties, Lakota denied her request to use her accrued sick leave, the lawsuit says.
The district also denied her eligibility for leave under the Family Medical Leave Act.
"Lakota did not at any time explain why Ms. Tumbleson's medical condition did not qualify, in its view, as a personal illness, nor did it demonstrate any administrative or financial burden that would be imposed upon Lakota by granting Ms. Tumbleson's request," reads the lawsuit.
Ultimately, the lawsuit says Tumbleson chose to travel to Michigan to attend the training, despite it meaning Lakota "accordingly docked her regular wage and insurance payments."
Tumbleson has requested a jury trial to resolve the lawsuit, the document says.
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