A former special education aide at White Rock Elementary School in Jefferson Township is claiming a breach of contract in her lawsuit.
Krystin Barnett, Patch Staff
|Updated Thu, Mar 13, 2025 at 3:42 pm ET
JEFFERSON, NJ — A former special education aide at White Rock Elementary says she was reassigned and later fired for revealing her pregnancy to Principal Michael Valenti, the West Milford resident claims in a lawsuit.
Tiffany Messina was hired in November 2023 to support the Autism Spectrum Disorder class seven hours per day, four days per week. Her hours were increased slightly in January 2024 to seven hours and 15 minutes per day, four days per week.
In January 2024, Messina disclosed her pregnancy to Valenti, and therefore would not be able to work at the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year.
During a pre-approved vacation in March 2024, Messina said she received an email from Valenti advising her that she will be moved out of the special education class to four general education classes instead.
When Messina questioned the change, Valenti explained the move was because Messina was pregnant. "I don’t want you to get hit in the special education classroom,” Valenti said, according to the lawsuit.
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However, Messina's preference was to work in the special education classes.
In April 2024, Valenti moved Messina back to a special education classroom, albeit one with older students. Valenti expressed that he felt the environment in an older age class was safer, according to the lawsuit.
On April 18, 2024, Valenti again spoke with Messina and advised she was "a little bit in trouble," according to the lawsuit.
Valenti told Messina he had received several reports stating Messina hit a child in January 2024 and stated, "I can’t wait to get the f___ out of here" in front of students, according to the lawsuit.
Messina asserts she never hit a student or used expletives in front of students.
The lawsuit states that on April 19, 2024, Messina tried and failed to reach Valenti by phone. She left a message requesting to speak with him and relayed that she was too upset by the accusations to work that day.
The following Monday, she claims she sent an email to Valenti advising him that she wished to continue work for the rest of the year but was upset over the accusation. Messina again did not report to work.
On April 25, 2024, Valenti returned Messina's call and instructed her to "sit tight," according to the lawsuit. Messina did not report to work until the following day, during which she was called to Superintendent Jeanne Howe's office.
Howe informed Messina she was being terminated for abandoning her job, according to the lawsuit.
Messina says her absences were approved by the school board. Messina further claims she did not receive pay past April 26, the date she was fired.
The lawsuit states that Messina's employment contract requires a written termination with 14 days advance notice, and that the termination is a violation of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination.
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