SPRINGFIELD — A federal lawsuit filed last year by a former Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter School student against the school, claiming a former coach’s inappropriate interest in her damaged her education and caused persistent trauma, was settled last week.
The plaintiff, identified only as Jane Doe, had claimed that administrators at the South Hadley school knew of Michael Micucci’s sexual harassment and grooming behavior and failed to intervene to stop it, causing her to suffer severe emotional distress. The suit, filed in September 2022, had called for a jury trial to determine compensatory and punitive damages.
The plaintiff’s attorney, Jeffrey Sankey, said Monday the case had been resolved to everyone’s satisfaction. He said he could not disclose any terms of the settlement, but he noted that the people named in the lawsuit no longer work at the school.
Doe had alleged that Micucci’s inappropriate interest in her began in her first year at the school as a 12-year-old seventh grader.
During the next school year, he arranged to drive her home and to games and tournaments, and began probing her with personal questions, according to the complaint. His involvement in her life escalated over time, and included meeting her at his apartment, buying her gifts, and encouraging her break-up with a boyfriend, the suit stated.
When she was in 11th grade, he allegedly declared his love for her in “secret letter writing” and took her to a concert on Valentine’s Day in 2013.
“As a young and impressionable teenager who was not mindful of the ethical obligations of an adult teacher and coach, plaintiff accepted Micucci’s attention, did not recognize it as highly inappropriate, and was not suspicious of his motives,” the suit stated.
She also did not realize the damage Micucci’s behavior was doing to her educational experience and her own emotional health, according to the suit.
The suit claimed Scott Goldman, PVPA principal at the time, was aware by the end of the 2012-13 school year of Micucci’s behavior, but did nothing to restrict his interactions with the girl. Laura Davis, then head of school, allegedly “scolded” Doe about her behavior with Micucci.
The school’s inaction led Doe to believe Micucci’s behavior was acceptable, the suit states.
In its answer to Doe’s suit, the school denied that Goldman was aware of Micucci’s inappropriate involvement with the girl, and that several staff members were similarly aware yet took no action in response. By and large, though, the school stated that it lacked sufficient knowledge to admit or deny the allegations.
The school’s attorney, Richard Van Nostrand, did not return a message seeking comment.
The suit alleged that Micucci initiated sexual relations with the plaintiff the day after she turned 18, in April of her senior year, and continued to pressure her for sex for the rest of the school year, including on the night of her graduation. He allegedly continued his contacts with her at college.
The plaintiff had believed that Micucci was sexually drawn to her alone, but she later learned through social media contacts with two other former PVPA students that they also had been targets of sexual grooming by Micucci, using the same behaviors alleged by the plaintiff.
Doe informed the school on Dec. 8, 2021, that she would be filing a claim for damages. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Springfield.