A lawsuit has been filed in Cuyahoga County against the Lakewood City School District board of education, alleging the board’s deliberations on repurposing schools violated the law.
The suit, filed Monday by the nonprofit Friends of Lakewood Schools, seeks an injunction to halt repurposing of Lincoln Elementary. After more than a year of deliberation, the board voted Oct. 20 to shift that school to an early education center and consolidate students and services at the other six elementary schools.
Parents and community members protested the decision outside Lakewood High School prior to the meeting and spoke out in force during the public comment portion of the meeting.
The suit alleges a district facilities task force convened in 2024 violated Ohio’s public meetings laws because it met in closed sessions, despite including all five board of education members and 13 district employees.
"This case is about a school board that has consistently ignored the fundamental concepts of transparency and openness mandated by the Open Meetings Act," the suit reads.
The lawsuit also alleges that board members illegally conducted public business outside meetings in text and email threads with each other and improperly discussed the facilities plans in closed-door executive sessions. As evidence, it includes public records of text and email conversations between board members and the district's superintendent and treasurer. One text thread between board members from May 2025 shows Vice President Betsy Bergen Shaughnessy responding to President Nora Katzenberger, who shared a news article featuring parent concerns about facilities changes.
“Saw it this morning," Shaughnessy said. "Tired of the focus on parents who can stroll to a school a block away and chat with other parents.”
A district spokesperson said the matter has been referred to the board’s legal counsel but declined to respond to the allegations otherwise.
Friends of Lakewood Schools had threatened legal action earlier this year over the taskforce meetings. The district halted those meetings in response.
On top of halting the repurposing of Lincoln Elementary, the lawsuit also demands a declaration that actions taken while violating the state's Open Meetings Act were "invalid."
The district has said changes to its school layout won't occur until the 2027-2028 school year.
