KIRKLAND — A Lake Stevens woman has filed a claim against Lake Washington Technical College in Kirkland alleging that one of her instructors sexually harassed her and school officials failed to take proper action against the teacher.
The claim was filed this week with the state Attorney General’s Office. The woman is asking for $300,000 in damages.
A claim for damages often is a precursor to a lawsuit.
The woman, 24, alleges that beginning in December 2008 her architectural graphics instructor and work study supervisor made unwanted sexual advances, sent her hundreds of inappropriate text messages and e-mails and gave her gifts, according to the claim.
The woman filed a sexual harassment complaint with the school in March and the instructor was put on paid administrative leave while the college investigated.
College officials found that the instructor violated the school’s policies on sexual harassment, conflict of interest and abuses of power, according to the claim. Despite its findings, the instructor was allowed to keep his job. The woman was forced to modify her class schedule and receive private instruction from one of the man’s colleagues. The arrangement isolated the woman from her peers and deprived her of a normal college experience, according to the claim.
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