School District Cleared in Wrongful Termination Suit

The Santa Barbara Unified School District was cleared last week of any wrongdoing in the 2009 firing of former Adams Elementary School principal Marjorie Variano. Variano, who was a popular principal at Adams from April 2007 until her dismissal in the summer of 2009, alleged in her suit against the district that, among other things, her firing was retaliation for her repeated and occasionally public pleas to district officials about the mishandling of special education students at the elementary school. The verdict, which was delivered in federal court, was unanimous.