Wachusett Ski School In Discrimination Suit After Good Deed

[Zand]

From Worcester T&G:

A frustrated David Crowley said he knows why it takes $20 billion to run Massachusetts — the state is now operating the ski schools.

As general manager of Wachusett Mountain Associates, Mr. Crowley prides himself on his ability to oversee a busy recreation spot that provides affordable ski lessons to thousands of local kids. Last winter, the staff went out of its way to make sure that one child in particular received quality instruction.

But the state has called such “quality instruction” something else — discrimination.



Last winter, the parents of an 11-year-old boy signed him up for group ski lessons. At the first session, the boy was late and the class had already left for the slopes, so he was linked with a certified instructor who worked with him one-on-one.

“I had a lot of trouble with him paying attention to me,” said the instructor, Bob Gaetz. “He’d swing around to look at something and his poles would go flying. He’d whack people in the head with his poles on the chairlift. I had all I could do to keep him focused and safe. I had to talk to him constantly.”

After that session, Mr. Gaetz met the boy’s mother. She told him that her son had special needs and expressed her gratitude that he was receiving individual attention, said Mr. Gaetz, who also had determined that the boy couldn’t function safely in a group lesson. So the staff decided that one-on-one attention was the way to go.

Mr. Crowley felt pretty good about it. After all, the boy was receiving private lessons, which typically cost $65 an hour, at no additional charge. The child was happy, his mother was pleased, and the class proceeded with no disruption. Most important, everyone was safe, Mr. Crowley said.

“That’s our main priority when you’re running a ski school that involves thousands of children,” he said. “It’s not like you’re teaching math. It can be dangerous if not done properly.”

By the second or third lesson, the boy’s father called Richard Patrick, assistant director of the ski learning center, and said he wanted his son mainstreamed into a group lesson. Mr. Patrick told the father that he’d observe the boy’s behavior on the slopes, but by the time he got to the class, the boy had already gone out again with Mr. Gaetz. After that, he said, the boy never showed up for another ski lesson.

But things were about to go downhill. In March of this year, the boy’s father filed a complaint with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, saying Wachusett Mountain subjected his child to “unlawful discrimination” by refusing to provide him with reasonable accommodations for his handicaps, which include Attention Deficit Disorder, learning disabilities and neurobehavioral disorder.

“I was dumbfounded,” said Mr. Patrick. “We weren’t told ahead of time that the boy had ADD, and we more than accommodated him. The kid was doing great and was as happy as a clam. It never crossed my mind that anyone would complain that his child got one-on-one lessons.”

But the staff would get another shock — last week, Wachusett Mountain was notified that the MCAD found probable cause to believe that it had discriminated against the boy. Both parties and their lawyers are required to attend a “conciliation conference” Jan. 23 in Springfield to explore “voluntary resolution.”

Mr. Crowley, who is busy running a business, isn’t sure he’ll make the meeting after already spending part of the summer compiling statements from his staff and working with his lawyer on a frivolous case that’s making a mountain out of a molehill.

“I think we’ve gone above and beyond the call of duty here,” he said. “This should be filed under, ‘No good deed goes unpunished.’ Generally, if you treat someone fairly and well, the law will be on your side. This is the most bizarre thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Noting Deval Patrick’s pledged support for business in the Bay State, he added, “I wonder if the governor is paying attention to things like this. You’re trying to run a business, and this stuff can make you crazy.”

 

[Hawkshot99]

Repost

 

[Zand]

Sorry... might as well just delete this... didn't read enough topics today I guess haha.

 

[bvibert]

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