Third former teacher of Ye’s Christian private school, Donda Academy, is suing Kanye West and the Donda Academy. She claims that the building she worked in was unsafe and was fired after parents complained that her classroom was lacking books.
The allegations made by Timanii Meeks in an amended complaint filed Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court add to the troubling portrait of the school painted in a suit brought earlier this year against it by Cecilia Hailey, a former teacher, and Chekarey Bryers, a former student.
Meeks, Hailey and Byers were all represented by the same law firm and claimed that their terminations were retaliatory. Hailey and Byers’ suit will include Meeks’ allegations, as provided by the firm to NBC News.
Ron Zambrano said that “clearly, Ye has an enormous problem with this school and the addition Ms. Meek to the complaint reinforces the nightmare conditions for both staff and students of Donda Academy.”
He continued: “Ms. Meeks was terminated months before Cecilia Hailey or Chekarey byers, but they all witnessed the same illegal code violations and misconduct at the school. They were all treated the same way for standing up for students’ rights.
Donda Academy, a school that teaches kindergarten to 12th grade students, , promotes an education that is based on the “passion, purpose, and spiritual foundations” they need to succeed in the world of tomorrow, according to their website.
The academy does not appear in the directory of accredited private schools.
According to the complaint Meeks started working at the Southern California School last August as a substitute math teacher with the intention of obtaining a full-time theater position.
When Meeks brought up exposed electrical wiring, loose floorboards, and other safety hazards – as well as “significant” issues with bullying and assaults – administrators told her that they were “working out the kinks.” They described the school as an “work in progress.”
The lawsuit states that in October, parents who attended Meeks’ classroom complained about the lack of books, textbooks, or “any sort of educational item that would normally be found in a class.”
According to the lawsuit, Meeks was reprimanded by the former principal of the school after receiving complaints.
The lawsuit claims that on Oct. 12, the staffing company who placed Meeks at Donda told her the school had ordered her to stop teaching there, even though she was expected to continue to work until at least the end the year.
According to the complaint, Meeks is still employed by the staffing agency.
A request for comment from Ye was not responded to on Wednesday. Lawyers for both the school and the former officials named in this lawsuit did not respond to requests for comments, neither did the current principal of the school.
Byers and Haley claimed in their complaint of April that Donda had many problems. It lacked a proper discipline system, yet students were subjected severe bullying.
According to the complaint only sushi was available for lunch, and was not allowed to wear Adidas, or Nike shoes. The complaint states that students were not allowed to leave the building, and they weren’t allowed use forks, utensils or go outside.
Byers and Hailey started working at the school around a month after Meeks claimed she had been terminated. Zambrano claimed in his lawsuit that the two were terminated in March as a result of their complaints against Donda and her “unlawful, unsafe educational practices”.
Zambrano claimed that Byers and Hailey were the victims of racial discrimination and had their wages illegally withheld. They were also repeatedly paid in an incorrect manner.
Donda Academy closed in October after the fallout of antisemitic remarks Ye made. California’s Department of Education records showed that the school was active on Wednesday. It wasn’t known when the school reopened.
