Discrimination, breach of contract lawsuits have cost TCC more than $160K
The Tarrant County College District has spent tens of thousands of dollars of taxpayer money over the past few years fighting breach of employment contract and employment discrimination lawsuits — including one that cost the college six figures.
The Star-Telegram looked at five lawsuits, though there have been others, to examine how much TCC spends defending itself against litigation. One of the most recent discrimination lawsuits was filed in Tarrant County District Court in April by Kaitlynn Wolf, a registered nurse who was hired in February 2025 to work in TCC’s vocational nursing program.
In court documents, Wolf, who is deaf, alleged the college wouldn’t let her use her service dog in certain clinical settings, and she was told she couldn’t use her preferred closed-captioning application while performing work duties.
Wolf stated in court filings that she agreed to leave her dog at home on days when she’d be performing clinical duties, and she said she attempted to work with her supervisor and human resources to find suitable accommodations, but TCC wouldn’t engage with her. According to Wolf’s court filings, the college characterized her accommodation requests as “roadblocks.”
Wolf resigned after two months citing discrimination and retaliation, according to the court documents. She has demanded a jury trial in the case.
When reached for comment, Wolf’s attorney, Susan Hutchison, with the law firm Hutchison and Foreman, confirmed the suit was pending and said TCC had yet to file a response to Wolf’s complaints.
A spokesperson for the college declined to comment on litigation and personnel matters.
In February, former TCC chancellor Eugene Giovannini sued the college for breach of contract. Giovannini was forced to resign in 2022 following allegations of a relationship with a subordinate. Giovannini has denied those allegations, and in his lawsuit he alleged the college’s investigation before his resignation was “based on a severely compromised process that relied upon falsehoods encouraged, at least in part, by the former General Counsel of TCCD and current and former members of the TCCD Board of Trustees and Foundation Board.”
Giovannini’s attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Legal fees associated with Wolf’s lawsuit and an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint she filed last year have exceeded $8,500. Going back to September 2024, legal fees in the ongoing dispute with Giovannini have reached $4,200.
But there have been significantly higher legal costs associated with lawsuits at the federal level.
In 2024, Jessica Rogers, a former department director at TCC, filed a lawsuit against the college in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas alleging discrimination on the grounds of race, gender and religion.
In court filings, Rogers, who is Black, said she was denied promotions and pay raises that were given to white counterparts over her years working at TCC. She further alleged she was retaliated against after uncovering evidence of ethical violations by former Chief Operating Officer Susan Alanis. According to Rogers, Alanis created a hostile work environment and filed a human resources complaint against Rogers because she didn’t participate in an office Christmas celebration, despite the fact that Rogers practices a faith that doesn’t observe Christmas.
Alanis declined to comment, instead referring the Star-Telegram to TCC.
Since 2024, Rogers’ lawsuit has cost the college nearly $35,000. The racial and gender discrimination claims were dismissed, but Rogers and TCC were ordered to go through mediation to resolve the religious discrimination claim. A settlement or judgment is pending.
A message left for Rogers requesting comment was not returned.
The most expensive lawsuit to date was filed by the plaintiff with the longest tenure at the college. In 2020, longtime TCC instructor and program director Jeff McDonald sued the college for breach of contract, constitutional violations and deprivation of property interests without due process.
According to court filings, McDonald joined TCC in 1980 as an instructor in the Emergency Medical Services program and worked his way up to program director, receiving tenure in 2012. In 2014, he was named Northeast Campus Teacher of the year. But in 2019, McDonald was put on a performance improvement plan (PIP). Among other things, he was accused of being openly critical of college leadership and of failing to respond to or complete directives from college officials.
Shortly after the PIP was initiated, McDonald was removed as program director but continued working for the college in an advisory role. But in March 2020, he was told his contract would not be renewed. In July 202, a tribunal recommended then-chancellor Giovannini reconsider that decision, and in August 2020, McDonald made an appeal to the college’s board of trustees.
That same month, the college offered McDonald a one-year contract, with a salary of $113,229, but TCC rescinded that contract days later, according to McDonald’s court filings. No explanation was given in McDonald’s court filings as to why the contract was rescinded.
The case was dismissed with prejudice in 2021, meaning McDonald can’t refile his lawsuit against TCC. But both parties were still on the hook for their own legal fees, which amounted to just over $113,000 for TCC — roughly the same amount the college would have paid McDonald for his 2020-21 contract — according to records.
Frank Hill, the attorney who represented McDonald in that case, declined to comment.
The final lawsuit the Star-Telegram looked at was filed in 2025 by Michael Russ, the former coordinator of TCC’s intercultural network. The case was referred to mediation, but the lawsuit was dismissed this month because Russ was unable to find local counsel to represent him (he was represented by an attorney out of Pearland). Russ can, however, refile the lawsuit since it was dismissed without prejudice.
In court flings, Russ, who is Black, alleged college officials discriminated against him and retaliated against him by denying him an opportunity for promotion and putting him on a PIP.
Russ filed a discrimination complaint against a college official in 2023, according to court filings, and eight months later he was told his contract with TCC would not be renewed because of “budget shortfalls.” In its response to Russ’ allegations, the college argued the case should be dismissed because Russ didn’t show proof of discrimination, and he failed to file a discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission within 300 days of when the alleged discrimination happened.
Russ did not respond to a request for comment.
The Russ case cost TCC close to $7,000. All told, the college’s legal fees for the five lawsuits exceeded $167,000.