Jones v. Oklahoma City Public Schools

Judy Jones (plaintiff) was the Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Oklahoma City Public Schools (OKC) (defendant). In 2007, John Porter became the new superintendent of OKC. Porter eliminated Jones’s executive director position, claiming it was for budgetary reasons. However, Porter did not consult OKC’s senior finance officer before terminating Jones. Jones was reassigned as an elementary school principal, resulting in a substantial reduction in pay, retirement benefits, vacation benefits, and status within OKC’s hierarchy. Jones was 59 years old when she was reassigned. Shortly after Jones was reassigned, OKC created a new position, Executive Director of Teaching and Learning, which was substantially similar to Jones’s eliminated position, and hired a 47-year-old individual to fill it. Jones sued OKC under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), arguing that she was demoted because of her age. Jones testified that OKC had inquired about her retirement plans before eliminating her position and that, despite citing budgetary concerns, the funding for Jones’s eliminated position remained on OKC’s books after her position was eliminated. OKC moved for summary judgment, arguing that Jones failed to prove OKC demoted her solely because of her age. The district court granted summary judgment to OKC, holding that Jones failed to present evidence of age discrimination beyond proving OKC’s stated nondiscriminatory reason for her demotion-by-transfer was pretextual. Jones appealed.