A federal jury in Fort Worth has ordered Trinity Valley School to pay its former human resources director just over $10 million after finding the private school retaliated against her and defamed her in the wake of a teacher sex abuse scandal. The jury determined that Trinity Valley School retaliated against and defamed Carrie Skains after she spoke out about sex discrimination at the school, awarding damages for mental health harm, reputational harm, unpaid wages and benefits, and exemplary damages.
Skains, a former human resources director at Trinity Valley School, filed her federal employment lawsuit on December 30, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, alleging Title VII sex discrimination and retaliation, according to GovInfo. The case was later transferred to the Fort Worth Division. As reported by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Skains first filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which determined she had the right to sue over discrimination.
What the Jury Found
According to the Star-Telegram’s reporting, the jury found that statements made about Skains in a school board letter were false and defamatory, and that Trinity Valley School published those statements with intent to harm her. The letter had stated that administrators were concerned sharing the allegation against former piano teacher Trent Muse would be detrimental to him if the exposure had been accidental. The jury’s finding directly contradicts the conclusions of a third-party investigation the school commissioned, which found that Skains and other administrators had largely kept the initial allegation against Muse to themselves.
Skains also alleged that Trinity Valley’s chief financial officer, Adam Wojtelwicz, berated her and other female employees, and that he spoke so severely to her on at least one occasion that she was reduced to tears. The Star-Telegram’s account notes Skains accused Wojtelwicz of increasing her workload and that of other female employees without extra compensation, while male employees received more money when their workloads were increased. The verdict can still be appealed by either party.
The Muse Scandal at the Center of the Case
The case grew out of the fallout over Trent Muse, a former Trinity Valley piano teacher who was arrested and charged with inappropriate conduct with children. Muse pleaded guilty in 2025 to five counts of indecency with a child by exposure, stemming from conduct during private piano lessons in the 2022–2023 academic year, and was sentenced to 10 years in prison — the statutory maximum, prosecutors noted, according to CBS News…