A tiny East County school district is facing big‑league scrutiny after its former principal filed a whistleblower retaliation lawsuit claiming she was pushed out for raising red flags about safety, sanitation and attendance‑funding practices.
Former Dehesa School principal Natoshia Bartley alleges in a new civil complaint that she was fired in June 2025 after repeatedly reporting problems inside the rural district. She says she first sounded the alarm internally, then to county officials and an outside investigator, only to see her authority stripped before the school board ultimately showed her the door.
Allegations in the complaint
The lawsuit states that Bartley, who was promoted to principal with board approval in September 2024, arrived on campus to find a list of troubling issues. Among them, she says, were rat droppings on campus, staff allegedly giving students medication without proper documentation, missing or inadequate safety plans and inconsistent English‑language development instruction.
The complaint also alleges that attendance records were fabricated, a problem Bartley says was later confirmed in a state audit and one that could have cost taxpayers nearly $1 million. According to the filing, she reported her concerns to district supervisors, the San Diego County Office of Education and a third‑party investigator. The Dehesa School District has rejected the allegations and indicated the case is likely headed for trial, according to a report by NBC 7 San Diego.
Attorney: “Riddled with violation of California law”
Speaking at a press conference outside the school, Bartley’s attorney John Gomez painted a stark picture of the environment his client says she walked into…