No glass and no payment: Former employee at Kanye West’s school files lawsuit
Kanye West’s private Christian school had no glass in its windows and dangerous wiring — including exposed telephone and electrical wires, according to a lawsuit filed by a former assistant principal.
In a complaint filed Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, the former employee, Isaiah Meadows, said he brought the issues to West’s attention but they remained unaddressed and Meadows was eventually fired.
This latest action, which also alleges unpaid wages and wrongful termination, comes three months after two former teachers at the school filed a lawsuit against West with similar allegations.
West’s attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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In his lawsuit, Meadows said he raised concerns to West and the school’s director that a skylight in one of the classrooms at what was then Yeezy Christian Academy didn’t have glass. West reportedly disliked glass, according to the lawsuit, and the open skylight allowed rain to fall inside the building.
“Water would soak into the floor, which would lead to a moldy smell for the next few days,” Meadows’ attorneys wrote in the complaint.
Electrical and telephone wires were also left exposed, the suit alleges, and on one occasion an electrical fire started near a student eating area.
Ronald Zambrano, one of Meadows’ attorneys, said many of the issues stemmed from West, who “was always changing things” at the school.
Zambrano said Meadows’ concerns elicited “no reaction” and were “kicked down the road.”
“It is just absolutely egregious what is going on at this school,” Zambrano said in a statement.
In 2020, the lawsuit states, Meadows was offered a $165,000 salary to work at Yeezy Christian Academy. The lawsuit alleges West did not follow through on a promise to pay rent for Meadows, who uprooted his family from North Hollywood to move to Calabasas for the job.
According to the complaint, West informed Meadows that his rent would be paid by the school. While that happened for three months, the payments ended in February 2021 — after, the lawsuit alleges, Meadows “was suspended after calling for meetings and raising concerns regarding operations of the school.”
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Meadows returned to work after approximately two weeks, but his salary was cut and his rent was no longer paid for, according to the complaint.
He allegedly paid around $60,000 in rent and living expenses out of pocket, the complaint said.
In April 2021, Meadows sent an email raising concerns about inconsistent or no pay on behalf of himself and other staff members, according to the complaint.
About four months later, the Yeezy Christian Academy was rechristened Donda Academy, after West’s mother, in Simi Valley. Meadows was demoted, but continued to be employed as a teacher’s assistant and physical education teacher.
There was no electricity at the school for the first few months it was in operation, according to the complaint, and windows were left without glass.
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In August 2022, just before the new school year was set to begin, Meadows was told he was being terminated “with no explanation as to why,” his attorneys wrote.
A separate complaint filed by two former Donda Academy instructors in April alleged students were fed only sushi for lunch, were made to eat on the floor and that staff were not allowed to use cleaning products with chemicals.
Like Meadows, the instructors said they were eventually terminated after raising concerns about conditions at the campus, as well as issues with payments to staff.
As of last February, Donda Academy was listed as active by the California Department of Education at a new location in Chatsworth.
