Elite $63K a year private school sued for ‘racially discriminating’ against the two daughters of Transportation commissioner

New York City Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez is suing a top private school for racial discrimination against his two daughters.

Rodriguez’s daughter was discriminated against at the elite Ethical Culture Fieldston School in the Bronx, the shocking lawsuit alleges.

Rodriguez and his high-flying Department of Education director wife claim the $63,000-a-year school discriminated against their oldest daughter, now 16, and have retaliated against the family by expelling their younger daughter, 10 years old.

The institution ‘deliberately and willfully discriminated against persons of color’. . . and knowingly and intentionally retaliating against persons of color. . . who complained about racism at the school,’ says the family’s suit filed in June.

The children also suffered a “racially charged school atmosphere” from white students who were repeatedly racist, who committed biased acts that went unpunished, the legal filings said.

Rodriguez (right) and his high-flying Department of Education director (second from left) are suing the $63,000-a-year Ethical Culture Fieldston School in the Bronx

It is the latest in a series of lawsuits facing the elite New York institution (pictured)

Racist acts included white students leaving watermelons in a black administrator’s office in 2016 and recording themselves using the N-word in a song in 2018.

The parents also allege ninth-grade math teacher Stephanie Weber forced their oldest daughter and other students of color to complete their tests in class, but allowed white children to take them home.

The teacher, Stephanie Weber, also allegedly mocked the teenager in front of her classmates’ peers while ignoring white students when they behaved similarly.

The day after Melendez complained to the school, Weber falsely accused Rodriguez’s older daughter of cheating on an in-class exercise, according to the lawsuit.

When the taunting continued, the teenager, who had attended the school since kindergarten in 2012, withdrew from Fieldston shortly before the end of the semester, court documents state.

When Melendez complained, Principal Joe Algrant responded by expelling her younger daughter in September 2022, just before the start of fourth grade.

The suit claims the younger sister was punished to “send a clear message to other students and families of color at the school that criticism of the school’s racially hostile environment will have serious consequences.”

The case is one of at least four discrimination lawsuits filed against the progressive school in the past three years.

Racist acts at the school have reportedly included white students leaving watermelons in a black administrator’s office in 2016 and recording themselves using the N-word in a song in 2018.

Earlier this year, a pair of black alumni filed separate lawsuits against Fieldston alleging they endured racial harassment from teachers and peers

Earlier this year, a pair of black alumni filed separate lawsuits against Fieldston alleging they endured racial harassment from teachers and peers during their time there.

In 2021, a Fieldston alumni alleged that the school did not provide her black children with the same academic opportunities as their white classmates, in addition to not adequately punishing white students who engaged in racist behavior.

A spokesperson for Fieldston told the New York Post that many of the allegations included in the case date back to 2016 and have since been addressed by the school.

“We take all allegations of this nature extremely seriously and ECFS prioritizes our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion by striving to create a welcoming environment where all students can excel,” the spokesperson said, adding that the school recently announced its Community and Social Impact’ department.