Dilemma: Right vs. Right
"Walk the Talk" or Avoid Costly Disruption? A School Headmaster's Dilemma
Six high-school seniors at a well-known private school stole copies of their semester exam and used them to study for finals. After a long and painful series of interviews, the headmaster got some of the students to admit what they had done. He called the students' parents in individually and told them their children would receive Fs on the exam and that those who lied about stealing the exam would be expelled from the school.
The parents were upset and angry--first at their children, then at the school. Those whose children were expelled felt the punishment was too harsh. And most felt the headmaster shouldn't have questioned the students--"grilled" them--without their parents' being present to protect their rights.
Two of the parents whose children were being expelled were especially angry. Both were extremely powerful and wealthy; one was a nationally prominent celebrity. They hired a lawyer and threatened to sue the school.
The school's lawyer met with the parents' lawyer. After many days of meetings the school's lawyer came to see the headmaster. He had a proposed settlement: The expelled students would leave the school, but their transcripts would say nothing of the fact that they were expelled and show no grade at all for the final exam or the semester. The only grade on the transcript would be the grade the students were carrying going into the finals. Finally, the headmaster would be restrained from telling anyone about the settlement.
The school's lawyer went on to explain that given some recent rulings in similar cases, he could not be certain that the school would win. He felt it could go either way. Furthermore, he estimated that the cost to the school of defending a suit would be substantial--well in excess of $100,000. Finally, he pointed out that the fame of one of the parents and the high visibility of the school would guarantee that the story would get national coverage--especially in supermarket tabloids.
What should the headmaster do?
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