Another trial date has been adjourned in a nearly seven-year-old lawsuit against Hartland Consolidated Schools filed by a former administrator.

Tracey Sahouri sued the district in 2012, alleging it violated the Whistleblower Protection Act when it removed her as principal from Creekside Elementary School. Sahouri claims her removal as principal and re-assignment to a teaching position was in retaliation for reporting “irregularities” in how the district administered state-mandated student achievement tests. The district contends Sahouri’s re-assignment was based on the conclusions of a state report that determined teachers at Creekside improperly gained access to material from the tests.

Discussions over a possible settlement in the case have failed and a trial that had been scheduled in Genesee County Circuit Court yesterday was again adjourned, this time after the school district filed what’s known as a “Writ of Supervisory Control” with the Michigan Court of Appeals. That document seeks to correct what’s considered an erroneous ruling made by a lower court either when there is no appeal or when an appeal cannot provide adequate relief and it’s believed the ruling will result in a gross injustice.

The motion has been submitted to the Court of Appeal’s motion docket, but no date for oral arguments has been set. (JK)