Assisted living manager claims race prevented promotion to director

GALVESTON � Sharon A. Jackson believes she was passed over for a key position with her employer because of her race, recent court documents say.

According to a lawsuit filed Feb. 15 in the Galveston Division of the Southern District of Texas, HRA Village Inc. turned the plaintiff down when she applied to be its executive director citing a lack of prerequisite college training. The suit states, however, that the Texas City assisted living facility hired a white woman with no college education for the position.

Jackson, who is African-American, worked as a general manager for the defendant since 2003. She applied for the executive director's job in 2007.

The suit shows the executive director position required a master's degree, but insists that plaintiff "has had substantial experience and could have effectively performed the duties of the position" despite possessing only an associate's degree.

Jackson argues that the defendant told her she was rejected because of her educational background only to choose someone with no college experience, suspecting race to be a factor.

Consequently, she seeks unspecified monetary damages.

Attorney Glendon B. Adams of Stafford is representing the plaintiff, and U.S. District Court Judge Kenneth M. Hoyt is presiding over the case.

Case No. 3:11-cv-00081