Heather Robertson, a former employee of a private school network, has filed a lawsuit alleging gender discrimination and retaliation. On October 27, 2025, Robertson filed the complaint in the Superior Court of California for Sacramento County against Spring Education Group, Inc., Boby John, and other unnamed defendants.
The case revolves around Robertson’s employment as Assistant Principal and Director of Preschool at Merry Hill Preschool and Elementary in Roseville, California. She claims that during her tenure from October 2023 to June 2025, she faced continuous harassment and retaliation after reporting unlawful practices by her supervisor, Boby John. According to the complaint, John allegedly manipulated teachers’ timecards to avoid paying overtime and used gift cards as compensation instead of wages. Despite her attempts to address these issues internally with John’s superiors like Connie Shipley and Kayci Stephens, Robertson alleges that her complaints were dismissed or ignored.
Robertson asserts that John’s behavior was discriminatory towards female employees, demanding obedience and retaliating against those who opposed him. She describes incidents where John left students unattended or attempted to misuse non-profit funds without board approval. Her persistent opposition led to an increasingly hostile work environment culminating in her termination under pretextual reasons linked to alleged poor relations with John.
In response to these grievances, Robertson seeks damages for lost wages and emotional distress under several legal grounds including violations of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), California Labor Code Section 1102.5 regarding whistleblower protections, wrongful termination in violation of public policy, and unfair competition laws. The lawsuit demands punitive damages against the defendants for their malicious conduct and requests attorney fees under FEHA provisions.
Representing Heather Robertson are attorneys C. Genevieve Jenkins and Zainah Alfi from Excelsis Law P.C., while the case is presided over by Judge S. Decker under Case No: [redacted].
Source: 25CV025538_Heather_Robertson_v_Spring_Education_County_of_Sacramento_California.pdf
