AMHERST, Mass. – A former Massachusetts math teacher filed a complaint with the State Department of Discrimination this week over racist graffiti messages left around school last year that allegedly led to her post-traumatic stress disorder.

Carolyn Gardner

Carolyn Gardner, who taught math at Amherst Regional High School, was diagnosed with PTSD in May after racist graffiti messages targeting her were left at different locations around the school on four separate occasions last year. A threatening note left at the school was also signed with Gardner’s name, MassLive.com reports.

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The notes were left in the boys’ and girls’ bathrooms, and on the nameplate of her class door, but no one was ever charged with a crime, Gazette.net reports.

Gardner, who is black, was initially placed on paid administrative leave with the intention of returning to her position this fall, but informed the district on Aug. 12 that she wouldn’t be returning because of her condition, after which district officials placed her on unpaid medical leave, according to the news site.

Gardner’s attorneys allege they attempted to work out a deal with district officials, but were rejected, so they filed a discrimination complaint against the district this week and issued a press release alleging that those “responsible for her mistreatment made it impossible for her to return.”

“After we made clear our desire to discuss other alternatives, the District unilaterally placed Ms. Gardner on unpaid medical leave due to its unwillingness to ‘leave her situation in limbo,’” the press release said, according to MassLive.

Her attorneys allege district attorneys requested possible remedies and a written settlement proposal, then rejected the allegations of mistreatment as “baseless” and refused mediation.

School officials, meanwhile, contend they offered Gardner a different position she was qualified for, and countered her attorneys’ large financial settlement with a smaller offer.

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District attorney Regina Williams Tate told MassLive the counter offer was “flatly rejected by the attorneys for Ms. Gardner because the offer, while substantial, was significantly less than the excessive level of compensation requested by the attorneys for Ms. Gardner.”

Tate said “the district is surprised that Ms. Gardner’s attorneys released a statement to the press about a pending legal matter,” and noted “an alternative position, for which she was licensed and qualified, was offered to her; her attorneys declined to accept the other position on her behalf.”

Gardner attorney Luke Ryan countered that “our complaint addresses the problems with the other positions our client was encouraged to seek and the take-it-or-leave-it settlement proposal the District made 47 days after unilaterally placing our client on an unpaid leave,” the news site reports.

The press release issued by Gardner’s attorneys upon filing the discrimination complaint Monday states the former teacher, who is the sole provider for her 21-year-old autistic son, opted not to file a lawsuit because she “was in no position to engage in costly and time-consuming litigation,” according to the news site.

The statement also alleges “that our adversarial legal system is ill equipped to heal the wounds inflicted upon her and the larger community.”

Many who commented on the MassLive story clearly believe Gardner is simply looking for a payday.

“This is hilarious!” Nbefor Belair posted. “Hey wait, I think I just got PTSD from reading this story … Quick, gimme some money!”

“Gardner is just another ‘gimmie girl’ playing the ultra liberal system in never never land,” Orebil posted.

“Throw it against the wall and see if it sticks. It doesn’t cost you anything to file a claim with MCAD. The taxpayers foot the bill. If you fail, the taxpayers paid to handle your phony claim,” fpneighbor3 wrote. “If you succeed, the taxpayers paid to get themselves screwed to pay you off.

“Isn’t the People’s Socialist Republic of Taxachusetts a great place to live?”