The registrar at St. Joseph High School in Orcutt has filed a lawsuit in Santa Barbara County Superior Court claiming that the principal ordered her to alter transcripts for students, including athletes and her daughter.

The lawsuit named Connie Plata as the plaintiff and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Education and Welfare Corp. (doing business as St. Joseph High) along with Erinn Dougherty, head of school and principal since June 2018, plus multiple unnamed individuals as defendants.

Plata began the job at the Catholic school campus in Orcutt on July 1, 2020, after previously working at St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic School in Santa Maria. She had worked for the archdiocese since 2012.

The complaint, filed by attorney Amber Simmons, contends that the defendants on multiple occasions asked Plata “to falsely inflate multiple students’ grades and falsify official high school records,” including those reported to colleges and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. 

When Plata “refused to break the law and falsely inflate student grades and fraudulently revise official transcripts,” the principal marched into the registrar’s office and began to yell and belittle the woman for not following the commands, according to the complaint.

“Late into the fall 2023 semester, Connie could hear Dougherty angrily ride her golf cart at SJHS down the hall from the administration building … to a teacher’s classroom,” the complaint said. 

According to the lawsuit, Plata claimed she heard “Dougherty yelling and berating an SJHS religious studies teacher for giving Dougherty’s child a ‘B’ grade on a test and demanded that the teacher immediately change her daughter’s grade to an ‘A.’”

Last year, Plata said, a higher-education institution contacted her regarding a “revised” transcript for one of the former student-athletes. The revisions meant the individual had greater eligibility to attend and play sports for the college. 

Plata maintained that she “never revised the transcript for this student, even though Dougherty specifically asked” the woman to  inflate the grades.

Plata believed that the principal used her “administrative and unfettered access to official student records” to falsify the student’s records, according to the complaint.

The lawsuit contends that Dougherty ordered Plata to add A grades on various college courses to specific student transcripts.

“Connie refused to do so without the proper documentation from the higher-education institution, which angered defendants, specifically Dougherty, and caused Dougherty to harass, discriminate and/or retaliate against Connie.”

Plata reportedly notified the archdiocese, according to the lawsuit. 

Instead, her job duties were downsized with any roles related to admissions removed.

A civil lawsuit includes only one side of the allegations, and the defendants are expected to file a formal response in court within the next several weeks. 

“The Archdiocese and the school do not comment on pending litigation. The Archdiocese is following appropriate protocols to continue to review the issues raised in the litigation,” according to a statement.

The lawsuit alleges several violations of the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, failure to investigate or prevent the acts against Plata, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. 

The lawsuit seeks general and compensatory damages, economic damages, noneconomic damages, attorneys fees, lawsuit costs and other equitable relief. 

The case has been assigned to Santa Maria Judge Jed Beebe, with the first case management conference set for 8:30 a.m. May 29. 

 St. Joseph High opened in 1964 and is the northernmost Catholic high school in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.