Springdale School District Settles Sexual Assault Lawsuit for $200,000

LITTLE ROCK, AR — The Springdale School District has agreed to pay $185,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by a former student who accused a former assistant principal of sexual assault.

The settlement was approved unanimously by the Springdale School Board at a special meeting on Friday, resolving claims brought by former student Alissa Cawood. As part of the settlement terms, former principal Joseph Rollins will also personally pay Cawood an additional $15,000. Both the district and Rollins continue to deny any wrongdoing.

Cawood’s lawsuit, filed in 2022, alleged that the then-assistant principal, Mark Oesterle, engaged in grooming behavior that led to multiple incidents of sexual harassment and assault while she was a student. The suit further claimed that Rollins and district officials knew about the abuse but failed to intervene.

Josh Gillispie of Gillispie Law Firm, who represented Cawood, described the settlement as a meaningful step toward accountability.

“This result is particularly significant because it’s a public school district. In Arkansas, public schools are able to avoid responsibility in situations like this 99.9% of the time. Often they can achieve this by hiding behind legal loopholes like sovereign immunity. But it is only when they suffer real negative consequences for their failures to protect kids, like in this case, that public school districts will be motivated to make positive changes to keep kids safe.”

Oesterle, who left the district in 2016, later pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault related to multiple incidents involving teenage students. He is currently facing additional charges for failing to comply with sex offender registration requirements.

The settlement closes a painful chapter for Cawood but sends a broader message, according to Gillispie.

“Public schools in Arkansas must make the prevention of sexual misconduct by staff a top priority, or children will continue to be assaulted.”

The financial settlement resolves all claims made in the lawsuit, and Cawood agreed to dismiss the case with prejudice.

Gillispie, who focuses his practice on representing survivors of child sexual abuse, emphasized that while justice can never fully make a survivor whole, it can restore agency and help spark change.