Susan Holz v. Nenana City Public School District Terry Bentley Joanne Romero Endil Moore

Plaintiff/Appellant Susan Holz, an Alaskan Native, filed suit against Defendants/Appellees Nenana City Public School District (“School District”) and School District officials. Holz alleged that the defendants violated federal and state civil rights laws by failing to hire her for various positions with the School District. The district court concluded that the School District is an “arm of the state” and thereby immune from suit under the Eleventh Amendment. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants. Holz now appeals the district court’s ruling. Holz contends that the School District is not an “arm of the state” entitled to Eleventh Amendment immunity. Holz argues that the School District is not a state agency, but rather is akin to a local or county agency, most importantly because Alaska is not legally required to satisfy any possible judgment against the School District. And thus Holz argues the district court erred in its ruling. We agree and reverse.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In 1998, Holz, an Alaskan Native and life-long resident of Nenana, applied for a classroom aide position at the Nenana City Public School. The position was…