Cox v. Guilford Cty Educ

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 96-2824
LEMUEL H. COX,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
versus
GUILFORD COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION,
Defendant - Appellee,
and
JOHN WRIGHT, as an agent of Guilford County
Schools,
Defendant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle Dis-
trict of North Carolina, at Greensboro. Frank W. Bullock, Jr.,
Chief District Judge. (CA-95-678-2)
Argued: June 6, 1997 Decided: July 1, 1997
Before WILKINSON, Chief Judge, MICHAEL, Circuit Judge, and MICHAEL,
Senior United States District Judge for the Western District of
Virginia, sitting by designation.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
ARGUED: Angela Newell Gray, GRAY, NEWELL & JOHNSON, L.L.P., Greens-
boro, North Carolina, for Appellant. Patricia Ellen Dowds, WOMBLE,
CARLYLE, SANDRIDGE & RICE, Charlotte, North Carolina, for Appellee.
ON BRIEF: Jim D. Cooley, WOMBLE, CARLYLE, SANDRIDGE & RICE, Char-
lotte, North Carolina; Jill R. Wilson, BROOKS, PIERCE, MCLENDON,
HUMPHREY & LEONARD, L.L.P., Greensboro, North Carolina, for
Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
See Local Rule 36(c).
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PER CURIAM:
In 1993, by mandate of the General Assembly of North Carolina,
three public school systems -- the Guilford County Schools, the
Greensboro City Schools, and the High Point City Schools -- were
merged into one administrative unit, called the Guilford County
Schools. The merger required a reduction in the administrative
staff. At the time of the merger plaintiff-appellant Lemuel H.
Cox, age fifty-eight, was curriculum specialist in health and phy-
sical education for the Greensboro City Schools. He applied for
that same administrative job in the newly merged system, but it was
awarded (on the recommendation of a selection committee) to a
thirty-one-year-old woman. Cox was reassigned to a position teach-
ing physical education, and he resigned after about a year. Cox
then sued the Guilford County Board of Education, alleging that he
was rejected for the curriculum specialist’s position in the merged
system because of his age in violation of the Age Discrimination in
Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq., and that he was construc-
tively discharged in violation of North Carolina General Statute
§ 143-422.2. The district court granted summary judgment to the
Board on both claims, and Cox appeals. After reviewing the joint
appendix and considering the briefs and arguments of counsel, we
affirm on the thorough and well-reasoned opinion of the district
court. See Cox v. Guilford County Bd. of Educ., No. 2:95CV678
(M.D.N.C. Dec. 10, 1996).
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AFFIRMED
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