The former executive director and chief executive officer of the University of the Virgin Islands Research and Technology Park filed a lawsuit against his former employer this week, alleging statutory violations and retaliation under the so-called “Whistleblowers Protection Act.”
The complaint was filed on behalf of Peter Chapman, who became the public-private entity’s executive director in September 2018. Chapman’s contract was renewed for a three-year term in 2021, but the RTPark Board voted against renewing his contract a second time during a meeting in April.
According to the complaint, which was filed in V.I. District Court on Tuesday, the RTPark’s revenue tripled under Chapman’s leadership. At the same time, Chapman “often found himself in the unenviable position of having to fend off efforts by members of the Board — the RTPark’s statutory governing body — to divert large additional sums of RTPark money for UVI’s myriad interests, including the medical school project.”
RTPark Board Chair Edward Thomas is also named as a defendant.
The UVI Research and Technology Park was established in 2002 “to promote economic growth, development and diversification of the Virgin Islands and the broadening of the capabilities of the University of the Virgin Islands,” according to Title 17 of the V.I. Code. As an autonomous instrument of the Virgin Islands government, the RTPark offers tax exemptions and reductions.
According to the complaint, university representatives and Thomas “demonstrated a clear disregard for the key tenets of Title 17” when they advocated for the interests of UVI over the interests of the RTPark. The board allegedly based their decision-making on a non-statutory document referred to in the complaint as the “Guiding Principles.”
Chapman further claimed that the board retaliated against him by reducing and withholding bonuses — and ultimately not renewing his employment.
The attorney representing Chapman, Scot McChain of McChain Hamm and Associates, told the Source on Wednesday that when someone sits on two boards, “and you’ve got a fiduciary duty on both boards to do your best on behalf of the organization — if there’s a conflict between the two boards and their obligations to each of the entities, it’s a structural problem.”
The primary focus of the lawsuit is compensatory damages, McChain said, and Chapman is seeking “monetary damages, legal fees and costs, pre-and post-judgment interest, and such other relief as this court may deem fair and just,” according to the complaint.
“But I think above and beyond that,” McChain said, “Mr. Chapman is concerned about the proper operation of the RTPark board — and to the extent that there are ways to reform the operations of the statutes and reform the operations of the board, that would certainly be considered in any settlement discussion as a desirable outcome.”
Attempts to reach Thomas on Wednesday were not successful. Sydney Paul, associate marketing and communications director for the RTPark, told the Source that the matter has been referred to their legal counsel.
“Our ability to comment publicly or privately on the matter is very limited,” she said. “We’re just following instructions from legal counsel.”
