The president of the Saint Paul teachers union is publicly lecturing city leaders about protecting families after an ICE operation — even as allegations of abuse involving her adopted children in her home continue to shadow her leadership.
In a November 25 letter, Leah VanDassor, president of the Saint Paul Federation of Educators (SPFE), condemned last week’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operation and accused the St. Paul Police Department of being complicit in “separating families” and causing “harm.”
“The Saint Paul Police Department did not come to protect the children in the home,” VanDassor stated, Crime Watch first reported. “They have made the choice to do the wrong thing. Shame on them.”
VanDassor’s moral outrage drew accusations of hypocrisy from community members who say the contradiction is hard to ignore.
They cite Alpha News’ earlier reporting, which includes allegations from VanDassor’s adopted daughter that VanDassor ignored years of sexual abuse by her then-husband — convicted sex offender Russ VanDassor — and allegedly committed physical abuse herself, all while serving as a mandated reporter and teacher. Police reports obtained by Alpha News corroborate key elements of the daughter’s account.
Community members decry VanDassor
On Facebook, St. Paul Public Schools (SPPS) advocate and educator Mercedes Yarbrough wrote in a Nov. 28 post that her inbox was “flooded” after she reposted Alpha News’ reporting on VanDassor the day before.
“People confirm[ed] the details. The documents were real. The harm was real,” Yarbrough wrote regarding allegations of abuse of the VanDassors’ Black adopted children.
Yarbrough said she contacted SPPS leadership about the allegations and was met with “silence” and deflection — despite the fact that SPFE members work inside SPPS buildings and directly impact students.
She wrote: “How can Black and Brown families trust SPFE or SPPS when leadership ignores harm done to Black children? Why is [VanDassor] still SPFE president months after this became public?”
Another commenter, Margaret Sullivan — who said she is an SPPS alum, educator, and parent — posted that she was “shocked and appalled” that VanDassor remains in leadership.
In a message to SPFE, Sullivan wrote that it was “unfathomable” anyone facing such allegations would still hold a position involving children. She called on SPFE to remove VanDassor and issue a public explanation and apology.
School board member deflects, calls Alpha News ‘racist Trump supporters’
St. Paul school board member Chauntyll Allen also weighed in on Yarbrough’s post — not so much to address the allegations against VanDassor, but to attack Alpha News.
“They are literally the racist Trump supporters,” Allen wrote, referring to Alpha News.
Allen told Yarbrough that the school board isn’t responsible for addressing the allegations against VanDassor since SPFE is a separate organization and that she would not interrupt her meal to respond.
“Everything cannot be our responsibility to manage, especially while I’m smacking on ribs with my family,” Allen wrote.
Allen has a history of using language critics describe as racially charged. Alpha News previously reported that she once described school resource officers as a “white supremacist solution.”
Another commenter, Donna Braids — who identified herself as a parent in the Black community — responded to Allen: “You expect people to trust you with their kids and [you’re] calling Trump supporters racist? I’m a Trump supporter and believe it or not I’m not racist.”
Destiny VanDassor says her adoptive mother ignored years of abuse
Alpha News first reported earlier this year that one of VanDassor’s adopted daughters, Destiny, now 29, alleges her adoptive father — convicted sex offender Russ VanDassor —began sexually abusing her shortly after she joined the home around age seven — and alleges that Leah VanDassor, then a SPPS teacher and mandated reporter, knew about it but did nothing.
“I’m trying to make sense of it — how a mandated reporter, a foster mom, an adoptive mom, hears a child say, ‘he’s molesting me,’ and doesn’t do anything?” Destiny told Alpha News.
Destiny recounted incidents where Russ would sexually abuse her and force her to watch pornography. She said she and her siblings found printed child pornography in the house — material they brought to Leah, only to see nothing change.
Destiny alleges that Leah was physically abusive to her and her siblings — allegations consistent with a police report noting bruises and first-hand accounts that she hit the children.
Alpha News uncovered police reports, spanning 2007 to 2013, and they paint the same picture: children reporting physical abuse by Leah, sexual abuse by Russ, and a system that failed to act.
“The system failed us,” said Destiny. “There were a lot of people that I told, that we all told, and for us to have go through all that questioning with police, CPS, DCFS, and all these therapists and to not see results—it’s as if no one cared and everyone was trying to cover it up.”
Destiny said her eventual breaking point came when she claims she walked in on Russ sexually abusing a younger sibling. She ran away and eventually reunited with her biological mother, where she has lived ever since.
Russ VanDassor later convicted of attempted criminal sexual conduct
In 2019, Russ VanDassor was arrested and convicted after attempting to sexually assault an 11-year-old boy in the home.
A criminal complaint describes the disturbing details which included Russ pulling an 11-year-old boy’s pants down and asking if he could “suck [his] penis.” Police also found photos of the boy with his genitals exposed on Russ’s cellphone.
Even so, court documents show that Leah appears to have stood by Russ.
January 2020 court documents filed by Russ’s attorney in that case state that “Leah Van Dassor, Mr. Van Dassor’s wife, remains supportive of him, despite her hurt and confusion regarding the offense … She continues to visit him at the jail and speak with him over the phone.”
Russ was sentenced to 72 months in prison. Leah, who was married to Russ from 1995 to 2019, filed for divorce before his sentencing.
“Her career was taking off, that’s why she finally divorced him,” claims Destiny.
Leah went on to be elected SPFE union president in 2021.
Where things stand now
Alpha News reached out to Destiny for comment on the renewed attention surrounding her adoptive mother’s public statements.
In a statement to Alpha News, Destiny said: “What is the difference between tearing apart families and allowing kids under her care to be traumatized and sexually assaulted? You can’t fight one battle and ignore the other. She should have been just as loud about her husband’s actions as she is about politics.”
Destiny hopes the renewed scrutiny will finally prompt accountability from district leaders and the union that continues to support VanDassor.
She is currently seeking a civil rights attorney and hopes to file a civil lawsuit.
A St. Paul police spokesperson previously told Alpha News the cases like Destiny’s cannot be reopened because the statute of limitations in effect at the time has expired.
As for SPFE, the union has never commented on the allegations against VanDassor, who also has never responded to any Alpha News inquiries.
Alpha News reached out to St. Paul Public Schools but did not receive a response.
Leah VanDassor has not been charged with any crime.
Jenna Gloeb
Jenna Gloeb is an Edward R. Murrow Award-winning journalist, media producer, public speaker, and screenwriter. Most recently, she worked as a reporter and on-air host for CCX Media. Jenna is a Minnesota native and resides in the Twin Cities with her husband, son, daughter, and two dogs.
