Nick Cottone and Kate Ridgeway - Fraud, Abuse and Ongoing Retaliation Against Me and My Children

 TO: Dr. Aaron Spence (Superintendent); Loudoun County School Board; LCPS HRTD

CC: Tedra Richardson (Asst. Superintendent); Paige Carter (Director of Special Ed)

FROM: Steven Rubis

DATE: January 5, 2026

SUBJECT: FORMAL SUPPLEMENT: Unified Evidence of a Three-Year Pattern of Fraud and Retaliation (2023–2025)

To the LCPS Leadership Team:

This filing serves as a unified supplement to my active workforce complaints. The evidence presented herein documents a persistent, multi-year campaign of administrative hostility across two school years (2023-24 and 2025-26), involving both Principal Nick Cottone and Dr. Kate Ridgeway.

I. THE 2023 FOUNDATION: PROFESSIONAL FRAUD & SRO ABUSE

The hostility began at Seneca Ridge MS with Principal Nick Cottone:

  • Documented Fraud (Exhibit A): On Oct 13, 2023, Mr. Cottone falsely told LCPS leadership he had “no relationship” with my family.
  • Verified Collusion (Exhibit C): I have obtained VFOIA Record R001471-120923 (produced 1/5/24) proving Mr. Cottone was privately "helping" my ex-wife’s legal strategy on Oct 26, 2023.
  • Direct Evidence of Information Leak (Exhibit D): Private communications sent by me to Principal Cottone in October 2023 appeared as exhibits in a Rule to Show Cause court filing served on December 8, 2023. The timeline proves Mr. Cottone shared my private school communications with third-party counsel to facilitate a civil litigation strategy. The document shows that no official legal action against me started until 11/21/23.
  • Weaponized Police (Exhibit E): On Dec 12, 2023, four days after a legal filing Mr. Cottone assisted was served, he activated an SRO to interrogate me. The transcript proves the SRO admitted there was “no criminal investigation.”

II. THE 2025 ESCALATION: RIDGEWAY’S PROVOCATION & IEP FAILURES

The pattern continued at Lowes Island ES with Dr. Kate Ridgeway:

  • Prior Knowledge (Exhibit F): On Nov 11, 2025, Dr. Ridgeway was put on recorded notice that I was “deathly afraid” of Mr. Cottone and required a protective placement.
  • Targeted Provocation (Exhibit G): On Dec 9, 2025, just two days after my HR complaint against her, Dr. Ridgeway authorized a 3-channel "Meet and Greet" invite for Mr. Cottone—knowing my documented fear. Please note that on December 9 and 10, I filed a formal HR complaint against Dr. Ridgeway, which was emailed and sent via USPS Certified Mail return receipt requested.
  • IEP Mockery & Falsification (Exhibit H): On Dec 12, 2025, my son was mocked by staff while seeking safety. Dr. Ridgeway then withheld notification for four days and reframed my son’s distress as a "threat" to cover for the staff misconduct.

III. THE 2026 TRANSPARENCY CRISIS (VFOIA EVASION)

The VFOIA response provided today (1/5/26) produced the 10/13/23 email but failed to produce the 10/26/23 "help" emails or any SRO activation logs. Because I am in physical possession of VFOIA R001471-120923 and a recording of the SRO contact, the absence of these records suggests that Principal Cottone and / or LCPS has purged public records to hide evidence of his collusion.

FORMAL DEMANDS:

  1. Immediate Termination of Nick Cottone for fraud and record suppression.
  2. Administrative Placement for my children outside the Seneca Ridge feeder pattern.
  3. Expungement of the falsified 12/12/25 safety records from my son's file.

Sincerely,

Steven Rubis


 

INDEX OF EXHIBITS: CHRONOLOGICAL RECORD OF SYSTEMIC RETALIATION

Complainant: Steven Rubis

Matter: Administrative Fraud, VFOIA Obstruction, and Civil Rights Violations (2023–2026)

PART I: THE 2023 FOUNDATION (COTTONE FRAUD & SRO ABUSE)

·        Exhibit A: The 10/13/23 False Statement. Email from Principal Nick Cottone to LCPS Leadership denying a relationship with the Rubis family.

·        Exhibit B: The 10/24/23 Legal Strategy Record. Attorney billing proving private legal coordination regarding LCPS records prior to any active civil filing.

·        Exhibit C: The 10/26/23 Evidence of Collusion (VFOIA R001471-120923). Email from Cottone to the ex-wife's counsel offering "help." (Note: Successfully obtained via VFOIA on 1/5/24; currently suppressed in 1/5/26 FOIA response).

·        Exhibit D: The 11/21/23 Litigation Date Stamp & Evidence of Leak. * Provenance: Rule to Show Cause filing.

Significance: This document contains my private communications with Principal Cottone, proving he shared internal school records with private counsel. It also confirms that formal litigation commenced only after Cottone's documented private coordination in October.

·        Exhibit E: The 12/12/23 SRO Interrogation Transcript. Audio transcript where the SRO admits there is "no criminal investigation," proving the 2023 police contact was purely retaliatory.

PART II: THE 2025 ESCALATION (RIDGEWAY & IEP WEAPONIZATION)

·        Exhibit F: The 11/11/25 Notice of Fear (Transcript). Recording of Dr. Ridgeway being put on explicit notice of the father’s "deathly fear" of Nick Cottone.

·        Exhibit G: The 12/09/25 Targeted Provocation. Copies of the 3-channel "Meet and Greet" invitations for Nick Cottone, sent just two days after an HR complaint against Dr. Ridgeway.

·        Exhibit H: The 12/17/25 Mother’s Corroborating Email. Statement confirming the 2025 substitute teacher mocked and laughed at the student during a bullying incident.

·        Exhibit I: The 12/17/25 Rae Mitchell Correspondence. Retaliatory "communication ban" threat issued 700 miles away immediately following the report of staff misconduct.

·        Exhibit J: The 11/11/25 Public Retaliation. Evidence of Principal Cottone utilizing the official SMRS website to target the father's public advocacy.

PART III: ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY

·        Exhibit K: The HRTD Prior Validation. Documentation confirming that LCPS HR has previously validated a workforce complaint for retaliation against Principal Nick Cottone.

#LCPS #LoudounCountyPublicSchools #NickCottone #SenecaRidgeMiddleSchool #SMRS #LowesIslandElementarySchool #LIES #DominionHighSchool #DHS #AaronSpence #LoudounCounty #TroxelLeigh #LindsayMohler #GarethBowen

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