Ex-PWC Teachers Union Head Sues County, State Unions For Defamation: Report

MANASSAS, VA – The former president of Prince William County's teachers union is suing the union and its state parent organization for defamation, according to reports.

The Prince William Times reports that Maggie Hansford is suing the union she used to lead, the Prince William Education Association, as well as its parent organization, the Virginia Education Association, for $3 million in damages.

Hansford headed the union from 2020 until July 2025, after an audit found what the state union called “gross financial mismanagement” of the local union.

Hansford then applied for teaching jobs within the Prince William County school system, jobs she’d previously held, but was not considered for the roles because of the audit results, Inside Nova reported at the time.

Hansford filed an unfair labor practices complaint, which she won. The independent arbiter in that case found that, though Hansford had presided over two years of significantly increased expenses by the union, all had been approved by the union’s board, according to the Prince William Times.

The school division refused to rehire Hansford, who filed a lawsuit against it in April. In May, the school division filed a motion to vacate the arbiter’s decision. Days later, on May 14, Hansford responded with the $3 million defamation lawsuit, alleging that the union’s statements about her harmed her reputation such that she cannot work in county schools.

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