Ex-teacher Dean Masullo, who was ousted from the University School of Nashville last summer, has filed a lawsuit against Gidgie Bass, the student who came forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Masullo in 2024. Masullo is suing Bass for defamation and the infliction of emotional distress for her words and actions, which led to Masullo’s dismissal and subsequent reputational damage.
In spring 2024 — Bass, then a high school senior — told administrators that Masullo had cultivated a close personal relationship with her that included unwanted physical touching. Masullo was fired that summer with a nearly $30,000 severance package. Investigators hired by the private school later that year concluded that Masullo’s behavior was consistent with grooming. In August 2024, Bass publicly accused the school of mishandling the case, sparking petitions and student-led protests against USN administration that resulted in the midyear firing of director Amani Reed, who sued the school earlier this year.
Amani Reed to pay attorneys’ fees to the University School of Nashville after court ruling in ongoing legal saga
Masullo’s lawsuit accuses Bass of creating a “false narrative” that “spiraled into a chain of events ... that ruined Masullo’s career.” He offers several handwritten notes from Bass that indicate her intense emotional attachment to Masullo, an English teacher who became Bass’ personal academic adviser in a self-guided film class.
Masullo disputes multiple details of various accounts of his behavior laid out previously by Bass and other narrative materials produced by the school. While contesting specific incidents, Masullo’s complaint concedes an overall picture of intense attachment between himself and Bass that repeatedly violates typical student-teacher boundaries. The 26-page lawsuit acknowledges personal text messages, the exchange of clothing, overnight trips and a kiss — which Masullo calls a “quick, chaste peck on the cheek” — in Masullo’s classroom between student and teacher.
Masullo casts these as Bass’ attempts to seek comfort from a stable adult at school as she navigated a strained relationship with her family. The suit, filed in Davidson County Circuit Court on Aug. 19, seeks damages for reputational harm, emotional distress and defamation.
“This lawsuit against me is unfounded,” Bass tells the Scene. “I stand by the facts I provided the school in 2024.”
