CLEVELAND — Two Cuyahoga Community College professors have filed a lawsuit accusing the school and several current or former faculty administrators of violating their First Amendment rights through a "campaign of retaliation" after the pair criticized the school in a media interview.
In their complaint filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, tenured professors Diane Gatson and Linda Lainer accused the defendants of engaging in "a vindictive and retaliatory conspiracy to tarnish their professional reputations and degrade their working conditions." Former Tri-C President Dr. Alex Johnson is among those named in the suit, along with:
- Metropolitan Campus President Denise McCory
- Dean Amy Parks
- Assistant Dean Terry Webb
- Associate Dean Courtney Clarke
- Executive Vice President of Administration and Finance David Kuntz
- Employee-relations manager Shari Brazile
According to attorneys representing Gatson and Lainer from the Chandra Law Firm, the ordeal began when the pair spoke to a local television program that explored how higher education scheduling decisions post-COVID were impacting students of color. In their respective interviews, Gatson and Lainer both chastised Tri-C for what they called "significant disparities" in the college's in-person course offerings during the fall 2021 semester, notably fewer introductory level courses at the urban Cleveland campus compared to suburban campuses as well as no philosophy or religion classes downtown.
Concerned that this would have a disproportionate impact on Tri-C's Black student population, Gaston and Lainer say they spoke to "several administrators" before eventually participating in the program in May of 2021. In a virtual town hall three days later, Johnson chastised Gaston and Lainer for their "disturbing and unsubstantiated perspectives" and vowed to "rectify" the situation.
Gaston and Lainer were later found guilty of violating the school's code of conduct and suspended three days each without pay, but the punishment was later reversed after a year of appeals. During that time, however, the professors further allege Johnson set out to make them "persona non grata" on campus and helped conspire to remove them from staff email lists and deny them special assignments they had previously been offered. They claim this was an effort to "send a chilling message to other faculty" against speaking up.
Read the entire lawsuit below:
Lead attorney Subodh Chandra issued the following statement:
"Professors Diane Gaston and Linda Lanier are tireless advocates for all students including students of color. They are passionate about their work and the communities they serve, and fervently believe in Tri-C's stated mission to 'provide high quality, accessible and affordable educational opportunities and services…'
"Because of this, they had the courage to speak out about Tri-C's discriminatory course-scheduling practices and shine a light on the ways African-American students had been and would continue to be harmed. But rather than remedy these wrongs and set forth an equitable schedule, Tri-C attempted to discipline, discredit, and silence these dedicated professors. Public employers cannot retaliate against employees who speak up about discrimination and misconduct."
Johnson retired this past spring, taking the role of president emeritus and a special advisor to current President Dr. Michael A. Baston. In their own statement to 3News, a Tri-C spokesperson said, "Cuyahoga Community College denies any retaliation by anyone at the College as alleged in the complaint. Given that this matter is part of ongoing litigation, we have no further comment at this time."