Developments continued to unfold this week in the $1 million federal discrimination lawsuit Assistant Professor of Neuroscience David Holtzman filed against Oberlin College, President Nancy Dye, Acting dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Clayton Koppes, former acting dean of the College James Helm and Neuroscience Program Director Catherine McCormick.
Holtzman charges that he was denied equal treatment as an Oberlin College employee because he is an Hispanic-American. The hearing on request for a preliminary injunction will take place on Oct. 17.
Holtzman's lawsuit follows cancellation of his courseload for the semester after complaints of alleged inappropriate physical misconduct, inappropriate sexual conversation and drug use filed by students and faculty were reviewed by the College Faculty Council (CFC) and the General Faculty Council (GFC) over the summer. Holtzman continues working at Oberlin on paid leave, pending investigation by the Professional Conduct Review Committee (PCRC), but he is restricted from having contact with students.
Though the GFC voted to suspend Holtzman, Dye granted Holtzman the paid leave at his request.
Holtzman has also filed a grievance with Oberlin's Affirmative Action Officer and a complaint against McCormick with the PCRC. McCormick said that Holtzman's filing a complaint against her with the PCRC came as a surprise. She also said that Holtzman had never brought concerns about discrimination to her attention before. "I can't understand what evidence he has for [the discrimination suit]," McCormick said.
Linda Leimbach, a research assistant who worked with Holtzman for three years, said, concerning his allegations of colleagues discriminating against him, "No, I surely didn't feel there was."
In the lawsuit, Holtzman says that the alleged discriminatory behavior "first manifested on or about May of 1996 when plaintiff was approached and asked to resign."
Koppes said that it is "most unusual for a faculty member to file a complaint with the PCRC when a chair is simply doing her job."
Holtzman's review by the PCRC has just begun. The committee was convened by Secretary of the College Robert Haslun on Sept. 3.
McCormick said she expects the PCRC investigation of her to begin soon. "I can't explain [Holtzman's] motivations any more than I can explain his actions," McCormick said, in response to a question about why Holtzman had filed a complaint against her with the PCRC. Haslun said he had nothing to say about when the PCRC will review McCormick's case.
Four members of the nine member PCRC constitute the investigative panel, while the other five members constitute the hearing panel. The investigative panel determines whether the issue under investigation is serious enough to warrant the attention of the hearing panel, which will decide the seriousness of the offense.
A Cleveland judge who worked as a civil rights lawyer denied Holtzman a temporary restraining order that he requested last week. The restraining order would hae allowed Holtzman to teach classes without interference from the College. The judge wrote, in his decision, "The plaintiff did not demonstrate that he was likely to succeed on the merits of his claim, or that the harm he faced was irreparable."
The lawsuit claims that, to date, no student or faculty member has filed a formal complaint against him, and states, "Despite the fact that no action [by the PCRC] has been taken on his complaint [against McCormick], the defendants have taken action against him even though there has been no formal complaints filed against him. Defendants have discriminated against the plaintiff and treated him differently than white individuals who are similarly situated, and also have retaliated against Plaintiff because Plaintiff spoke out about matters of discrimination which constituted unlawful activity by all or some of the defendants, both in the course of his employment and as a private citizen."
Holtzman said in his lawsuit that he had not received any formal written charges or other written statements about his misconduct. He said he had not been told that "his conduct was so egregious that it warranted termination," and claims that he was not allowed to see any "documented negative criticism from any individuals who would be in a position to file any formal charges against him."
However, McCormick said that if charges against Holtzman were filed, both he and she as the program director would have been notified. "If charges were filed," McCormick said, "[Holtzman] would have received a letter, as I have."
"It's not like there hasn't been any communication," McCormick said. "That communication was not begun this September. It's been going on quite a while ... It's not like this just came as a bolt out of the blue in September."
According to various sources, there have been complaints made about Holtzman since he was hired in 1992.
Sources close to the Neuroscience Program said that they were aware of sexual harassment allegations students had made about Holtzman, both filed and not filed. An anonymous student said that she had filed a page-long report last fall to Camille Mitchell, alleging that Holtzman had sexually harassed her, often visiting her place of employment drunk and repeatedly asking her out on dates.
However, the student said she told Camille Mitchell, administrator of Oberlin College Sexual Offense Policy, that she did not want Holtzman to lose his job. The student said she agreed to keep her report on file as a back-up, if any other cases were to arise. The student said that Mitchell told her that she would address the problem by educating the Neuroscience Department about sexual harrassment.
The student was unaware of the differentiation between an informal or formal complaint. (see story)
"We have followed procedures as best we understand them," McCormick said.
She said "the fact that Mr. Holtzman may [feel no formal complaints were brought to him] … may have more to do with issues of confidentiality than anything else." McCormick said students had spoken to Mitchell regarding Holtzman.
Mitchell said that people's definitions of what constitutes a formal complaint may vary. "They may not perceive a complaint as formal even if it is brought to attention," she said. Throughout the time period between January and July of this year, 14 incidents resulting in informal procedures were processed through Mitchell's office as well as four requests for advice, though no formal procedures were pursued. Four individuals requested information only during the same time period. Incidents resulting in informal procedures for the entire year of 1995, however, totaled six, with one incident resulting formal procedures and two requests for information only. The counts are based on when they were filed, not when they occured.
The lawsuit charges that although Holtzman had an excellent record in the College and was qualified for promotion, McCormick discriminated against him. According to Holtzman's lawsuit, he was the recipient of the National Institute of Health's First Award Grant, a federally funded grant which helps to offset salary and employee benefits for Holtzman as well as research assistants. The suit states, "During this time the plaintiff exhibited a satisfactory work record that included a consistent pattern on behalf of the Plaintiff to improve and to establish his qualifications for advancement."
In a letter from former acting dean James Helm dated May 23, Helm told Holtzman that he was making progress toward "achievements that will meet the standards of excellence expected of a member of the Oberlin faculty for reappointment with tenure. We especially congratulate you on your strong research program and the involvement of students in it. We note progress in your teaching and hope for continued improvement. We do expect you to address your department's concerns regarding your interactions with students."
McCormick said, "In general, I think the College community - students, faculty, everyone - needs to have a better handle on how to deal with issues of complaints."
Mitchell said that when people have a sexual harassment concern they quickly become aware of what the policy says. "They educate themselves," she said.
Related Stories:
