By Courtney Klaus, Editor-In-Chief
A federal jury decided against Newman University today in a lawsuit filed last year, rewarding former faculty member Cindy Louthan over $725,000 in punitive damages for job discrimination.
In addition, the jury decided Louthan is to be awarded over $75,000 in other damages and is to be reinstated.
Louthan had served as an assistant professor of education at Newman since 2014 and was dismissed in 2018. She filed her suit against Newman in June of 2018.
Her suit said that throughout her time working at Newman she experienced an “attitude of hostility toward women” from another faculty member and that she was informed her contract would not be renewed after she assembled faculty to discuss alleged discrimination in the workplace.
The jury’s verdict was that sex was not a motivating factor in Newman’s decision to not renew Louthan’s contract, according to court documents, but that Louthan was retaliated against for her opposition to unlawful employment practices.
The university responded to the suit’s outcome with a statement that said it would consider options to appeal the court’s decision.
“Newman University’s mission and core values insist community members respect the dignity of others and interact with integrity and honesty with all,” the statement says. “Since this case involves employee matters we will have no further comment at this time.”
Newman still has four pending lawsuits filed by former employees last year. Three of these lawsuits were filed under federal court and alleged Title IX violations.
The Vantage will continue to update this story as more information is made available
Courtesy Photo provided by UnSplash
