A 53-year-old non-traditional Ohio University student filed a federal lawsuit against faculty members for an amount that could cover the cost of one year of tuition for more than 3,000 students.
Mark Randolph Winkle, who lives at 20B Columbia Ave. in Athens, is suing university officials for $31.4 million in a discrimination lawsuit. He filed his suit in the United States District Court on Nov. 26.
Winkle felt as though he had been discriminated against by some OU faculty and administrators who created a “hostile learning environment” for him, according to court documents.
One faculty member Winkle filed the lawsuit against is the OU English Department Chairwoman Marsha Dutton.
Dutton allegedly filed false charges on the basis of gender against Winkle, and her actions were allegedly “carried out in such a manner that she acted outside the scope of her university duties, acted with malicious purpose, in bad faith, or in a wanton or reckless manner,” according to court documents.
Dutton also allegedly violated Winkle’s First Amendment right of free speech, according to the documents.
“We’re not supposed to be talking about the lawsuit right now,” Dutton said. “The university legal office is handling it, and they recommend that we do not talk about it.”
Winkle seeks $1.9 million in damages against Dutton specifically.
Howard Dewald, senior associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, also allegedly harassed Winkle via “threatening emails” and retaliated against Winkle for filing sex and age discrimination complaints against instructors employed under the college, according to the court documents.
Winkle seeks $2.2 million in damages against Dewald.
When contacted for a comment, Dewald said, “University Communications and Marketing are serving as the spokesperson for the university of that lawsuit.”
The university does not comment on pending litigation, OU spokeswoman Katie Quaranta said.
bc822010@ohiou.edu
