Professor claims gender discrimination in lawsuit against dean

By Jimmy Hibsch

Published July 24, 2010

Correction appended

A professor is contemplating legal action after being offered a position as a department chairwoman and then later having it revoked.

Professor Loreen Olson is filing a discrimination lawsuit against Michael O’Brien, dean of the College of Arts and Science, upon receiving permission from the Missouri Commission on Human Rights. She is undergoing a grievance process at MU as well. Olson’s attorney, George Smith, said the case can be looked at two ways, but he and Olson believe O’Brien’s actions to be discriminatory.

“You can look at it as strictly a pure breach of contract claim,” Smith said. “They had a contract, the contract is enforceable and he broke it. However, if the reason why he broke the contract was gender-based, then that calls into question a legal claim for discrimination.”

The position opened after former chairman Michael Kramer left MU. Only Olson pursued the vacant position.

In a May 4 letter, O’Brien extended the position to Olson, offering her a three-year term and a $77,000 salary. After accepting the job, Olson questioned the possibility of receiving a stipend, research money and additional pay for work she would acquire prior to Kramer’s exit. O’Brien allotted Olson $5,000 to fund a research assistant or a computer purchase.

MU spokesman Christian Basi said it is common for individuals to negotiate elements of their positions at the university.

“Sometimes positions negotiate for additional research funds or research space, and obviously compensation is always a major factor as well, as in this case,” Basi said.

Olson responded to this offer by explaining why she believed her negotiations to be acceptable, after which O’Brien withdrew his offer of appointment. O’Brien then appointed professor Michael Porter to the position. Porter was given a three-year term, despite his colleagues’ suggestion of a one-year interim term.

“Faculty in the department know and respect Dr. Porter, and they are behind him as their chair,” O’Brien said.

A May 14 letter sent to O’Brien from Kramer said although faculty members do support Porter in the new position, they would have preferred a one-year interim term instead of the three-year term he was given. They also upheld their belief in Olson as the best candidate for the job.

“In recognition that our preferred choice may not happen, we offer as an alternative that you appoint Dr. Michael Porter to be interim chair for one year,” the letter stated. “This would allow a year of transition in which to consider various alternatives more completely. These alternatives might include appointing one of the current faculty or doing a national search for a new chair.”

Smith and Olson question whether Porter and O’Brien’s friendship was the sole reason behind the appointment.

“O’Brien waxes eloquently about how Dr. Porter is his friend, and he doesn’t say anything about him being the most qualified candidate,” Smith said. “It seems to us that if you’ve got the unanimous support of your department, they have chosen you because of your qualifications.”

In response, O’Brien said a prior friendship cannot put a qualified applicant’s prospective job at jeopardy.

According to University Rules and Regulations, a dean is only able to recommend a candidate to the chancellor for a chair position after discussion with department faculty. The chancellor is responsible for appointing an individual to the position.

“University policy states that the chancellor can delegate certain responsibilities as he or she sees fit,” O’Brien said. “For as long as I can remember, the deans have accepted the responsibility for appointing chairs. My policy is to seek faculty and staff opinions prior to making a decision. I did so with respect to the communication chair.”

MU’s privacy policy regarding personnel issues prevented both Basi and O’Brien from discussing specifics of the situation.