Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1978 [PAGE 648]

EXTRACTED TEXT FROM PAGE:

1978]

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

635

Urbana-Champaign campus. In addition to the University, the defendants include the members of the Board of Trustees, sued as individuals and in their official capacities (no claim is asserted against the three nonvoting student trustees or the governor); Morton W. Weir, sued individually and as vice chancellor for academic affairs at the Urbana-Champaign campus; and Donald Brieland, sued individually and as director of the School of Social Work at the UrbanaChampaign campus. The complaint asserts that the defendants have violated plaintiff's rights guaranteed her by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution and by the federal Civil Rights Act. Recovery is also sought for alleged violations of the plaintiff's rights under the federal Equal Pay Act. It is cla-med that the federal court also has pendant jurisdiction over claims against the individual defendants derived from a common nucleus of facts, which claims are said to arise under the Illinois Constitution and from the alleged defamation of plaintiff and invasion of her privacy by defendants. The complaint alleges irregularities detrimental to females in connection with the fall 1971 election by the School of Social Work faculty to the school's Executive Committee. It is also alleged that a report of a committee appointed by Defendants Weir and Brieland concluding that plaintiff had engaged in either "poor judgment or plagiarism" in connection with one of her publications was inaccurate. and was circulated to others without notice to plaintiff in violation of previous commitments to her, thereby resulting in plaintiff's failure to achieve tenure. It is claimed that the University's rules and regulations were not followed in considering plaintiff for tenure. The complaint further alleges that the plaintiff's salary from the University was substantially less than salaries of male faculty with similar or lesser experience, qualifications, and responsibilities. The relief sought includes: (1) a preliminary injunction requiring defendants to continue to employ plaintiff at her current rank and salary until final resolution of the case; (2) a permanent injunction requiring defendants to cease and desist from further discrimination against plaintiff on the grounds of sex with regard to salary, tenure, promotion, and the terms and conditions of employment; to cease and desist from further deprivation of plaintiff's guaranteed constitutional rights; and to promote and grant tenure to plaintiff "in accordance with fair and proper procedures"; (3) $48,000 in double damages pursuant to the Equal Pay Act by virtue of the alleged underpayment of wages to the plaintiff on account of her status as a female employee; (4) compensatory damages in the sum of $425,000 for income loss over the course of her lifetime because of the alleged wrongful conduct; (5) compensatory damages in the amount of $500,000 for damage to her reputation and mental pain and suffering caused by the alleged wrongful conduct; (6) punitive damages in the amount of $500,000 for the "wilful and malicious violation of plaintiff's federal and state rights and for defendants' wilful and malicious defamation and breach of plaintiff's privacy interests"; (7) interest on the foregoing compensatory damages and back pay award; and (8) costs incurred in prosecuting the action, including reasonable attorneys' fees. The university counsel has requested that he be authorized to take such steps as are necessary or appropriate, including the employment of special counsel, to protect the interests of the University in the matter and to provide representation for those University trustees and employees who request the same and represent that actions, if any, taken by them in connection with the matters alleged in the complaint were taken in their respective capacities as University trustees or employees. I concur.

The student advisory vote was: Aye, Miss Conlon, Mr. Overstreet, Miss Winter; no, none.