After being fired, transgender professor wins job back at Southeastern Oklahoma State University

OKLAHOMA CITY — An appeals court this week ordered Southeastern Oklahoma State University to reinstate a transgender professor who alleged the school in Durant, Oklahoma, wrongfully denied her tenure.

In its 55-page ruling Monday, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously rejected the university’s challenge of an Oklahoma City federal court jury’s decision to award Rachel Tudor more than $1 million in damages after determining she lost tenure because of her gender.

The appeals left in place a statutory $300,000 damages cap, but ordered lower courts to recalculate her attorneys’ fees and lost wages due.

Tudor, 58, who taught English, accused Southeastern and the Regional University System of Oklahoma of violating her civil rights. She was terminated in 2011.

In 2017, a jury of six women and two men chose to award Tudor $1,165,000 in damages after a weeklong trial in Oklahoma City federal court.

Tudor, who is a member of the Chickasaw Nation, claimed she was subjected to unfair rules related to where she could use the bathroom and what she was allowed to wear on campus.

The defendants contended there was no evidence of discrimination and Tudor didn’t want to earn her tenure.

Jurors found the defendants discriminated against Tudor when she was denied tenure during the 2009-2010 application cycle and when she was denied the opportunity to reapply in the following cycle. The jury also found the defendants retaliated against Tudor by denying her the opportunity to reapply.

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Defendants also "took actions which indicated that they did not want Dr. Tudor to obtain tenure or promotion because of her gender identity," according to the lawsuit.

Jurors ruled in the university's favor on one claim, rejecting Tudor's complaint that she had been subjected to a hostile work environment.

A statement from a Tudor representative said:

"Dr. Tudor is looking forward to being the first tenured Native American professor in her department in the 100-plus year history of the Native American serving institution that is Southeastern Oklahoma State University. As injurious as the sex discrimination and retaliation were to Dr. Tudor, she did not consider it merely personal. Rather, she was a symbol to those who discriminated against her.”

Tudor began working at the university in 2004 as a tenure-track assistant professor. In 2007, Tudor transitioned from male to female.

She was told not to use the women's restroom, not to wear short skirts and not to wear makeup that would be deemed harassing to male colleagues, she alleged. She had to use a single-occupant restroom, she testified.

In 2009, the tenure committee voted in favor of giving Tudor tenure but administrators didn't follow the committee's decision, she testified.

“They wanted to create an environment where certain views and certain people are punished to create fear and shame instead of self-confidence and opportunity for all,” her representative’s statement said. “They wanted people like Dr. Tudor to be afraid, and to go away. Instead of going away, instead of accepting a settlement — conditioned on never teaching in Oklahoma — she fought for the rights and dignity of her Native and LGBT communities.”

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The administrators told Tudor they wanted to give her more time to strengthen her tenure portfolio, the defendants contended at trial.

Attorneys for the defendants told jurors that school administrators told Tudor to withdraw her application before denial so she wouldn't be barred from reapplying later. Tudor didn't withdraw her portfolio, was denied tenure and later was not allowed to reapply, according to testimony.

Since Tudor failed to attain tenure before the end of her seventh year, the university terminated her employment in 2011.

“We received the Tenth Circuit Court’s decision today in the Tudor v. Southeastern issue,” Southeastern President Thomas Newsom said in a statement. “However, due to pending litigation, we will not publicly discuss any specifics of the situation. The University will continue to focus its efforts on educating students as the legal system moves forward. Any additional questions/statements should be directed to the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office.’’

The federal government initially filed the civil rights lawsuit, alleging the defendants subjected Tudor to unlawful sex discrimination. The lawsuit was settled.

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Follow Josh Dulaney on Twitter: @JoshDulaney.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Court reinstates fired transgender professor denied tenure