Fresno State manager chooses retirement over harassment, she says. Her lawsuit is pending

A Fresno State manager who has a workplace harassment lawsuit pending against the California State University board of trustees and state resigned this week, saying years of alleged abuse and bullying have taken too great a toll on her health.

Calliope Correia, who managed the horticultural nursery on the campus farm, said in a complaint filed in Fresno County Superior Court in February that she has endured harassment and retaliation because of her gender and because she is a lesbian. Correia also said that her multiple complaints to the university’s human resources department and Title IX office were ignored or not investigated properly.

“It definitely wasn’t in my plans; I was going to stay there forever,” Correia told The Bee. “I’ve been there for 16 years and that was my job for life.

“Over the last couple of years, every time something happens, it’s just that build up of: ‘This is never going to end, and what do I do? I can’t continue to work like this. I can’t continue to be in this environment.’ ”

In the lawsuit, Correia makes allegations of harassment by several Fresno State employees, including John Bushoven, chair of the department of Plant Science. Correia also filed Title IX complaints against Bushoven and Dennis Nef, former dean of the Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences.

Bushoven, Nef and associate vice president of human resources Marylou Mendoza-Miller, who was also named in the complaint, did not respond to requests for comment sent on Tuesday to their university email addresses.

The lawsuit also says that allegations against Correia of poor work performance were determined to be unfounded by her supervisor and she did not receive any discipline or corrective action.

The civil complaint, which seeks $750,000, is one of several pending suits against the CSU board related to workplace harassment issues. The cases are being litigated as Fresno State and CSU system look to rebuild trust with alumni and the larger public over the botched handling of several highly-publicized sexual harassment lawsuits over the past decade.

Fresno State, CSU must repair broken trust, experts say

The CSU board is a defendant in at least two other lawsuits, one from a Fresno State employee and the other from a former student.

A law firm retained by the CSU board to assess its Title IX and Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation programs found that Fresno State lacked the necessary infrastructure to respond appropriately to complaints and concluded that the university and the CSU system must now take steps to repair broken trust with the public.

The California State Auditor in a report requested by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee also said some sexual harassment claims it reviewed at Fresno State, San Jose State University and Sonoma State University were not adequately or consistently addressed.

The CSU board of trustees declined comment through a spokesperson, saying Correia’s lawsuit is specific to Fresno State.

The university released a written statement to The Bee about the complaint: “An employee (who subsequently resigned, effective Aug. 1) had filed a discrimination/employment lawsuit against the CSU. While we are unable to comment on any ongoing litigation, we take any allegations of sexual discrimination and harassment seriously, and we also take care to ensure the campus provides resources and supportive measures. Fresno State is committed to fostering an environment of inclusivity, equal opportunity and respect for our entire campus community.”

Correia filed a workers compensation stress claim in 2020, which was denied. She said that she was later diagnosed with high blood pressure and anxiety that was caused by the harassment, according to the lawsuit. She said she was prescribed medication for each diagnosis and that her physician approved intermittent Family Medical Leave (FML) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodations.

Her resignation was effective starting Tuesday, and she said she is taking retirement.

“She tried everything to try to get it resolved - Title IX complaints, complaints to her supervisor, complaints to HR,” said Thomas Dimitre, Correia’s attorney.

Discovery in the Correia case is expected to be completed by September.

Plaintiff says HR ignored reports of harassment

The lawsuit details steps Correia says she took to report the harassment to the university that she says started in 2019 with aggressive bullying and hostile actions by some coworkers.

In addition to multiple complaints, Correia also said she made weekly reports regarding ongoing harassment to the university’s human resources department starting in 2020, reports that Correia says the department asked her to submit.

According to the lawsuit, Mendoza-Miller, the human resources vice president, later said that she had not read the weekly reports and also allegedly stated to Correia that human resources was short-staffed and that the plaintiff should just “trust” that they were working to address her concerns.

“I’ve been reporting and doing all the things for like four years now against the hostility and the continued harassment,” Correia told The Bee.

“I took every avenue I possibly could that the university gave me and it still was happening, so eventually it took a toll on my personal health, on my family’s health, and I just had to make that decision to leave.”