Chicago State to pay $650K to end faculty blog lawsuit
Two professors alleged university had violated their academic freedom
A bitter lawsuit between Chicago State University and two professors who published a blog rebuking school leadership is coming to an end after more than four years.
Chicago State has agreed to pay $650,000 in damages and attorneys fees to professors Robert Bionaz and Phillip Beverly, concluding yet another costly litigation involving the Far South Side institution in recent years. The professors alleged that the university violated their free speech rights in repeatedly trying to shut down their blog, CSU Faculty Voice, which they billed as “the faculty’s uncensored voice.”
Launched in 2009, the blog has criticized university administrators, particularly former President Wayne Watson. Faculty members who contributed posts lambasted a culture of cronyism and questioned ballooning administrative salaries and perks even as enrollment and graduation rates fell.
After years of disputes, Bionaz and Beverly sued Chicago State in 2014 aiming to stop the school from interfering with the blog. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, a Philadelphia-based advocacy group, joined the suit in support of the professors.
Bionaz, who taught history, retired from Chicago State last year. Beverly is a political science professor.
Beverly noted the litigation ended after Chicago State’s newest president, Zaldwaynaka “Z” Scott, was hired last summer.
Bionaz called the settlement “a repudiation of the Watson administration’s egregious efforts to stifle speech on the Chicago State campus,” and condemned how long it dragged on after Watson left his post.
“This was completely unnecessary,” Bionaz said.
The dispute leading to the lawsuit began in late 2013 when university officials sent Bionaz and Beverly a cease-and-desist notice demanding they shut down the blog. The university’s attorney at the time alleged the professors’ blog improperly used university “trade names and marks” and said the site violated school policy “requiring civility and professionalism of all University faculty members.”
The university went after the blog again in January 2014, demanding the professors change the primary photograph and the domain name.
In their lawsuit, Bionaz and Beverly alleged the university’s attempts to stymie the blog were unconstitutional. Their suit listed Watson, former general counsel Patrick Cage, former associate general counsel Janelle Carter and the board of trustees as defendants.
The case took a dramatic turn in 2015 when a former university administrator accused Watson of pressuring her into lodging a false sexual harassment claim against Beverly.
The university also agreed to revamp school policies governing cyberbullying and computer usage, the latter of which banned “any communication which tends to embarrass or humiliate,” according to a news release from the Philadelphia foundation. Chicago State must implement the new policies within 60 days and provide training to employees enforcing the policies within three months, according to the settlement agreement.
“The university is moving forward,” said a university spokeswoman, Sabrina Land. Watson could not be reached for comment.