NEW ORLEANS – A former Tulane University biology professor who hails from India claims she was denied tenure because of her national origin and gender.
Nandini Vasudevan filed a lawsuit Jan. 12 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana against Tulane University, the administrators of the Tulane Educational Fund, Michael A. Bernstein and Nicholas Altiero, alleging violations of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, as well as a breach of the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.
According to the complaint, Vasudevan says two white, male administrators, Bernstein and Altiero, at the university denied her tenure, despite repeated positive recommendations from her departmental colleagues. The suit says Vasudevan’s grievance was not heard until six months later, after she accepted a position at the University of Reading in England.
Vasudevan seeks punitive and compensatory damages, including lost wages, as well as reinstatement with different supervisors. She is represented by attorney Dale E. Williams of the Law Office of Dale Edward Williams in Covington.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana Case number 2:16-cv-00284