By Elijah Westbrook, Jennifer Palmer and Taylor Popielarz
On Monday, January 12, the U.S. Justice Department reached a settlement with Quinnipiac University that resolved allegations of the university violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The verdict follows a complaint from a Quinnipiac student who was placed on a mandatory medical leave of absence after seeking mental health counseling at the university.
“Quinnipiac removed this student from the university at a very vulnerable time in her life, and saddled her with a large student loan payment,” said Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
The university placed the female student on a mandatory medical leave without exploring ways to continue her enrollment at the school. Allegedly, Quinnipiac also denied the student’s request to refund her tuition.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice, “Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability, including depression, by places of public accommodation.”
The investigation concluded Quinnipiac discriminated against the student by placing her on a mandatory medical leave because of her depression. The case also revealed Quinnipiac didn’t offer a way for the student to complete her course work while living off campus.
“The university is in full compliance with the requirements of the Americans With Disabilities Act. In fact, our ADA standards exceed those of most academic institutions,” said Lynn Bushnell, Vice President for Public Affairs at Quinnipiac University. “Out of respect for the confidentiality of the student involved, we will not comment further on this case. We regret that a government agency did not show similar respect for the student and circulated this press release without ever contacting us.”
The settlement reached has Quinnipiac compensating the student with $17,000 for her emotional distress. The university has also agreed to pay an additional $15,126.42 for the loan the student obtained to pay her tuition.
Beyond monetary settling, the university has also pledged to put in place a policy stating applicants and students will not be discriminated against based on disability, including mental health disabilities. A new training program focusing on Title III of the ADA, which focuses on mental health-related disability discrimination, will also be provided to all staff.
According to the U.S. Justice Department press release, Quinnipiac will “examine what modifications it can make to allow students with mental health disabilities to continue to participate in educational programs and attend their classes while seeking treatment for mental health conditions.”
