Fired University of Kansas prof alleges anti-German discrimination

A fired University of Kansas assistant professor is claiming anti-German discrimination and a hostile work environment in a civil rights lawsuit against the school.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that Catherine Joritz is asking the court to reinstate her in the lawsuit filed this week in Douglas County District Court.

Issues arose when students in a spring 2014 basic video course complained about her.

The lawsuit said that student evaluations that became part of her permanent record made “angry, aggressive, anti-German comments” such as that she was a “Nazi sympathizer.”

The lawsuit said one member of her tenure review committee cited Joritz’s German background as a reason for the negative comments.

University of Kansas spokesman Joe Monaco declined to discuss the case, noting that the litigation is pending.

This story was originally published June 17, 2016 at 12:34 PM with the headline "Fired University of Kansas prof alleges anti-German discrimination."