Vinita Prabhakar sued South Florida State College after she says the president called an assigned short story "political," ordered it removed from her Freshman English II class and then placed her on administrative leave. The story, Ottessa Moshfegh's "Bettering Myself," has been part of Prabhakar's syllabus for nearly a decade as an example of an unreliable narrator. The suit seeks reinstatement, damages and a declaration that the college violated her First Amendment rights and academic freedom. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression is assisting her; the case has not yet been decided in court.
Florida Professor Sues After College President Ordered Removal of Assigned Short Story
Much of higher level education involves reading various stories, books and information. One professor was allegedly fired when one of her long-term assigned readings was questioned by a student who felt "uncomfortable" reading it. The professor is now suing her former employer for her firing. lechatnoir / Getty Images
Vinita Prabhakar, a former English professor, has filed a federal lawsuit against South Florida State College, its president Fred Hawkins and the college's board of trustees, alleging she was dismissed after assigning an award-winning short story in a freshman literature course.
What the Lawsuit Alleges
Prabhakar says she assigned Ottessa Moshfegh's short story "Bettering Myself" in her Freshman English II class. The story, which won the Paris Review's 2013 Plimpton Prize for Fiction, follows an alcoholic Catholic schoolteacher whose self-destructive behavior explores themes of addiction, alienation and moral decline through an unreliable narrator.
According to the complaint, Prabhakar had included the story in her syllabus for nearly a decade without incident, using it in a unit on unsympathetic and unreliable narrators alongside works by Ernest Hemingway and Raymond Carver. One student reportedly told Prabhakar the material made them uncomfortable; Prabhakar says she discussed the concerns with the student, who later said they felt better about the assignment.
Administrative Response and Alleged Retaliation
The complaint alleges that President Hawkins summoned Prabhakar, called the story "political," and ordered her not to teach it again. Prabhakar says her department chair, the dean and a college vice president supported her academic rationale for including the story. The day after the meeting, she was placed on administrative leave and later informed that her contract would not be renewed at the end of the semester.
Prabhakar alleges she received no formal complaint, disciplinary hearing or explanation of which college policy she had violated. Her lawsuit seeks reinstatement, monetary damages and a declaration that the college's actions were unlawful and violated her First Amendment rights and academic freedom.
Legal Support and Broader Issues
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) is assisting Prabhakar. FIRE argues that while public institutions may set curricular requirements, they may not punish faculty simply because administrators dislike ideas expressed in course material relevant to instruction.
The allegations have not yet been adjudicated in court. The lawsuit highlights ongoing tensions in Florida and elsewhere over academic freedom, faculty discretion in curriculum choices and the authority public institutions exercise over classroom instruction.
Note: These are allegations in a filed complaint; they have not been proven in court.
Originally reported by Salon.com.
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