RYAN HAGAN
News Assistant
Former Pepperdine Professor, Ron Fagan, who has been embroiled in law suits against the university for wrongful termination is now is working as care manager at Magellan Health Care in El Segundo.
Associate Dean Rick Marrs refused to discuss personnel matters, including whether the former tenured professor of sociology is employed at Pepperdine.
Pepperdine must pay Fagan $41,702 in damages, according to court documents.
The amount covers back wages, health insurance and interest for the period of May 1, 2005 to March 13, 2006, when Fagan was not permitted to teach at Pepperdine. A previous ruling found that Fagan was wrongfully terminated.
Fagan’s earnings from six months at Magellan Health Care were subtracted from the award. He had originally sought more than $55,000 in lost wages and benefits, a figure that deducted his salary from Magellan.
The dispute stems from how Pepperdine handled its investigation and firing of Fagan.
President Andrew K. Benton “unilaterally terminated Fagan in violation of the March 8, 2005 employment agreement,” according to documents filed by Fagan’s attorney.
Documents filed by Pepperdine’s attorney show he originally denied any wrongdoing, but a university committee matched the handwriting on several evaluations to Fagan’s and recommended “the most severe sanctions … short of immediate dismissal.”
Benton stripped Fagan of tenure status, but in March and April of 2005 sent letters offering him continued employment if he apologized at a meeting of full-time faculty, according to Fagan’s brief.
Pepperdine documents show Benton fired Fagan because he believed Fagan subverted the terms of his agreement by telling four faculty members they could best support him by not attending the meeting, but were welcome to come.
The court ruled in favor of Fagan, who said that he was not given due process.
Fagan and Pepperdine officials declined to comment on the case.
02-01-2007