Tenured Texas State professor fired for conference comments sues, says school broke state law

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A Texas State University professor fired earlier this month filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the university in Hays County District Court, arguing that the school's administration breached its contract with him and retaliated against him for protected speech for political reasons.

"...when Dr. Thomas Alter, a tenured associate professor of history, participated in civic and political discourse in his individual capacity, [TXST] terminated his employment. It did so without an ounce of due process, and while recognizing that 'freedom of speech and principles of academic freedom are central to the mission of institutions of higher education,'" states the lawsuit, quoting TXST's policies.

TXST declined to comment on the pending litigation to KXAN.

The university fired Alter on Sept. 10.

In a statement that day, Texas State University President Kelly Damphousse said that he was "informed about controversial statements" made by Alter at a conference that "amounted to serious professional and personal misconduct."

"Conduct that advocates for inciting violence is directly contrary to the values of Texas State University. I cannot and will not tolerate such behavior," Damphousse wrote.

However, according to Alter's lawsuit, the video that allegedly contained those statements was filmed in violation of the virtual conference's policies by an influencer. The lawsuit doesn't name the influencer, but said that she circulated the video to politicians and other influencers to ask if they would try to help get Alter fired.

"The reasons ... provided for Dr. Alter's termination are false and give every appearance of politically motivated discrimination," the lawsuit states. "In truth, Dr. Alter was terminated because he espoused views that are unpopular in today's politically charged climate, in violation of his First Amendment right to free speech."

Alter, who has been with the university since 2017, specializes in "working-class history and social movements." He claims in the lawsuit that the comments that got him fired were taken out of context:

The Texas State University System's policies say that "when the faculty member
speaks or writes as a citizen, the faculty member should be free from [university] censorship or discipline; but, the faculty member’s special position in the community imposes special
obligations ... the faculty member should remember that the public may judge his or her profession and [university] by his or her utterance."

The system's policies also include a provision that allows faculty to engage in partisan political activity as long as it doesn't hinder their work for the school, such as teaching classes.

Tenured faculty have protections under Texas law and are not subject to at-will employment. The Texas Education Code requires "appropriate due process" in order to terminate the employment of a tenured faculty member. That process requires:

• Written notice of allegations, along with evidence supporting dismissal;
• A hearing where the faculty member can respond to the allegations;
• Written determination of if the institution will proceed with dismissal; and,
• Provision of the effective date of dismissal and information about post-dismissal appeal.

"[TXST] and the Texas State University System failed to comply with the law and its own policy on all counts," the lawsuit states, going on to say that none of the required steps were followed. "By depriving Dr. Alter of these due process rights, [defendants'] actions conflicted with the law itself and they acted without legal authority."

Alter asked the court to grant him a judgment against TXST that would require it to pay him lost wages, compensatory and punitive damages, and attorney fees. If granted in full, the judgment would require TXST to reinstate Alter and desist from its retaliation against him.