Ex-prof’s lawsuit alleges discrimination and retaliation by University of the Incarnate Word

A former professor at the University of the Incarnate Word has filed a suit against the private university for race, sex and national origin discrimination, as well as retaliation. According to the petition, Jaime Gonzalez, a former professor at the UIW School of Physical Therapy, was recommended for tenure but was denied it and a promotion Jan. 27, 2020, based “solely on (the school’s) judgment of him as a poor institutional fit.” Gonzalez began working at the university full time in 2014, and the lawsuit alleges a long series of discriminatory acts against him over the years, including watching white colleagues get promotions ahead of him.

At the time, only one other faculty member at the School of Physical Therapy had ever been denied promotion and tenure, and both he and Gonzalez were the only Hispanic males on the faculty for several years, according to a news release from Wiley Walsh PC, a law firm representing Gonzalez. The suit was filed in state District Court in Bexar County. The university released a statement Friday saying it does not comment on “specific litigation concerning personnel matters” but “is proud to be an equal opportunity employer with a long and proven history of employing a diverse and dynamic workforce.” The lawsuit cited a 2016 complaint against the university’s then-president, Louis Agnese Jr., for making offensive comments at a lunch for incoming physical therapy students as an example of an alleged UIW history of discrimination against Hispanic individuals. The comments — about African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans and Mormons — were made in a jocular tone, and Agnese said he didn’t consider them offensive. But the UIW board put him on leave, ousted him, then reversed itself and allowed him to retire with emeritus status months later.