Trotter v. United Lutheran Seminary

DENNIS TROTTER and CHRISTINA JOHNSTEN, Plaintiffs, v. UNITED LUTHERAN SEMINARY, et al., Defendants.

Civil Action No. 20-570

United States District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania

July 29, 2021

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Timothy R. Rice, U.S. Magistrate Judge.

Plaintiffs Dennis Trotter and Christina Johnsten, husband and wife bring claims of retaliation and hostile work environment against United Lutheran Seminary (“ULS”) under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. §2000 (“Title VII”), 42 U.S.C Section 1981 (“Section 1981”), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. § 631, et seq. (“ADEA”), the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act 43 P.S. §§ 951, et seq. (“PHRA”), and the Philadelphia Fair Practices Ordinance, Phila. Code Chapter 9-1100 (“PFPO”). Complaint (doc. 1). Trotter and Johnsten also claim retaliation and hostile work environment against James Dunlop and Dr. Richard Green under Section 1981, PHRA, and PFPO. Id. The claims stem from Trotter's and Johnsten's employment at ULS their termination in October 2018, and ULS's refusal to re-hire Johnsten. Id. ULS seeks summary judgment, arguing that Johnsten's claims are subject to the ministerial exception, Title VII and ADEA claims against Dunlop and Green are not actionable, and Trotter and Johnsten failed to plead prima facie claims of retaliation and hostile work environment. S.J. Mot. (doc. 28).

Because Johnsten did not serve ULS in a ministerial capacity, her claims are not barred by the ministerial exception. Because Trotter's and Johnsten's claims against Dunlop and Green are actionable, and because they present sufficient evidence to create questions of material fact, I deny ULS's motion.

I. Legal Standard

Summary judgment is appropriate where “there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a). The evidence and any inferences from the evidence must be viewed in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. See Ray v. Warren, 626 F.2d 170, 173 (3d Cir. 2010). If reasonable minds could conclude that there are sufficient facts to support a plaintiff's claims, summary judgment should be denied. See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986). It should be granted if no “reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party, ” based on the evidentiary record. Reedy v. Evanson, 615 F.3d 197, 210 (3d Cir. 2010).

II. Facts Most Favorable to Trotter and Johnsten

In 2015, Trotter and Johnsten began working for ULS^[1]as Vice President for Advancement and Vice President for Student Vocation and Formation, respectively. S.J. Mot., Statement of Facts ¶¶ 1-2; Resp. to Statement of Facts (doc. 29-1) ¶¶ 1-2. On November 1, 2017, Trotter began serving as Chief Operating Officer (“COO”) of ULS. Pl. Statement of Add'l. Facts (doc. 29-3) ¶¶ 10-11. Around the same time, Johnsten started serving as Vice President of Student Services and Enrollment (“VPSSE”). SOF ¶ 10; Resp. to SOF ¶ 10.

On March 14, 2018, James Dunlop became acting president of ULS. SOF ¶ 26; Resp. to SOF ¶ 26. At their initial meeting on March 16, 2018, Trotter asked Dunlop to investigate his complaints of a racist and ageist letter from the Advancement staff in Gettysburg and racism within the ULS offices of Finance and Advancement. PSOAF ¶¶ 27, 29. He also complained about Dunlop referencing the prior president's termination as a “lynching, ” and the exclusion of African American and older members of the Philadelphia Advancement staff from the prior president's evaluations. Id. at ¶ 27, 31. Trotter gave Dunlop a memorandum documenting racial issues at ULS, including the letter from the Gettysburg Advancement staff, a formal complaint against a faculty member, and informal complaints against the offices of Finance and Advancement. Id. at ¶ 33; 3/16/18 Trotter Briefing, B-175-79. Trotter also advised Dunlop that Angela Zimmann threatened him with a human resources complaint, and asked not to supervise Zimmann. 3/16/18 Trotter Briefing at B-175; Trotter Dep. at 130:4-16, A-33. On March 27, 2018, Dunlop reassigned Trotter's advancement responsibilities to Zimmann. PSOAF at ¶¶ 12728.

On April 4, 2018, Trotter filed a grievance against ULS, claiming that: (1) he was stripped of job responsibilities in retaliation for reporting concerns of racism to Dunlop; (2) Dunlop described a meeting with African-American students with racially-charged language when he said it was like “going back to Egypt to eat watermelon;” (3) Trotter's advancement-related responsibilities were assigned to a younger employee; and (4) Dunlop retaliated against Trotter for voicing concerns about accounting withdrawals from the Gettysburg Seminary Endowment Foundation. Id. at ¶¶ 41-46; 4/4/2018 Attorney Email, B-181-87. Trotter also alleges, around the same time, that he opposed Dunlop's refusal to investigate formal complaints of racism raised by two ULS staffers. PSOAF ¶¶ 47-48.

On April 6, 2018, Trotter cooperated in an EEO-related investigation regarding Zimmann's claims that Trotter had harassed her. Id. at ¶¶ 49-50. On April 9, 2018, the third-party investigator emailed Dunlop that “there is no evidence to support that Dennis Trotter has, or is currently, engaging in unlawful discrimination resulting in a hostile work environment.” Id. at ¶ 51.

On April 13, 2018, Johnsten filed a grievance with ULS asserting it improperly directed her to: (1) admit students without regard to the Pennsylvania State Code's credit requirements; (2) distribute donor funds in a manner inconsistent with the donor's documented wishes; and (3) offer institutional gift aid without documenting the aid in the students' financial aid awards. Id. at ¶ 52; 4/13/2018 Attorney Email, B-205-11. She also complained that ULS retaliated against her for objecting to its directives. 4/13/2018 Attorney Email at B-208-11. On May 7, 15, and 21, 2018, Trotter and Johnsten met with an attorney from CCI Consulting, who ULS had retained to address Trotter's and Johnsten's April 2018 grievances. PSOAF ¶¶ 65-66, 75, 78.

On May 11, 2018, Dunlop wrote a letter to Trotter accusing him of poor work performance and threatening to fire him, citing events that pre-dated Dunlop's presidency. Id. at ¶¶ 69, 71. On May 16, 2018, Trotter supplemented his April 2018 grievance to include complaints about Dunlop's letter. Id. at ¶¶ 76-77.

On June 1, 2018, Dunlop stepped down and Dr. Richard Green became the interim president of ULS. Id. at ¶ 81. Dunlop retained his seat on the ULS Board of Trustees. Id. at ¶ 82. At about the same time, Dunlop gave Green a binder containing information about Trotter, including his May 11 letter. Id. at ¶ 134. On June 13, 2018, Trotter met Green and gave him a memorandum noting racism complaints at ULS. Id. at ¶¶ 84-85; 6/13/18 Memorandum, B-212-13.

In July 2018, CCI concluded its investigation of Trotter's and Johnsten's grievances, finding that Dunlop made racist statements and recommending “individual complainants should be met with one-on-one and advised as to the findings of their respective complaints, substantiated or not, as well as steps being taken going forward to address behaviors/concerns.” PSOAF at ¶¶ 88-91, 96.

Before August 28, 2018, Trotter told Green that one ULS employee racially harassed a co-worker. Id. at ¶¶ 101-104. In an August 29, 2018 meeting, Trotter raised additional complaints about the employee's racism and disclosed that the targeted co-worker would file an EEO complaint unless ULS investigated. Id. at ¶¶ 105-06. Green responded: “Fuck, what the fuck.” Id. at ¶ 108.

During September 5 and 12, 2018 President's Cabinet meetings, Trotter and Johnsten shared their concerns about racism at ULS, which Green dismissed. Id. at ¶¶ 109-12. During the September 2018 ULS Board of Trustees Meeting, Johnsten presented a report detailing accusations of racism at ULS and the progress of trauma specialists hired to discuss “issues of trauma, racism, microaggressions, and cultural competency” with ULS students and staff. Enrollment Services and Student Life Report, B-286-290. The Board of Trustees also passed its annual budget, which included Trotter's and Johnsten's salaries. PSOAF ¶ 146.

In an October 2, 2018 meeting, Green told Trotter he did not plan to fire the employee who was accused of racist conduct in August 2018. Trotter Dep. at 291:23-292:2, B-23. Green informed Trotter that his investigation had consisted of a discussion with board members, which Trotter argued was insufficient. Id. at 292:13. Green demanded that Trotter leave the meeting, and as a result, Trotter sought counseling. PSOAF ¶ 119.

On October 5, 2018, Green informed ULS's board chairman that he planned to fire Trotter and Johnsten. Id. at ¶ 165. Three days later, during an October 8 meeting, Green fired Trotter and Johnsten. PSOAF ¶ 125. Green testified he did not consider retaining either Trotter or Johnsten, deciding to fire them together. Green Dep. at 238:6-13, B-61. Following the terminations, ULS offered Trotter and Johnsten severance packages in exchange for a release of claims against ULS. PSOAF ¶ 223.

On November 7, 2018, Trotter and Johnsten filed retaliation complaints with the EEOC and PHRC. Id. at ¶ 246. On December 24, 2018, Johnsten applied for ULS's Director of Student Services position. Id. at ¶ 278. As of January 9, 2019, ULS's website still posted the vacant Director of Student Services position. Id. at ¶ 282. On January 10, 2019, Johnsten emailed ULS's Director of Human Resources to follow up on her application. Id. at ¶ 283. After receiving Johnsten's application, the Human Resources Director discussed the vacancy with Green, and ULS halted the search for a Student Services Director. Id. at ¶¶ 286-89. ULS never...