Student ejected from classes following mental health crisis sues Ohio University

A student recently sued Ohio University in federal court alleging it discriminated against her on the basis of a mental health disability after she was improperly and forcefully unenrolled from classes by the administration.

Sarah Letchford, a student working to earn two undergraduate degrees who is currently on military leave, argued that she was forced to forfeit a full year’s worth of college and numerous tuition payments after the university ejected her from school following an April 2017 mental health-related hospitalization. The university doesn’t provide tuition refunds to those who are removed for mental health reasons, according to the lawsuit.

After the university heard from Letchford’s mother of her daughter’s hospitalization, she was involuntarily withdrawn from classes in accordance with OU policy without accommodating for her disability, according to the suit. Under disability laws, OU is a “place of public accommodation” that can’t deny equal opportunity to people with disabilities or prevent them from participating in the university’s services, the lawsuit alleged.

“Ohio University fails to conduct individualized assessments prior to banning such students to consider whether it could provide reasonable accommodations to enable the students to remain on campus, whether the student will have adequate supports while on leave, on whether Ohio University’s actions will further endanger the at-risk student,” according to the suit.

Read more: https://www.athensnews.com/news/campus/student-ejected-from-classes-following-mental-health-crisis-sues-ohio-university/article_9f082fee-2eb3-5bdb-b9bd-6cb8ea169b7e.html