Interim Director of Admissions Resigns After Eight Days

Cassie Conklin, Managing Editor, was a contributor to this article. 

J. Michael Harpe joined Frostburg State University as the Interim Director of Admissions eight days ago but has since “resigned citing personal reasons,” says Vice President for Enrollment Management, Ms. Arlene Cash. Cash says, “it is always busy in admissions and being down a person in that seat is unfortunate.” When asked about a replacement Director of Admissions, Cash told TBL, “I plan on being in that seat, personally, while we do another search.”

It is unclear that Harpe’s reasons for leaving FSU after such a short tenure might be, but details regarding his time at his most recent institution, the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore may be a consideration.

In the Sept. 20, 2019, pretrial filing with the District Court for the District of Maryland, Harpe was named as an aggressor against a female coworker at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, which is an institution in the University of Maryland system. The Title IX complaint alleges that J. Michael Harpe was responsible for a sexually hostile work environment, and a discriminatory and retaliatory firing. The official defendant in the case is UMES itself.

The facts of the case, as described in the pretrial court filing, say the female coworker began working at the UMES campus in August 2016 as the Director of the Counseling Center. At the time of her employment, she reported to the Associate Vice President of UMES, Dr. James M. White, Jr. and Dr. J. Michael Harpe.

Toward the end of 2016, the coworker alleges “at least twice per week, Harpe would threaten and intimidate [the coworker] in a directly sexist fashion while simultaneously implying that Washington’s worth rested entirely on her ability to perform femininity in a way that was satisfactory to him.”

To intimidate the coworker, the filing alleges Harpe would say the coworker was “too direct, too aggressive, and that she wasn’t worthy of a man. Harpe said to [the coworker], ‘You’re a strong black woman, I’m an Alpha male. I’m not afraid of you.’” Moreover, Harpe is accused of telling the coworker, “Women here are mild-mannered and do not challenge men with their opinions and thoughts! This is why no men here will ever like you! You will never get a man! But because I am an Alpha male, I can handle you.”

The coworker indicated that these sexist tirades occurred daily.

In February 2017, after working at UMES for six months, the coworker alleged she began to experience severe panic attacks at work and during the night because she was “terrified of seeing Harpe” and further began having panic attacks at any time she had to see him.

The coworker sought medical help for her panic attacks, was prescribed Lorazepam and was advised to begin talk therapy.

After the alleged harassment, the coworker sought assistance from her other immediate supervisor, Dr. White. The court filing indicates Dr. White continued the sexism and advised the coworker that she should use her “softer side” and be “more subservient and docile.” Despite repeated protests by the coworker, Dr. White did not intervene, and the harassment continued.

Furthermore, despite White’s position as a university official with investigative and corrective authority, White did nothing when, in February 2017, the coworker disclosed she had begun having panic attacks.

Having received no help from White, the coworker said she went to the Title IX Coordinator at UMES, Mr. R. Hardy Rudasill, to report Harpe’s sex-based harassment. Rudasill allegedly failed to investigate or take action. Instead, Rudasill supposedly told the coworker “if Harpe found her work performance to be unsatisfactory that Harpe would deem it necessary for [the coworker] to attend management training.”

In March 2017, the coworker claims she confronted Harpe about his sex-based abuse, and Harpe laughed it off.

On April 2, 2017, the coworker filed an oral complaint with Marie Billie, the Director of the Human Resources department at UMES. Billie promised to type the report and email it to the coworker but failed to do so.

Billie claims she sent the sex discrimination complaint to Rudasill, the Title IX Coordinator. There is no evidence Rudasill ever received the report, and a formal investigation as a result of the alleged report by Billie was never conducted by Rudasill.

The coworker was ultimately terminated on April 13, 2017 “based on the recommendation of Dr. J. Michael Harpe.” April 13, 2017, was less than two weeks after the coworker reported the sex-based harassment to Marie Billie, and just after she confronted Harpe about it. Court documents also say that the coworker was never provided a reason for her firing, except that “Harpe recommended the firing.”

The coworker argues that absent any non-discriminatory and non-retaliatory justification for Harpe’s decision to fire her, “it is clear that the firing was unlawfully retaliatory in response to [the coworker’s] Title IX-protected activity.”

Should UMES be found guilty of these allegations, the coworker asks to be reinstated in her previous position, with full back pay and benefits, for compensatory damages to be determined by a jury, attorney’s fees, and judicial oversight and management training for UMES’ Human Resources and Title IX offices.

According to UMES’ website, White, Rudasill, and Billie are no longer employees of the institution. TBL reached out to UMES’ HR Department for comment and have not received a comment as of press time.

It is unclear if FSU knew about the pretrial court filings before Harpe’s hiring. Harpe joined the FSU campus community through the Registry to provide consulting to Cash.

Harpe is being represented by the Assistant Attorney General of the State of Maryland. The case is currently delayed because of the global pandemic.

Court documents can be seen here.

The story has been updated to include updates in the case and to include details of Harpe’s hiring.