A former faculty member sued Norwich University Monday, alleging that the Northfield military university discriminated against her because of her gender and the fact that she is a Turkish immigrant.
Pelin Kohn, a former chair of Norwich’s Leadership Program and a Montpelier city councilor, alleged that university administrators had passed her over for positions, demoted her and engaged in “abusive and harassing behavior” in a complaint filed Monday in Washington County Superior Court.
The suit is the third in the span of about 12 months to accuse the university of gender-based discrimination, and the third in which the plaintiff is represented by Christina Nolan, a former U.S. attorney for Vermont.
The first of those lawsuits, filed by Elizabeth Kennedy, a former Norwich vice president, was settled in November. The second, filed by June Heston, who was turned down for another vice president role at the university, is still ongoing.
“This is not the first time Norwich has engaged in discriminatory behavior,” the complaint reads — language identical to that in a previous lawsuit. “Norwich’s toxic ‘old boys club’ atmosphere has been well documented in the media and in prior lawsuits. This suit seeks in part to compel Norwich to reckon with the underlying dynamics that result in discriminatory practices like this one.”
Kohn and Nolan did not immediately respond to phone calls or emails seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.
“Norwich University does not comment on personnel matters,” Sarah Stefaniuk, a university spokesperson, said in an email.
In her lawsuit, Kohn alleged that, in 2022, Norwich administrators passed her over for a position as director of its Leadership Center — an institution that, according to the complaint, she herself created. Instead, the university offered the role to a white man, the suit reads, and made Kohn the “Founding Director” of the center and chair of the Leadership Program, an academic department that offers a leadership major.
Norwich administrators — specifically, Provost Karen Gaines and Associate Provost Lea Williams — also displayed “hostility” toward Kohn, according to the suit.
Williams accused Kohn “publicly and falsely of doing things she had not done; claimed ignorance of details of projects that Associate Provost Williams was directly involved in; berated Dr. Kohn in front of others; excluded Dr. Kohn from meetings and discussions she should have been a part of; and ignored Dr. Kohn’s emails and other attempts to communicate,” according to the suit.
After a particularly unsettling meeting between the three in July 2023, according to the lawsuit, Kohn resigned from her role with the Leadership Center and just became the chair of the Leadership Program. That decision was intended to allow her to return to “primarily teaching duties,” according to the suit.
In January 2024, Kohn filed a formal complaint with the university and went on medical leave, the lawsuit reads. Kohn’s suit alleges that Norwich failed to investigate her complaint — instead, the suit claims, administrators demoted her and “substantially reduced her compensation” while she was away.
“As a result of Norwich’s adverse employment actions, Dr. Kohn has suffered and will continue to suffer severe emotional distress, which will require significant time and treatment,” the suit reads.
The seven-count lawsuit seeks a jury trial and an unspecified amount of compensatory and punitive damages.
