Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) President Jerry Sue Thornton files false telecommunication harassment charges against students contacting re course problems, bullying by other students & instructor, trying to drop, grade dispute - there wasn't thing not tried Cleveland, Ohio

During Fall 2010 there was a problem in the Surgical Technology Program (Beth Stokes) at Tri-C Main Campus.  Because of a change in Directorship, and money not trickling down to the individual course levels - the course instruction/instructors were just average, and the materials were not proofed or up-to-date. 

The other students selected did not have much of a science background, and had been in jobs where there wasn't much professionalism required.  This was a course that I enrolled in to review things in the OR - had worked in the OR before.  The previous year's students were very different ie more mature, more science background - so I felt it might be worthwhile.  But with the'shift' in trying to re-educate black & diversity students for another job, the kind of class that came of this, and the whole gestalt of the class, was much poorer in quality than expected.  The class discussions were many times very crude, and borderline street-talk was commonplace.  So I enrolled in a class that became a very bad dynamics situation, very quickly, at Tri-C Main Campus Fall 2010.  And it became a tsunami-scale disaster when I tried to email the problems.

The other students, and Ms. Luvenia Lewis RN of Cleveland Clinic, took an immediate dislike to me - that I just 'irked' them.  There was nothing I could do throughout the semester to change this attitude - tried tutoring for free, giving them my notes, complimenting Ms. Luvenia, talking to Beth Stokes, trying to discuss with Dean Karen Miller - and none of it worked. 

When things got to a 'jack-up' in October 2010, there was an attempt made to discuss drop, withdraw, or finishing the course in another way as the course costs were paid.  Dean Karen Miller & Beth Stokes instead both put me on probation for 'prejudice' - for saying that the instructor and I were not working out. 

Ms. Luvenia was black, but it was how she reacted to me that totally affected how the other students treated me.  And I'd had this happen before in graduate classes - and it didn't work out there either - an angry black social worker who just took everything out on me.  Ms. Luvenia did the same.  And I tried to email the problems as requested initially.

After meeting with Karen Miller, I was placed on academic probation - though I had the highest grade average in the written materials testing part of the class.  And I was told not to email - specifically the class problems anymore - that things had been 'fixed,' and another RN educator would do my practicals.  None of that happened, except that another RN did the midterm practical, and I tried to email to withdraw after verbal abuses & comments got worse again within a week. 

Beth Stokes was out-of-town for about two weeks until after Withdrawal date - no auto-reply on her email as to who to contact in her absence.  Pleading emails were sent to ask that she get back to me in time.  She didn't, and on December 2, 2010, I was called a 'b***h' multiple times over about 45 minutes of class time; the other students were going to 'b***h-slap' me if I said a word.  And nothing was done, the instructor went along, and I just got upset so I emailed again - this shouldn't be going on in any class anywhere and during evening classes it's scary.

Because of the emails I was dismissed from Tri-C, and because I couldn't get another RN educator to do the final practical, I flunked and wasn't able to attend the last week of classes or do all the finals - which everyone was glad about as the grade curve went up a whole grade.  The kids in class were doing the abusing because they could, and for a reason - get rid of me.  The Administration was doing the same thing and tolerating the verbal & physical abuses - no bruises so you couldn't file a police report.  But the victim wasn't Tri-C as has been painted to a Cleveland Municipal Court Judge - who being black believed President Thornton without a question or study of the situation.  The case is not a 'case,' except that it is.

So about January 12-13, I tried to contact Dean Karen Miller about doing the grade dispute - there were too many injustices and too much bullying that needed to be stopped.  There was apparently no bullying 'policy' in effect last semester, no words that the diversity students couldn't say to a white student, and nothing that I could do to defend myself except email to document. 

When I filed the grade dispute by US Mail as requested, couldn't email, Tri-C filed criminal charges in Cleveland Municipal Court that I had violated the no email policy; telecommunications harassment.  Well, you are literally going to flunk out if you can't do emails nowadays - so it was a ridiculous policy anyways, but there was no way to bring any attention to the bullying & verbal abuse going on in classes and by the one instructor.  Was just trying to survive and maybe finish.

State of Ohio law is that Ohio colleges can arbitrarily restrict emails, dismiss a student, etc., but that it is not the city or the state's place to enforce these arbitrary email rules of individual colleges and their respective Deans - nothing is CRIMINAL.  However, President Jerry Sue Thornton's name got this filed in Cleveland Municipal Court anyways - regardless of Ohio law - no one checked Ohio law with the state attorney's office - none of the MC prosecutors. 

During the attempt at the Final Practical with Ms. Luvenia - she had me moving a 300lb OR bed down the halls of Cleveland Clinic - this was not a 'practical' task - but her ad lib.  The scope of practice of this course was to lift 25lb only.  Ms. Luvenia did not require this OR bed task of any of the black students - just two white students who she flunked with it. 

Because of a low bone density condition - was only supposed to do 25lb maximum - and the Program Director & Ms. Luvenia knew about this medical restriction.  So, I was worried that I had injured myself that day - but I seemed ok at the time.  This was brought up with Beth Stokes, but she basically said that Ms. Luvenia could do what she wanted with me - whatever furniture she wanted moved was ok.  But that's not the course.

However, I didn't get the arms checked - and then I was ordered to court, so I ignored the problems.  Finally I fell slightly, and I broke my shoulder badly - something that probably would not have happened without the stresses of Tri-C and all the moving of heavy furniture that I was doing for the Surgical Technology class as run by Ms. Luvenia.  Everyone knew that the 300lb bed was to occupy me for 20-25 minutes after which time I would be too far behind to continue the practical - it was a way to flunk me - but injure me as well.  The task was devilishly designed to humiliate, and possibly injure, someone with my medical contraindications.

My family and I would like to ask that Tri-C dismiss this complaint - it will do no one any good for me to testify what was really going on - why the emails were sent - and my recovery from this injury - that Tri-C is partially responsible for - will be long.  Hopefully all the students that called me a 'b***h' won't do this again to anyone - regardless of race, age or educational background. 

As I can't contact Tri-C directly, ripoff report is being used.  And I will be 6 months rehabbing this shoulder; can't fall again at the Justice Center trying to defend myself from this rot or explain to a Prosecutor/Judge who can't see the obvious.  As to the victim, I was the one harassed almost non-stop so that I would drop or flunk - as one secretary in Dean Karen Miller's office put it - it was done intentionally - the ancillary staff knew this.

The bullying of white students, by obnoxious physical tasks, verbal abuse, or just demeaning comments in classes at Tri-C needs to stop - and it's not criminal to try to get help & document this with emails.  Dismiss me, flunk me, but criminal? charges for Tri-C problems?     

President Jerry Sue Thornton needs to stop handling this situation in the worst way.  President Thornton also needs to make clear that, while she would like to acknowledge the full expression & participation of black & diversity students in classes - that they get every opportunity to say every thing that they want about anything - that words like 'b***h' or 'b***h-slap' do not belong in classes at any campus of Tri-C.  Nor do emails detailing the jack-up, and b***h-slap, sessions belong in court anywhere - they only speak badly of what is going on at Tri-C.  And you won't get donations this way.

The students, and the instructor, thought the 'b***h' stuff was just a good joke - until I started to look 'green' and upset - and like the jack-up session, it went on almost an hour.  The jack-up session was in an active OR area of the Cleveland Clinic, where surgeries were going on in adjacent rooms and everyone in the hall could hear the 'you deserve a zero,' etc.

Rather than me going to court - it would be better to donate the money from that expense (parking/legal) to Tri-C - for better course materials - pay the harasser if need be.  The course CDs & videos were from the last century, the book and take-home tests - the course materials - had numerous mistakes that Beth Stokes didn't look over or correct before the course started in August. 

The teaching was just mediocre for the most part; the one instructor while well-meaning couldn't pronounce many of the words, and Ms. Luvenia has been supposed to retire for about 10 years now (she had a co-person black RN who was just excellent, and younger, but not allowed to do anything really).  It was just a very poor educational experience with very bad dynamics, that led to a disaster and a fracture - but only because Tri-C tried to file it as a 'criminal' matter to get out of any liability - and I was a registered student until December 17, and well within the grade dispute times to contact them in January regarding the grade dispute.

The Tri-C Board of Trustees needs to do something about the bullying of white students, and President Thornton/Karen Miller need to do something about the dismissing of the case - the waste of city monies for matters that are not in the purview of the city.  Someone in the Justice Center should check with the State Attorney's office.

Course problems, instructor problems, and grade problems are matters to be dealt with by Tri-C.  President Thornton needs to see that more of the money gets down to the course materials - not deferred to the political and marketing consulting.  But someone needs to do something or I'm going to fracture another bone trying to deal with this mess - which I didn't ask for and didn't deserve.  During the course, I tried very hard to befriend all, to explain anything to anyone who asked because I could explain things better than the instructors, and to compliment and try to work with Ms. Luvenia - who just refused to give me a chance.