Myrtice Landers-USF racial discrimination case has upcoming mediation

Posted Aug 7, 2010 by Scott Carter

Updated Aug 7, 2010 at 04:48 PM

According to Wil Florin, the attorney overseeing the racial discrimination case of Myrtice Landers, a USF academic adviser who accused USF last month of racial discrimination and alleged the school covered up NCAA violations, Landers’ case moves forward on Thursday with a mediation hearing between Landers and USF’s Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity.

Landers was placed on administrative leave July 15 by the university for committing a recent secondary NCAA violation that involved giving free textbooks to a non-scholarship women’s basketball player. According to her personnel file obtained by The Tampa Tribune, Landers had faced multiple previous reprimands, including a “final warning’’ letter from USF athletic director Doug Woolard in September 2006.

In a recent press conference at Florin’s Palm Harbor office, Landers claimed she was terminated for a violation that her white colleagues have made and faced no consequences.

Landers had an original deadline of Aug. 2 to submit a written appeal of her administrative leave. USF spokesman Michael Hoad said Saturday that the deadline was extended in the course of the school’s investigation into Landers’ claims.

Florin said Landers was first notified in a letter that she was being terminated but that last week the school granted a mediation hearing on the matter, one agreed to by Woolard, according to Florin.

“We’ll see if we can get her situation resolved,’’ he said Saturday. “She would like to keep working for the university.’’

In her role at the school, Hoad said Landers reported to the Office of Faculty and Academic Affairs, thus Thursday’s hearing before the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity, which handles such cases.

Landers, who said she wants her job back so she can become fully vested in USF’s pension plan – she is currently about 10 months shy for reaching 30 years of employment at the school – is getting paid during her administrative leave according to Hoad.

“She wasn’t fired,’’ Hoad said. “She received a notice of being placed on administrative leave that she had to respond to. The process is not over.’’

Florin, who is also representing former USF football coach Jim Leavitt in his lawsuit against the university, has requested court time in that case this month to see if the judge will rule on his motion filed in mid-July requesting the school turn over privileged documents in the case. According to Florin, as of now the next hearing in Leavitt’s case is scheduled the first week of October.