Transgender Harvard Applicant Alleges Discrimination

Harvard University just can’t seem to catch a break these days. The university finds itself on defense again as an an applicant to Harvard Business School and its Graduate School of Education has filed suit in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts alleging the university discriminated against her in its admissions practices on account of her transgender status. More specifically, the applicant — who was denied admission — claims, among other things, that an admissions officer for the Harvard Business School forcibly kissed her at an open house for members of the LGBTQ community. And this isn’t the first time the student, listed as Jane Doe in the complaint, has made formal claims against the university; she previously alleged discrimination in a complaint with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination.

Transgender Applicant Denied Admission to HBS and GSE Files Suit

As reports Alexandra A. Chaidez and Aidan F. Ryan for “The Harvard Crimson” in a piece entitled “Transgender Applicant Alleges in Suit Harvard Discriminated and Retaliated Against Her in Admissions Decision,” “The complainant alleges that, in October 2017, a male admissions officer from the Business School forcibly kissed her at a BGLTQ open house and that the University unlawfully discriminated against her in the admissions process. According to the suit, Doe received a message notifying her that she had been denied admission to the Business School ‘within days’ of reporting the misconduct. A Business School admissions officer allegedly told the plaintiff in 2017 that the University had not admitted any transgender students over the past three admissions cycles, according to the complaint.”

Color us skeptical that a Harvard Business School admissions officer would tell a transgender applicant that the school hasn’t admitted a transgender student over the past three admissions cycles, particularly when schools like HBS covet transgender applicants to add rich diversity to their student bodies. But, hey, the truth will come out through this litigation. Or it won’t because the case will be quickly dismissed. Only time will tell but as our loyal readers know all too well, we’ve got a crystal ball at Ivy Coach. Our crystal ball hereby forecasts a quick dismissal of this case.