Gallaudet Lawsuit: Not Deaf Enough
PDF FILES:
Â
http://gallyprotest.org/kimmel_complaint.pdf (May 2, 2007)
Â
Â
http://gallyprotest.org/kimmel_motion_to_dismiss.pdf (May 29, 2007)
Partial list: Rationale for Lawsuit:
Not Deaf Enough
Hostile Work Environment
Retaliation
Defamation of Character
Reduced Merit Pay Increase
Exclusion of Work Duties
Partial list Reasons for Request for Dismissal of Complaint:
Plaintiff cannot establish that she was discriminated against on the basis of a disability under the District of Columbia Human Rights Act.
Plaintiff cannot establish a claim of hostile work environment based on a disability under the District of Columbia Human Rights
Aiding and encouraging Jane Fernandes†is not a protected activity
Plaintiff did not engage in a protected activity when she questioned a policy applied by the Mathematics Department
Plaintiff cannot establish that an exclusion from personnel decisions was a “materially adverse action
Plaintiff cannot establish that she suffered a “materially adverse action†because she was excluded from committees
Commentary: I am aghast. This is a completely frivolous lawsuit.  What’s more, she is actually defending her actions of tampering with the students’ grades assigned by their professors, accusing these professors of discriminating against these students. Oh, please give me a break. Zoltan himself is hard of hearing. I’ve heard stories of how she treated the students and professors horribly. Zoltan was dismissed because he objected to her babying down the education, something the MSA acknowledged when they pointed out the academic deficiencies of Gallaudet. I even encouraged one former student to share her experience with Kimmel publicly.
This is an act of vengeance against Gallaudet, pure and simple.  She wants to see Gallaudet dragged through the mud. MZ
PS. I tried including the full text of Kimmel’s complaint and Gallaudet’s Motion to Dismiss. It wiped out the blog twice, so apparently the blog couldn’t hold the lengthy text. So you can click on the pfd formats MZ
Email contact: Mishkazena@aol.com
Mishkazena (TM)
PDF FILES:
Â
http://gallyprotest.org/kimmel_complaint.pdf (May 2, 2007)
Â
Â
http://gallyprotest.org/kimmel_motion_to_dismiss.pdf (May 29, 2007)
Partial list: Rationale for Lawsuit:
Not Deaf Enough
Hostile Work Environment
Retaliation
Defamation of Character
Reduced Merit Pay Increase
Exclusion of Work Duties
Partial list Reasons for Request for Dismissal of Complaint:
Plaintiff cannot establish that she was discriminated against on the basis of a disability under the District of Columbia Human Rights Act.
Plaintiff cannot establish a claim of hostile work environment based on a disability under the District of Columbia Human Rights
Aiding and encouraging Jane Fernandes†is not a protected activity
Plaintiff did not engage in a protected activity when she questioned a policy applied by the Mathematics Department
Plaintiff cannot establish that an exclusion from personnel decisions was a “materially adverse action
Plaintiff cannot establish that she suffered a “materially adverse action†because she was excluded from committees
Commentary: I am aghast. This is a completely frivolous lawsuit.  What’s more, she is actually defending her actions of tampering with the students’ grades assigned by their professors, accusing these professors of discriminating against these students. Oh, please give me a break. Zoltan himself is hard of hearing. I’ve heard stories of how she treated the students and professors horribly. Zoltan was dismissed because he objected to her babying down the education, something the MSA acknowledged when they pointed out the academic deficiencies of Gallaudet. I even encouraged one former student to share her experience with Kimmel publicly.
This is an act of vengeance against Gallaudet, pure and simple.  She wants to see Gallaudet dragged through the mud. MZ
PS. I tried including the full text of Kimmel’s complaint and Gallaudet’s Motion to Dismiss. It wiped out the blog twice, so apparently the blog couldn’t hold the lengthy text. So you can click on the pfd formats MZ
Email contact: Mishkazena@aol.com
Mishkazena (TM)
June 6th, 2007 at 4:16 pm
It kills my heart to see that Dr. Kimmel, the ones who helped me to decide to transfer to The School of Visual Arts, would do that to Gallaudet University. I will explain the whole story in my vlog tomorrow. Right now, I have a bad sore throat.
To Dr. Davila and Gallaudet University, Hang in there.. You will have many people supporting you. I am so sorry that she would do that to Gallaudet University and I am not surprised. It is because of my first-hand experience with her.
Aidan
June 6th, 2007 at 4:34 pm
Tasteless. I understand she worked at Gallaudet for long time to be accepted as “deaf enough” right? Every admin. has a right for new leadership within their departments and it’s time for change, nothing personal.
June 6th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
There was blank in this post I dont see it, was it removed?
June 6th, 2007 at 5:10 pm
DCA, thanks for letting me know. I fixed it
June 6th, 2007 at 5:27 pm
“Not enough deaf.” I am puzzled because I have NOT seen anyone complain about Kimmel’s sign language. Very matter-of-factly, I saw her at the Hooding ceremony last month. She was clearly understood because she signed very clearly.
What deaf people complain about Kimmel — based on
Dr. Zolton Szkezely’s version — was that she
talked into making teachers alter students’ grades and that some faculty members did not
get on well with her management as dean of CLAST.
Absolutely nothing to do with her signing style.
I am truly disturbed by Kimmel’s (and Jane K.
Fernandes’s) false accusation. Kimmel, Jordan, and Fernandes have injuriously damaged the reputation of Gallaudet University down the road!
June 6th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
You know… I opposed the protests. I’ve always been upfront about that. I thought the protests were a disaster and nothing to celebrate.
With that said, after reading only a small portion of this lawsuit document, in my opinion Kimmel should not have been given the chance to resign. She should’ve been outright fired.
Kimmel is dragging the University through the mud because she lost her cronies in the administration, it seems. In other words, she’s a sore loser and does not want to see the University and community move on from this mess.
Shame on her!
June 6th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Remember MZ, you asked for it.
I am far from in a position to have any firsthand knowledge of this situation, but, from everything I hear, she was not good at her job, she falsely graded students, and she gave her co-workers a hard time.
Sounds very much like reasonable grounds for dismissal, if not a suit by some of the students
and their parents.
She is going to look like an idiot when all of this comes out.
Just my two pennies.
Dennis
June 6th, 2007 at 6:18 pm
Better be dismissed. Dr. Kimmel is a bitter person who wants to pay back to Gallaudet. I have no idea who is she. Sounds like she pops into this from nowhere.
Gallaudet is recovering through the big mess at this moment. Sigh … is on the edge of losing the accreditation!
Diane
June 6th, 2007 at 7:53 pm
I am curious: What is the hearing status of Kimmel? Reason for me to raise a question is that
she claims of being “Not Deaf Enough.” That makes me wonder if she is hard-of-hearing or a former oralist.
June 6th, 2007 at 8:27 pm
MZ,
As always, your brief and astute commentaries make the day!
Really sad to see Kimmel, (yes heard she’s Deaf as well), would ignore the collective spirit surrounding Gallaudet and try to destroy Gallaudet as an individualist member of a collectivist society. Hope she works through her anger and bitterness, and accept responsibility for what she did to the University.
(I might be signing out of my butt because Kimmel ascended at Gallaudet after I graduated and I never had firsthand experience with her. But I defer to the valid experiences of my Deaf friends and colleagues.)
DE
June 6th, 2007 at 8:37 pm
It appears Karen Kimmel is hard of hearing (according to her law suit–which I have not yet read in entirety–so you can check the details of her hearing status and communication background there).
June 6th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
This is by far the most frivilous lawsuit I’ve seen yet. I was like, ?????
I think the most damaging thing is her tampering with grades. She’s not going to get her day.
June 6th, 2007 at 11:57 pm
Kimmel doesn’t believe the stuff in her own law suit, in my opinion. This is clearly a desperation move on her part to try to shake down Gallaudet for a few dollars before her retirement, in my opinion.
This is a “Hail Mary pass” on Kimmel’s part. The only problem is that she has nobody to throw the ball to. She’s all alone on the field.
Check out the Babbidge Committee’s report from 1965:
From page xxix (PDF page 26):
QUOTE
Those who favor the employment of manual methods are less likely [than those who favor the oral method] to be purists. In fact, in the course of hundreds of discussions by the staff, not a single person was encountered who did not agree with the desirability of oral instruction for young deaf children.
UNQUOTE
In other words, the Babbidge Committee consulted educators of the deaf all over the country, including *Deaf* educators of the deaf. NOT A SINGLE PERSON said that speech and hearing training is undesirable for deaf students, but it’s simply a matter of putting it in proper perspective.
This means that Fernandes’ and Kimmel’s claim (alleging that Deaf culture is exclusionary and tribalistic) is sheer and utter nonsense. If culturally Deaf people were tribalistic, they wouldn’t be attending university in the first place!
Jordan NEVER used ASL and for many years he was made a into a secular diety. Why would culturally Deaf people do that if they were exclusionary??? Answer, they wouldn’t, and they are not exclusionary.
June 7th, 2007 at 6:57 am
From my experiences with Deaf people, I believe Fernandes’ and Kimmel’s claims are true and I would like to go to testifiy in the court about what how horrifying most Deaf people can be.
June 7th, 2007 at 7:28 am
“Most” Deaf people, Catlover? I don’t think so.
That is like when you are pregnant, you start to see more pregnant women.
Or buying a new car and you start seeing more cars like yours.
June 7th, 2007 at 12:43 pm
Catlover
Help yourself to testify at the court.
Doglover
June 7th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Offline and online, some of the best people in the world that I have known were Deaf people. Offline,..some of the biggest snobs that I’ve ever met were Deaf people! However,..I’ve never met any “horrifying” Deaf people…online or offline.
Some of the hearing people that I’ve met online and offline..were..another matter……!!!!
June 10th, 2007 at 11:57 am
The reason most Deaf do not believe people like Kimmel and me is they were never the victims. I am totally deaf and am fluent in ASL. The major problem with most Deaf people is they are followers without thinking twice.
I watched one of vblogs about Deaf Culture. One very popular vblogger said it is Deaf Culture for Deaf people to peep into other’s house after knocking. I would have asked him/her to get off my property and never to return. No decency in Deaf Culture.
I am thinking about writing a book about how undecent most Deaf people can be.
June 10th, 2007 at 5:35 pm
Go ahead, Catlover..
Do that and you’ll be in the same category with Alexander Graham Bell!
Would that be a wise decision on your part?
Your previous comments have shown me that you’re the “indecent” one here!
Plus, here’s my 25¢, honey. Make good use of that quarter, save up some more and buy yourself a brand, spankin’ new dictionary! After all, you’ll need it the most when you write your book.
June 10th, 2007 at 5:52 pm
I also had come to a realization.
Catlover was right when he/she was stating, “The major problem with most Deaf people is they are followers without thinking twice.”
You’re right, Catlover. In the past, most Deaf people were following I. King Jordan and Jane Fernandes without thinking twice and accepting everything they do or say as it is until the past several years.
Wow. Deaf people are actually starting to question motives and having bouts of critical thinking. Viola!! You’re just outright pissed off Deaf people are capable of independent thinking and could not be fooled easily again by “your kind”!
You lost. Get over it.
July 12th, 2008 at 4:20 am
Hello, I wonder if you could help me
I have lost the email address of Karen Kimmel who is a friend of mine. Through her, I have visited Gallaudet and given a keynote speech about my book Children of Silence, at Rochester University
It is imperative I get in touch with her. If you don’t like to give me her address, please forward this to her
Best wishes, Kathy (Robinson)