FILE PHOTO (Devon Dewey, KSL.com)
OREM — UVU plans to settle a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by the school’s former Title IX director.
According to public records requested by the Deseret News, Utah Valley University will pay $45,000 to Melissa Frost to settle her suit. Frost accuses UVU of firing her after she made it known she was planning to investigate allegations by three women against high-ranking school officials.
Frost also argues officials did not refer students to the Title IX office quickly enough after reporting incidents of sexual harassment, assault, or discrimination.
UVU’s lawyers say administrators did not know Frost was investigating potential Title IX violations when she was fired. The school also says it hired an outside investigator who later found accusations of retaliation made by Frost to be unsupported.
According to documents obtained by the Deseret News, the settlement prevents either side from talking to the media about the suit.
Frost served as the school’s Title IX director from 2014 to 2017.