Tedeschi v. Wagner College
New York Court of Appeals
404 N.E.2d 1302 (1980)

- Written by Alex Ruskell, JD
Facts
Nancy Tedeschi (plaintiff) was a student at Wagner College (defendant). Tedeschi was disruptive in her Latin class and tore up her final exam in the exam room. When the professor told her that she would fail the class if she did not take the exam, Tedeschi subjected the professor to a barrage of phone calls, threatened suicide, threatened to “fix” the professor, and showed up at the professor’s home. Tedeschi only stopped after the police were called. College officials tried to contact Tedeschi about the matter, but she refused to speak to them and continued to call her Latin professor. Tedeschi eventually had informal meetings with school officials, who found that discussion with Tedeschi was fruitless. Ultimately, the college sent Tedeschi a letter saying that Tedeschi was expelled for nonacademic reasons but that she could reapply for admission if she wanted to do so. Tedeschi sued for reinstatement, arguing that the college’s guidelines stated that she could only be expelled if her case was heard by a student-faculty hearing board. The trial court ruled in the college’s favor, and the appellate division affirmed. Tedeschi appealed to the New York Court of Appeals.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Meyer, J.)
Dissent (Gabrielli, J.)
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