Johnson v. Univ. of Puerto Rico

• Citation: 714 F.3d 48
• Decision Date: 18 April 2013
• Docket Number: No. 12–1621.,12–1621.
• Parties: Christine JOHNSON, Plaintiff, Appellant, v. UNIVERSITY OF PUERTO RICO, Defendant, Appellee.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (1st Circuit)

714 F.3d 48

Christine JOHNSON, Plaintiff, Appellant,

v.UNIVERSITY OF PUERTO RICO, Defendant, Appellee.

No. 12–1621.

United States Court of Appeals,First Circuit.

April 18, 2013.

Aníbal Lugo–Miranda, with whom Lugo–Miranda Law Offices was on brief, for appellant.

Diego Ramírez–Bigott, with whom Raquel M. Dulzaides and Jiménez, Graffam & Lausell were on brief, for appellee.

Before LYNCH, Chief Judge, TORRUELLA and LIPEZ, Circuit Judges.

LYNCH, Chief Judge.

In 2009, Christine Johnson, an instructor in graphics, was denied a tenure-track position in the Engineering Department at the University of Puerto Rico's Mayaguez Campus (“UPR”). Three others did receive tenure-track positions: one woman and two men, all of whom had Ph.D.'s, as the position description required. Johnson did not have a Ph.D. and did not accept offers by UPR to pay for her to get one.

Johnson filed administrative discrimination (gender and national origin) charges, followed by a Title VII lawsuit, against UPR. The district court granted summary judgment for the defendant, rejecting Johnson's claims that she was qualified for the tenure-track position, that UPR's reliance on her lack of a Ph.D. was a pretext, and that the real reason for the failure to give her a tenure-track position was discrimination. We affirm, finding that the Ph.D. requirement for tenure-track positions was a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for UPR's actions and that Johnson did not meet her burden of showing that the articulated reason was pretextual.

I.

A. Factual Background

Johnson, a native of New York, received her master's degree in architecture from the University of Buffalo. Johnson moved to Puerto Rico in 1996 and began working at UPR's Mayaguez Campus in January of 1998.

UPR is “an organic system of higher education” composed of institutional units which “function with academic and administrative autonomy” within standards provided by Puerto Rico law and the rules and regulations of the Board of Trustees. P.R. Laws Ann. tit. 18, § 603(a). The Mayaguez Campus is one such institutional unit. Id. § 603(a)(2). Puerto Rico law provides the Chancellor of the Mayaguez Campus with, among other things, the authority to appoint deans for the different schools, directors for different departments, and administrative and academic personnel. Id. § 606(c)(5)-(7).

At UPR's Mayaguez Campus, Johnson served as a graphics instructor ¹ in the Department of Engineering for approximately twelve years under temporary service contracts that were formalized every semester.² Johnson's federal complaint asserts claims dating back to 2001. In 2001, the Department of Engineering wanted to offer more graphics classes, most of which were taught by instructors with temporary contracts, and was having a difficult time hiring tenure-track graphics professors who possessed Ph.D.'s, as required by departmental guidelines. The Department of Engineering accordingly approved a resolution, on April 26, 2001, requesting permission of the then-Interim Chancellor to hire tenure-track graphics professors who did not have Ph.D.'s. The request was apparently granted.

Three individuals who did not have Ph.D.'s applied for tenure-track probationary appointments, and two—José Crespo ³ and Joseph Robinson—were given appointments beginning on July 1, 2001. Johnson did not apply for the position.

Robinson, like Johnson, was born in the United States. He was hired because he was the only one qualified to teach the class Creative Design INGE 3809, and he also possessed an engineering degree. Crespo was hired to teach the class INGE 3011, because out of all those who applied and had taught the class, he had the most experience, since he had taught the class in a full-time capacity for the five previous semesters.

After those two hires, the Department of Engineering did not seek or hire any other individual for a tenure-track position until the 2008–2009 time period.

In the meantime, on November 10, 2006, UPR's Board of Trustees amended the General Rules and Regulations governing UPR to clarify that to obtain a tenure-track faculty position a candidate needed to have a Ph.D. The Regulations state, in section 42.1.2(a), that:

As of fiscal year 2006–2007, in order to hold a position of professor or researcher, or to hold a rank in said categories, the person must have, at least, obtained a doctoral degree or equivalent terminal degree in areas that train him or her especially for the subject matters that he or she teaches, researches, or is in charge of.

On April 24, 2008, Dr. Walter Silva–Araya, the then-Director of the Department of Engineering, issued a public announcement for a tenure-track position as an assistant professor teaching graphics in the Department of Engineering. The announcement stated that to be considered for the position the candidate had to have a Ph.D. or M.S. in architecture or mechanical engineering. The M.S. alternative was contrary to UPR's amended 2006 General Regulations and was a mistake. Johnson, who had an M.S. in architecture, sent a letter to Dr. Silva on April 17, 2008, before the public announcement, expressing her interest in a tenure-track position. Four other individuals, along with Johnson, all of whom lacked Ph.D.'s, applied for the position. Of the five candidates, three were women. No position was ever filled based on this announcement.

The Personnel Committee of the Department of Engineering recommended that Johnson be chosen in response to the April 2008 announcement, but the promotion hit a snag when the recommendation was submitted to Chancellor Dr. Juan Vélez Arocho. The Chancellor rejected the recommendation because the public announcement allowed an individual without a Ph.D. to be appointed to a tenure-track position, in violation of the General Regulations. Moreover, Johnson herself did not have a Ph.D. and so was not qualified. Dr. Silva testified that the mistake was an oversight on his part, and the public announcement was cancelled on May 28, 2008.

At this time, Dr. Silva sought alternative options for Johnson, and the Chancellor recommended to Dr. Silva that Johnson be offered a leave of absence to pursue a Ph.D. UPR offered to pay for tuition, books, living expenses, and travel. However, Johnson never accepted UPR's offer.

On June 23, 2008, Dr. Silva issued a new public announcement for the same position, which corrected his earlier mistake. This announcement stated that “[a]pplicants must have a Ph.D[.] in Civil or Mechanical Engineering and demonstrate potential for high-quality research and teaching.”

Ten candidates, including Johnson, applied for the position. Of those ten, six had a Ph.D., two were in Ph.D. programs, one (Johnson) had a master's degree, and one had a bachelor's degree. The applications created considerable discussion on the Personnel Committee because some members wanted to make Johnson an offer. However, in the end, she was ranked fourth of the ten, and the top three, all of whom had a Ph.D., were made offers and accepted. On July 1, 2009, Dr. Aidcer Vidot, Dr. Luis Montejo, and Dr. Carlos Marín were hired. In addition to their Ph.D.'s, all three had teaching experience as professors, instructors, or teaching assistants. Dr. Vidot is a woman, Dr. Montejo is from Colombia, and Dr. Marín is from Spain.

In December 2009, with the addition of three new tenure-track faculty members, UPR no longer needed Johnson's services. As a result, when Johnson's temporary contract expired that month, UPR and Johnson did not formalize a new temporary service contract.

B. Procedural History

On June 4, 2009, Johnson filed a charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) against UPR, alleging gender and national origin discrimination. She received notification of her right to sue on November 5, 2009. She never sought to amend the charge. On December 23, 2009, she filed suit in federal district court in Puerto Rico, alleging gender and national origin discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., along with other commonwealth law claims not before us on appeal.

UPR moved for summary judgment on April 15, 2011, which the district court granted on March 26, 2012. Johnson v. Univ. of P.R., No. 3:09–cv–2276–ADC (D.P.R. Mar. 26, 2012). The district court ruled that Johnson's claims arising from the failure to give her a tenure-track position in 2001, for which she had not applied, were untimely and no longer actionable because Johnson failed to file an administrative charge with the EEOC within 300 days of the alleged unlawful employment practice. See42 U.S.C. § 2000e–5(e)(1). As to the employment actions in 2008 and 2009, the district court found that Johnson had not established a prima facie case because she did not demonstrate that she was qualified for the position and because the candidates chosen were more qualified since they possessed Ph.D.'s. Finally, the district court concluded that even assuming Johnson established a prima facie case, the Ph.D. requirement was a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for UPR's decision not to hire Johnson, and the court explained that Johnson's services were no longer needed once the other candidates were hired. Johnson did not establish that the articulated reason was a sham to cover up a discriminatory purpose.

II.

A. Standard of Review

Our review of a district court's grant of summary judgment is de novo. Galera v. Johanns, 612 F.3d 8, 12 (1st Cir.2010). We view the record in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, id. at 10 n. 2, and make all reasonable inferences in that party's favor, Thompson v. Coca–Cola Co., 522 F.3d 168, 175 (1st Cir.2008).

Summary judgment is appropriate when there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a); Cox v. Hainey, 391 F.3d 25, 29 (1st Cir.2004). We look to the pleadings, depositions, answers to...