Teaching in Exile: University Mulls Termination of Professor, as DA ‘Rejects’ Criminal Charges from Campus Protests

Pictured here at the Humboldt County courthouse in May, Professor Rouhollah Aghasaleh had anticipated criminal charges, but those allegations were “rejected” by the District Attorney’s office along with 26 other cases stemming from the April 30 Cal Poly campus protest police sweep. [Photo by Ryan Hutson]

Still, although the college professor remains under a microscope while being investigated by the school, being unable to teach on campus and prohibited from even speaking to students, they insist on doing what they feel they are called to do for the community – which is to teach – even though they could get fired. 

When asked why they felt compelled to teach the class publicly, in spite of the suspension from campus, Rouhollah Aghasaleh said after concluding the first class “in exile” across the street from Cal Poly, “This is not about me, this is about wellbeing of campus and community.” Professor Ahgasaleh explained, “This Fall, unfortunately I was unable to officially be on the schedule and teach on campus, and so I am using public spaces and whatever resources that I have.”.  

A separate investigation into Professor Aghasaleh’s conduct while on campus during the Pro-Palestine protests that took place at Cal Poly Humboldt at the end of April remains ongoing, being conducted by the University. 

On campus, the Professor’s office door is locked, and a substitute lecturer has been asked to fill in for the Professor, for now. 

Alleging that the professor was in violation of the State of California Education Code for “unprofessional conduct” and “failure or refusal to perform the normal and reasonable duties of the position,” the Faculty Affairs Office at Cal Poly holds that Rouhollah Aghasaleh’s “unauthorized presence in and misuse of University property (Siemens Hall and Nelson Hall East at Cal Poly Humboldt),” occurred when the professor was alleged to have been inside either building despite directives from campus police not to be there. 

Aghasaleh does not agree.

A letter from the Humboldt County District Attorney’s office confirms that all charges against Rouhollah Aghasaleh, brought by the University Police, were dismissed “in the interest of justice” after a review of the evidence related to the April 30th arrests.

The professor of graduate level courses at the School of Education at Cal Poly Humboldt remains prohibited from accessing campus at all while the investigation is ongoing, and could face additional punishment or termination from employment if found guilty at the conclusion of the University’s investigation. On top of that, any misstep during the period of temporary suspension could add to the University’s claims against the professor. According to the University’s correspondence with the teacher, punishments beyond the current suspension could include unspecified “corrective or disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.”

SILENCE FOR SAFETY

With each suspension renewal letter, Professor Rouhallah Aghasaleh is reminded that according to the University their conduct during the week of protest at Cal Poly is being investigated to determine if they negatively impacted the “safety of persons in the Cal Poly Humboldt community” or contributed to the “disruption of programs and/or operations” on campus during that week. 

The notice, signed by Associate Vice President (AVP) for Faculty Affairs Kimberly N. White, briefly explained the nature of the suspension. In the latest correspondence from White, the professor is advised, “This temporary suspension will automatically end after 60 days from the effective date of the extension (October 28, 2024) or upon service of formal notice of disciplinary action, whichever first occurs, unless it is extended or ended earlier by the President.” 

In a further email to Aghasaleh, White explained to the professor that they had been placed on temporary suspension “based on information the University has received that you willfully disrupted University operations by your unauthorized presence in and misuse of University property (Siemens and Nelson Hall) in violation to directives from both University administration and University police to leave those buildings.” 

In that email to Aghasaleh, White asserted that during the course of that week the professor had allegedly “violated campus directives” with their “unauthorized presence on campus, including with [Aghasaleh’s] arrest on April 30, in which [they] again violated the directives from University administration and University police directives to leave the area.” (Multiple email inquiries to faculty and the news department at Cal Poly have gone unanswered, despite deadline extensions in hopes of receiving feedback related to this matter.) 

In a recent letter addressed to AVP White from Professor Aghasaleh, it is pointed out by the teacher that at the outset of the protest on April 22, “there were 50-60 protestors occupying the Siemens Hall,” in contrast to on April 30, when at the time of the police sweep on campus, “only 12 students (and 18 community members) remained, seated peacefully in the quad, where they were calmly arrested without incident or injury.”  Aghasaleh wrote, “No arrests occurred inside the buildings. Comparing this with what we observed on the first night, I proudly take responsibility for minimizing both the potential harm and overall costs associated with the situation.” The professor has not yet received a reply from AVP White.  

A Humboldt County Corrections officer escorts Rouhollah Aghasaleh, PhD and Assistant Professor at Cal Poly Humboldt to a law enforcement van that took them him to jail. [Photo by Mark McKenna]

Rouhollah Aghasaleh is not the only college professor or teacher disciplined for their involvement in student protests for Palestine which have engulfed campus communities from coast to coast. For example, a professor at the City College of New York was fired for his role in student-led protests and in California, a San Jose State professor was suspended after helping students who were demonstrating on campus and placed on administrative leave. In May, a Washington University professor was also suspended for their involvement in campus protests, and in June, a Chicago teacher at DePaul University was fired for her role in protests on campus. According to reporting by NPR in May, which reported that there “is no exact tally of how many professors have been arrested, according to the AAUP, but news stories and social media reports suggest the numbers are steadily -mounting.”

Dr. Aghasaleh is not alone in the frying pan. As some college staff members are being suspended or even fired for their involvement in student protests for Palestine, faculty members in the California University system, such as at UCLA and at UC Santa Cruz, have had union support in demonstrating alongside protesting students. Those demonstrations included demands for academic amnesty for student protestors, as well as amnesty for involved faculty who were at risk of receiving disciplinary action related to their presence at on-campus protests.   

A Cal Poly student advocating for Rouhollah Aghasaleh’s reinstatement wished to remain anonymous as they protested a social function welcoming teachers back to campus in Arctata, the week before classes resumed. [Photo by Ryan Hutson]

Not only is the life-long teacher restricted from accessing campus until the closing of the University’s investigation, but the University has told the professor, “You are not to communicate with any students during this investigation,” in the first notice of suspension. 

PROTEST AND PROFESSIONALISM

We spoke with the professor at length to understand their situation, and what led up to their extended suspension from campus. Following several days of student activism on campus in violation of the school’s policy regulating such speech and actions, Rouhollah Aghasaleh, PhD described having made inroads with constructive dialogue, and had facilitated conversation between protesters and administrators, endeavoring to mediate a resolution to the student-led protest that did not involve further police activity on campus. 

Screengrab from the viral video capturing intense moments at Siemens Hall on April 22 at Cal poly, during the initial police response which injured a handful of students – one of them requiring emergency room attention for a head split injury thought to have been caused by a baton during the incident. [video footage by Ryan Hutson for Redheaded Blackbelt]

Interviewed in late May, on the brink of an expected arraignment date that ultimately never happened, Rouhollah Aghasaleh spoke about why they returned to campus off and on through the week of protests for Palestine. “I got involved after I witnessed the students were assaulted on the night of April 22 at Siemens Hall and then as the protest continued,” Aghasaleh told us, “I was worried that the students will continue to be harmed by the forceful presence of law enforcement and campus and the threat that we continued to receive from the Chancellor’s Office and from the admin… .” 

The veteran of social movements, and passionate educator decided to remain accessible to the students who insisted on continuing the protest, being intent on advising them to de-escalate in order to arrive at a less violent conclusion than had occurred earlier that week. Reflecting on their objectives of trying to have a more productive dialogue between protesters and administrators, the teacher explained, “I facilitated some meetings between the students and the admin, and I was also worried about the students being assaulted by law enforcement. That’s why I stayed till the last minutes, and I got arrested along with the students.”

Arrested alongside University Students at Cal Poly Humboldt, Rouhollah Aghasaleh PhD was arrested April 30th with the group of around 25 protesters remaining on campus within the blockaded space at the center of campus. [Video by Ryan Hutson]

Following news of the second extension to Ahgasaleh’s temporary suspension issued in April, a colleague explained that part of being an effective teacher is being available to the students, and supporting them as they grapple with complex subjects. 

Preferring to remain anonymous in order to avoid professional consequences, this teacher said, “I care about these issues anyway, so I’d still be showing up if I wasn’t a professor – if I was pumping gas, I would have shown up.” The teacher then noted, “my role, I just wanted to show up, and for the most part it just has a lot to do with being consistent in showing up, being seen.”  When asked if he thought Rouhollah Aghasaleh displayed “professionalism” by remaining on campus as alleged in the notice of temporary suspension from the University, the professor replied, “He was totally 100% professional because he was there to support students on campus. So, part of our job is to protect them, not to only just teach them.” 

Reflecting on their arrest and involvement with students during the protests, Aghasaleh told us, “I think we need some systematic revision and reform in the way that we are engaged with the protests.” Having some experience with student organizing and protesting for social causes, Aghasaleh mused on ways that University faculty could better engage with students in this area. They said, “One of the things is that the Dean of Students, that office should be more proactively involved in student protests,” referencing Cal Poly’s Dean of Students, whose office’s stated mission is “to guide and educate students on campus policies, procedures, and expectations.”  

Aghasaleh added, “If I was a Dean of Students I would do frequent meetings with student clubs, organizations, do some training for them about their legal rights, things about their you know, how to do a protest, peacefully and effectively.” Underscoring that the idea of a political protest is to publicly “petition the Government for  a redress of grievances” and to generally spread awareness of an issue, again promoting the idea of peaceful protest, Aghasaleh added, “…because when you’re framed as a non peaceful protester, then your voice is not heard.”

A small group of protesters can be seen circled up sitting at the Cal Poly quad prepared to be arrested in protest.  Aghasaleh was arrested during a police response, with students and other protesters on April 30. [A screengrab from live video of the police sweep by Ryan Hutson for Redheaded Blackbelt] 

Speculating as to the motivations and priorities of the University based on what had occurred that week in April, the Cal Poly professor surmised, “But [the University was] more concerned about retaking, you know, “retaking”…Siemens Hall, right – an inanimate piece of property.  They were more concerned about that than the safety and the well-being of students who were being dragged away by police officers…”

Aghasaleh is seen here at Cal Poly Humboldt on Friday April 26, during a tense moment between students and administrators who had arrived on campus to assess the degree of damage caused by the ongoing student protest. [Screengrab from footage by Ryan Hutson]

Addressing their obligations to be professional in conducting themselves as a representative of the school, Aghasaleh made clear that they believe that school employees “all share the same mission: to educate the next generation of citizens and professionals to serve our State, Country, and the Global community.” 

TEACHING IN EXILE

While the Professor still faces the outcome of the investigation by Cal Poly, Rouhollah Aghasaleh decided to persist with offering classes, and explained that continuing to serve in the role of teacher was important. The steadfast educator, being no stranger to discrimination, chose to continue to do what comes naturally for them – to teach – but to do it in a way that does not violate the terms of the temporary suspension. 

Although the restrictions from the university are clear, legal standards set in cases such as  Pickering v. Board of Education (1968) give broad allowance to First Amendment speech by teachers, particularly in off-campus settings (such as Ahgasaleh’s class offered in public), when a court is looking at a teacher’s right to free speech versus their employer’s right to limit that speech. In that supreme court case, Justice Thurgood Marshall agreed that Pickering’s First Amendment rights had been violated, and wrote in the decision, “the interest of the school administration in limiting teachers’ opportunities to contribute to public debate is not significantly greater than its interest in limiting a similar contribution by any member of the general public.” 

Those who popped in for the open class enjoyed the lessons while soaking up the afternoon sunshine between a conveniently located food truck and a Justice for Josiah Lawson mural at the D Street Community Center only a crosswalk away from the University. Some of those who showed up to enjoy the class learned of it after they had been handed a flier notifying community members of the unorthodox teaching session, and met Rouhallah Aghasaleh for the first time.

Naomi Grogan-Hurlich, a lecturer at Cal Poly who was asked to cover the suspended Professor’s teaching schedule on campus, was also present for Aghasaleh’s first class taught “in exile.” Grogan-Hurlich told us, “Although it’s been under very unfortunate circumstances, it has been a gift to meet Rouhollah and to be a participant in their public class. They are clearly passionate about teaching and learning and clearly care about the safety and education of their students and colleagues.” 

Naomi Grogan-Hurlich seen here with Rouhollah Aghasaleh, was asked to cover the suspended Professor’s teaching schedule on campus, and showed up to meet  Aghasaleh at the first class taught “in exile.”  [Photo by Ryan Hutson]

Some faculty members arrived to the publicly presented class on Monday wearing matching neon green t-shirts which read, “WHERE’S ROUHOLLAH?” superimposed on a giant question mark.  One attendee who also happened to be a teacher, was also arrested in connection with the Pro-Palestine protests that unfolded in late April on campus. 

Showing up to support Professor Aghesaleh, Alice Finen, proudly wore the bright green shirt in support of Aghasaleh’s reinstatement. Finen is also a local teacher who has also been active in supporting the local protests for Palestinian causes. 

Teachers in support of Rouhollah, Michihiro Clark Sugata, PhD of Cal Poly’s Sociology Department, and Alice Finen, a teacher at a local elementary school each showed support Monday, August 26 for Rouhollah Aghasaleh PhD while on temporary suspension from employment with Cal Poly.  [Photo by Ryan Hutson]

The teacher and community member who is passionate about free speech and student expression also noted that she felt the charges stemming from the police sweep on campus April 30 were wholly unjustified, and as she reflected on the DA’s rejection of those cases, said, “I guess it just goes to show that they were totally within their rights and that they should not have been arrested.” 

In contrast to Aghasaleh’s case, as a teacher, Finen reports no issues of discipline at her place of employment (another local school, not the University) after having been arrested in April, nor as a result of her ongoing support for student protesters. In the emotional video statement submitted to us, Finen gives an “O Captain my Captain” echo from the likes of The Dead Poets Society, as she declares her support for the charismatic and influential teacher while also calling out what she sees as hypocrisy on the part of the institution.  

Reflecting on the University’s suspension pending the results of their investigation, Finen told us, “I think it’s really hypocritical to have Rouhollah be on a second extension to a suspension, especially when their charges were dropped,” and added,  “I think that the university really needs to be honest with itself if they’re going to… do so much reaching out and encouraging students to come up here on that, that idea that they’re inclusive and…celebrate diversity.” 

Referencing Cal Poly Humboldt’s promotional advertisements pitching the rural college experience with emphasis on inclusivity to the broader public as the school aims for increased enrollment, Finen highlighted what she sees as a discrepancy in the narrative. She said, “And then it’s, you know, these students, these quote, unquote diverse students and professors are treated like this. I think it’s, it’s horrendous,” she said, “it’s really distressing to know that those people and those students and those professors are treated that way. So it’s just so hypocritical and distressing.”

Professor Aghasaleh, at their first open class, in the shadow of the David Josiah Lawson mural recently completed across the street from Cal Poly’s main entryway. [Photo by Ryan Hutson]

After the first publicly offered class had concluded the afternoon of Monday, August 26, Rouhollah Aghasaleh explained that in the larger context of being an educator, speaking up has value, and cited a quote seen at their Cal Poly campus office by Audre Lorde, which reads, “My silences had not protected me. Your silence will not protect you.