The following is a draft version of the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities AFFIDAVIT OF ILLEGAL DISCRIMINATION I plan to submit.
I am crowd sourcing the proof-reading and accuracy testing of what I'm presenting that affects individuals aside from myself. I can be confidentially contacted at krasicki@protonmail.com if you have concerns or corrective criticism.
I provide the following particulars:
The Respondent employs more than 15 persons.
I am a 71-year-old male with an undergraduate degree (1974) in Studio Art and Education from Doane University (then Doane College), a Liberal Arts institution. I wanted to continue and further my Studio Art education by applying for an opportunity to be selected into UConn’s Master of Fine Arts ( MFA ) program at the Storrs Campus at the University of Connecticut.
On March 24, 2023, I received written notification that I was not selected by Judith Thorpe – the Chairperson of the MFA. And the reason for the denial was there were only five opportunities for admittance and I wasn’t one of the individuals still under consideration.
My complaint has absolutely NOTHING to do with that selection process. This item simply provides a context and baseline for the following situation that not only affects myself but anyone who is older and not already an insider to the system.
Footnote 1 - The number of accepted applicants to UConn’s MFA program is tightly coupled to the MFA program’s boast that all MFA candidates are “fully-funded” therefore the very acknowledgement that someone attended an MFA program by means other than those already in place will somehow diminish its prestige or competitiveness.I had collected a number of fallback positions in the event that I was not selected. One alternative approach was to attend a UConn Studio Art course to introduce myself to faculty and demonstrate both my talent and seriousness in being reconsidered for the program going forward. Concurrently, I learned that senior citizens can attend State institutions tuition free.
On March 25, I emailed Judith Thorpe to confirm this was true.
And I inquired about the possibility of attending a UConn studio Art course or the potential to design a DIY MFA that wouldn’t interfere with their current prestige track.
She replied on March 26 by saying that “Tuition free courses are allowed only at the undergraduate level. You should consider auditing an undergraduate course in drawing, painting, or printmaking to develop your work…”
Footnote 2 - This is a legitimate [tho misinformed] response from the Chair of the Art Department that provides an insight to faculty understanding of how things work.On March 27, I contacted the UConn registrar’s information office to ask what policy governed the“undergraduate courses only” constraint. The website merely alluded to the policy but there was no cross-reference as to where it came from or who was accountable for it. The information desk person didn’t know but said that an email to the registrar was required to get that answer. On March 27, I sent an email to the registrar asking for the information required to appeal the policy because I found it unfair and potentially illegal.
Footnote 3 - This was the basis of my original CHRO complaint. By April 14, I had called CHRO and was corresponding with Robert Aldi to say that I never did hear from the registrar. In order to file this complaint I set about investigating it myself which has far broadened the scope of the discriminatory nature of UConn and the State’s ageism problem.I spent a lot of time attempting to navigate UConn and other State educational facility website attempting to understand how any senior citizen could know about, navigate, or take advantage of higher education based on the law, DEI protections, or even as a matter of interest. I will detail some of this below.
On May 3, Uconn’s registrar - thanks to an audit of their email activity or lack thereof - finally responded to the question asked in section 4.
“To clarify, the Over 62 Waiver does cover tuition only for both degree-seeking and non-degree seeking courses in the fall and spring. The webpage on the Bursar's Office is here: https://bursar.uconn.edu/tuition-waivers-graduate-students/ “
…The policy authors are the CT State Legislature, and the statute is cited at the top of the page.
That link defines the Over 62 Tuition waiver thus,
“This waiver pertains to any person 62 years of age or older who has been accepted for admission, provided this person is (1) enrolled in a degree-granting program or, (2) for a person not enrolled in a degree program, provided, at the end of the regular registration period (on or after the first day of classes), there is space available in the course in which the person intends to enroll. Students must be a Connecticut resident and 62 years old prior to the beginning of the term they wish to enroll in. The waiver is only available for fall and spring semesters, and is valid for TUITION ONLY. Residual fees are the responsibility of the student. For any person who receives a tuition waiver and also receives educational reimbursement from an employer, the waiver is reduced by the amount of the educational reimbursement. Some fee based programs may not qualify for this waiver. The senior tuition waiver does not apply to students in graduate certificate programs. Please contact bursar@uconn.edu for any questions. For registration inquiries please contact the Registrar's Office.”
Footnote 4 - There is nothing here that indicates Undergraduate Only courses for seniors. Nor is there a means test to qualify for such a waiver.
Not only is the website wrong (and subversively discriminatory) but so is the faculty understanding of such a waiver (see item 3 previously).
The discrimination against senior citizens is systemic and this is just one aspect of what soon develops into a Kafka-trap of ignorant and disingenuous, plausible deniability on the part of these State institutions. Details to follow.
You might also ask yourself why this information is so deeply buried in their website. I’m a lifelong Software Engineer/Software Architect and I never stumbled across this. Imagine any senior ever having the chance to know this exists. IMO, this qualifies as Elder Abuse just as withholding health information or necessary drugs from someone does.
Footnote 5 - Notice that the law isn’t discriminatory. UConn’s interpretation, disingenuous dissemination, and implementation is.Armed with this new information, I contacted Judith Thorpe once again.
“Given this clarification of tuition waiver;
my application for admission to the MFA program is no longer contingent upon either a grant, scholarship, or other arrangement - the tuition is covered and I can cover any other expenses required
the prestige of UConn's fully-funded MFA program remains intact
UConn's misleading website references that institutionally and functionally promote age discrimination based on disingenuous interpretations of the law that create a classic example of passive systemic age discrimination will be addressed through a CHRO complaint that I am currently compiling
For the sake of clarity, I don't necessarily require studio space. I live just a few miles up the road. While I am open to both the critical nature and informational aspects of the program, I don't believe I add undo or unnecessary overhead to anyone's teaching or guidance role.
So. What do I need to do to be accepted into the graduate program? Such acceptance no longer is dependent on the five students already accepted which, presumably was the critical decision in eliminating my portfolio from further consideration. “
Judith never replied back.
On May 9, Kent Holsinger - Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor, Vice Provost for Graduate Education, and Dean of The Graduate School sent me an unsolicited opinion email to reassure me that the system is self-insulating and to go away.
“I understand your disappointment at being declined admission to the MFA program in Art. As Professor Thorpe described in her original email to you, admission to the program is highly competitive. Only a small fraction of the many talented applicants are finally recommended for admission. I have not spoken with Professor Thorpe or with anyone else associated with the decision in your case, but nothing in the correspondence below leads me to believe that the decision to decline your admission was related to your ability to pay tuition, whether through the Over 62 Waiver or not.
If you believe that references on any University website are misleading and promote age discrimination, you may refer your complaint to…” [all of the gatekeepers who enforce these policies in the first place].
Footnote 6 - This is a guy who used to teach science. Brutal.
He never asked me what the issue was so he can’t know the question. But he has the systemic response in his back pocket. He doesn’t care about discrimination at all. He personalizes the problem, it’s me (any person), who is unworthy - go test our website out for us - and don;’t go away mad, just go away and don’t forget what a big shot just corresponded with you - just a warning!
Needless to say I responded in kind.RE: Footnote 3 - My research into the details because nobody else - not UConn, not DEI, not their Board of Trustees, nor anyone else incentivized to raise an eyebrow for American Connecticut senior citizens - fuck ‘em, they can’t prove it!
a.) 2019 State Programs for Older Adults (https://www.cga.ct.gov/2022/rpt/pdf/2022-R-0131.pdf)
“Tuition Waivers for Older Adults By law, state residents age 62 or older may qualify for a tuition waiver at any of the state’s public higher educational institutions, if at the end of the regular registration period enough students are enrolled in the course for it to be offered and enough space is left to accommodate the senior citizen (CGS §§ 10a-77(d), -99(d), and -105(e)). “
b.) Revisit Item 3 - “consider auditing an undergraduate course in drawing, painting, or printmaking to develop your work…”
See: https://nondegree.uconn.edu/senior-citizen-audit/
“Senior citizens who do not seek degree credit may audit undergraduate courses only. Consent of the instructor is required. …[snip]... The senior audit does not apply to laboratory or studio classes.”
In other words, not only are senior citizens denied an opportunity to take or audit a graduate level course, they cannot take a necessary [laboratory or studio] undergraduate course either. In Footnote 4, I described the discriminatory practice as systemic. This is another example of the Catch-22 nature of attempting to take advantage of a State-sponsored tuition waiver and the intentional roadblocks that the University invents to prevent in succeeding - you can’t get there from here. This likely affects other such waivers - say for veterans as well.
Note the systemic nature of the discrimination is the reminder of the brain-dead “undergraduate only” UConn policy that no one seems to be accountable for except to deflect blame somewhere else. For individuals who already hold undergraduate degrees this makes zero sense while for those without either an undergraduate degree or relevant life-experience, the policy works. In other words, it is written to constrain the academically immature or unprepared from advancing beyond their preparedness. Applying this to individuals who have earned degrees, succeeded in a life’s journey, and want to proceed is something that makes this unnecessarily punitive and petty.
But even these arguments fail to fully describe the broader scope of discriminatory practice at UConn that involves not only ageism but a failure to provide uniform, consistent diversity practice throughout the State.
To compare and contrast the difference between the treatment of senior citizens and younger students one need look no further than E.O. Smith high school - the only high school that UConn allows qualifying junior and senior high school students the opportunity to attend tuition-free, undergraduate courses.
The comparison is stark. A high school student can “step up into” undergraduate courses that have empty seats (the priority of these students with veterans and other qualifying candidates is unclear). What is clear is that these students do not even possess a high school diploma yet and can move ahead.
Seniors with either life experience aplenty, an undergraduate degree or more are not able to move up into appropriate courses.
But as obvious as this difference is, there are even more complicated nuances involved. The E.O. Smith students who enjoy these benefits are more often than not related to UConn employed local citizens can mean that ensuring that “consent of the instructor” qualifications are wholly impartial is a questionable requirement for seniors or older vets to contend with. I served on the E.O. Smith Board of Education for 12 years so I’m confident of what I’m saying.
But the rabbithole of cascading discriminatory practice digs even deeper. E.O. Smith students who succeed in these courses enter UConn not only with a pocketful of tuition free courses that give them a head start. UConn’s process of course selection includes a Byzantine hierarchy of who gets first preference in selecting courses. These high school/UConn courses are applied to that course selection priority ranking. All things being equal, these students can and do enjoy an entitlement that even better or equally qualified undergraduates cannot match.
And deep as this rabbithole is, it has even more consequences that UConn’s virtue signaling marketing hides. The Storrs campus is surrounded by lily-white suburban communities. If high school kids from the area can take tuition-free courses based on geography alone then logically - I, as a senior citizen of the area - should also enjoy that preference.
But it’s not about geography, it's about the comfort of nepotism. UConn and other State institutions have urban extensions throughout the State. The E.O. Smith high school entitlement is not extended anywhere else - not Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, or a dozen other locations - despite the University’s virtue signaling rhetoric about the importance of student opportunity and diversity. This is an institution that needs fresh governance and a serious and honest audit of their current educational practice. While my complaint is constrained to age it should be obvious that the cancer of structural and systemic discrimination is chronic and widespread.The Roots of Discrimination
Age discrimination is explicitly expressed in https://www.cga.ct.gov/current/pub/chap_185b.htm#sec_10a-100
“PART III
THE UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT
Sec. 10a-102. (Formerly Sec. 10-117). Object of The University. Enrollment. Degrees. The University of Connecticut shall remain an institution for the education of youths whose parents are citizens of this state. The leading object of said university shall be… [snip]... The board shall establish policies which protect academic freedom and the content of course and degree programs.”
Bolded mphasis mine.
Compare and contrast this to (https://www.bestcolleges.com/blog/free-college-tuition-senior-citizens/)
“ Colorado State University — Fort Collins, CO
CSU's senior citizen class visitation policy allows resident instruction classes on a space-available basis to students age 55 and over. Lifelong learners can register for classes in subjects like theater, Italian, and women's studies without paying tuition. “
Nationwide the use of terms like “lifelong learners” is wholly non-discriminatory and wholesomely accurate. Uconn’s indifference to 18% of Connecticut’s population who are potentially lifelong learners is criminal. It is the responsibility of the State’s flagship higher education institution to correct this.To synthesize my complaint I offer this draft summary.
There are unnecessary UConn policies that violate the spirit and intent of the anti-discrimination State and Federal laws. These policies not only compound the inability of senior citizens to take advantage of a benefit from institutions that many of us have spent decades supporting with our taxes but these benefits are subverted by obfuscating their existence not only to senior citizens but UConn faculty, communications, and administrative services.
I think I’ve sufficiently documented how self-serving and self-insulating the system is. What UCONN is doing is a form of discrimination under Title VII, the ADAA, ADEA, and a host of State and regional legal protections.Upon belief & knowledge, I and many more are being discriminated against by the university because of age.
I request the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities investigate my complaint, secure for me my rights as guaranteed to me under the above cited laws and secure for me any remedy to which I may be entitled.
