Overview

• Rochelle Hoffman, a staff member at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, has filed a federal lawsuit against the university, alleging she was demoted from her position as interim director of the Multicultural Student Services office due to her race.
• Hoffman claims she faced intense hostility and criticism from students, faculty, and staff solely because she is white, leading to a hostile work environment that forced her to resign.
• The lawsuit alleges that students questioned the appointment of a white woman to a position intended to serve students of color, with one student asking, 'Do you personally feel white staff can do as effective a job as a person of color, within a space for people of color?'
• Hoffman, who now works as a senior academic advising coordinator for the university, is seeking compensation for lost wages, psychological injury, emotional distress, loss of reputation, career damage, and attorney fees and costs.
• The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and the UW-Eau Claire Board of Regents have declined to comment on the pending litigation, stating that the university does not discriminate based on race in any employment decisions.