GSU Professor Resigns over “Bomb” Comments to Muslim-American Student

Atlanta, Georgia – July 1, 2009 – The Director of the Middle East Institute at Georgia State University, Dona J. Stewart, has resigned citing the university’s failure to address incidents of anti-Muslim bias.

In August 2008 a Muslim-American doctoral student, Ms. Slma Shelbayah, was repeatedly asked by a senior faculty member, Dr. Mary Stuckey, if she was ‘carrying any bombs’ underneath her Islamic headscarf, or hijab. Ms Shelbayah was also employed as a Visiting Instructor of Arabic in the Middle East Institute. She holds Bachelor and Masters degrees from Georgia State University.

Dr. Stewart’s resignation cited retaliatory actions taken by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Lauren Adamson, following Ms. Shelbayah’s request that the incidents cease. The dean’s office demanded that Dr. Stewart remove Ms. Shelbayah from her visiting instructor position, cancelled Ms. Shelbayah’s registration for her doctoral courses, and declared Ms. Shelbayah ineligible to lead a study abroad program to Egypt previously approved by the president of the university. Dr. Stewart refused to meet the dean’s demands, believing they violated Ms. Shelbayah’s constitutional rights and lacked due process. Dr. Stewart was subjected to numerous hostile comments and retaliatory actions by the dean that has impaired her ability to fulfill federal grant commitments and harmed her career.

No disciplinary action was taken towards the senior faculty member. The EEOC is currently investigating formal complaints filed by Stewart and Shelbayah.

Dona Stewart is a former Fulbright scholar to Jordan and author of The Middle East Today: Political, Geographical and Cultural Perspectives. In 2006 she received GSU’s Exceptional Service Award and is the 2009 faculty recipient of the Sparks Award that recognizes GSU’s ‘unsung heroes’. She has led the Middle East Institute since 2002.

For further information contact:
Attorney James E. Radford
Parks, Chesin and Walbert, P.C.
75 Fourteenth Street, Atlanta, GA, 30309
(404) 873-8000
JRADFORD@PCWLAWFIRM.COM