A 400-pound former Wayne State University student is suing the school for discrimination after they did not allow him to complete his physical education requirement virtually, the Detroit News reported Tuesday.
David Lopez, 44, was a student of the Michigan school’s physical education kinesiology program in hopes of becoming a gym teacher, the Detroit News reported. The only requirement he had left before graduation was instructing a gym class as a student teacher, which he wasn’t able to do due to his size and health.
Lopez was assigned to Dearborn Public Schools for the teaching portion of his degree during the winter 2022 semester, for which his doctor gave him an accommodation letter because of his diabetes, obesity, hypertension and asthma. According to his physician, Lopez could not stand or walk for long periods of time.
Dearborn Public Schools said they would allow the obese gym instructor to teach his lessons virtually, but Lopez’s lawsuit claims that Wayne State would not allow him to teach with his accommodation.
Now, Lopez is suing Wayne State for $1 million, “alleging he was discriminated against because of his weight and disabilities,” the Detroit outlet reported.
“They don’t think I fit the description of what a PE teacher was because I’m very overweight,” Lopez said. “They didn’t want me to graduate with my certification because I didn’t fit what they perceived to be a gym teacher because of my size and because of my weight. There’s no doubt that was the reason why. There was no other reason. I passed everything.”
The university filed a response to the civil suit through Wayne Circuit Court, arguing that there is no legal claim for weight discrimination against their educational institution.
“The university also said it does not control the student teaching requirements of districts,” Detroit News added.
The filing, obtained by the outlet, went on to call Lopez’s lawsuit “frivolous” and requested that it be dismissed.
“All I’d asked for was accommodations, virtual or through physical accommodations inside a classroom,” Lopez complained. “The school I was at was willing to give me a virtual setting, but Wayne State was not.”
“It got to the point where I had no other choice left,” he added. “I left with no degree, no certification, no nothing.”
One of his Wayne State professors had even previously attempted to get Lopez to give up his gym teacher dreams, with the disgruntled former student claiming that the professor told him he didn’t think he was qualified and wouldn’t be good at it.
Lopez argues that while he isn’t physically able to participate in some gym activities, his weight doesn’t stop him from being a good teacher.
“Suing the school was my last option,” he said. “I didn’t want to do it, but I’m doing it because I have nothing and I have no way to earn a living now because they took away my opportunity to get a degree. All I asked for was a reasonable accommodation.”
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