Marguerite Kay (whistle-blower) Reinstated and Immediately Suspended
The outstanding, internationally respected physician/scientist Marguerite Kay, MD,
Regent’s Professor at the UA, is a classic whistle-blower who received severe reprisals.
Eighteen prominent scientists from around the world wrote to the Board of Regents
or to the President of the UA, extolling her excellence as a scientist and expressing
various levels of shock at what most of them characterized as, essentially, a nightmare
of unjustified reprisals visited upon her.
There were two articles in 1999 in the major science journal "Science" (circulation
to 143,000 scientists in the United States), and three articles in the "Chronicle
of Higher Education" on her case.
Dr. Kay is an innovative researcher into diseases of aging, including Alzheimer’s
disease. She brought in $4.6 million in research grant funding to the UA in 8 years.
In 1998 she received the prestigious designation of "Diplomat of the American Academy
of Anti-Aging Medicine." As pointed out by many of the scientists writing about her
situation, her important original observations on the protective effects of vitamin
E on the nervous system have been confirmed by numerous independent studies in top
journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine.
As a whistle-blower, she reported to the Provost of the university, the designated
university official for whistle-blowing complaints, on abuse of authority in double
charging Federal grants. She also made whistle-blowing reports to legislators on
gross waste of monies, consisting of $23,000 improper billing by the UA to the VA
Hospital for work that was never performed.
The UA administration then accused Dr. Kay of wrongdoing and set up a hearing. While
the hearing panel made a finding of misconduct, Judge Stephen C. Villarreal of the
Arizona Superior Court ruled, Dec. 6, 1999, that the hearing procedure was illegal.
Thus, there was never a legitimate finding of wrongdoing against Dr. Kay.
The campus-wide elected ombudsman committee at the UA, the "Committee of Eleven,"
passed the following resolution on April 14, 2000, and presented it to UA President
Peter Likins and the Faculty Senate.
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"We urge immediate and complete reinstatement of Regents Professor Marguerite Kay
as Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, so that she can resume
her full teaching and research activities, which were judged outstanding by her Department
in its ABOR-mandated annual review for the period 1995-98.
"We base our recommendation on the following considerations: On 23 April 1997 then
Vice-president Michael Cusanovich wrote to Dr. Kay that ‘allegations of research
fraud or data fabrication against [her] have not been substantiated’ in University
Committee on Ethics and Commitments investigations. Subsequently, two panels of the
Committee on Academic Freedom and Tenure pursued allegations of scientific misconduct,
and, on the basis of one of the committees’ recommendations, Dr. Kay was dismissed
from the University in July 1998. On 7 December 1999, however, Judge Stephen Villarreal
of the Superior Court ruled that in the dismissal of Dr. Kay the University’s ‘actions
were arbitrary and capricious and it breached the contract provision in the [University’s]
policies.’ Furthermore, following a decision by the State Supreme [Court], judge
Villarreal ruled that the University ‘violated [Dr. Kay’s] rights when it denied
her statutory rights under ARS 42-1062 in the Committee on Academic Freedom and Tenure
hearing.’
"We conclude, therefore, that immediate restoration with a clean slate is in the
best interests of Dr. Kay, the College of Medicine, and the University."
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However, the UA administration is thus far continuing on its course of reprisals.
UA President Peter Likins, in an e-mail message dated Feb. 4, 2000, announced: "The
University now intends to follow the appropriate process in accordance with the decision
of the Pima County Superior Court. Pending resolution of these proceedings, Dr. Kay
is restored to her former status." However, the same day, Pres. Likins forbade Dr.
Kay to be physically present on the UA campus and placed her on suspension with pay,
based on the illegal findings that led to her illegal dismissal. This action, itself,
violates the University Handbook for Appointed Personnel policy which states: "suspension
shall not occur until the faculty member has been given an opportunity for any applicable
hearing as prescribed in ABOR-PM 6-201" and ABOR-PM 6-201 states "the decision to
place a faculty member on leave with pay may be made only after the faculty member
has been provided an opportunity to respond to the allegations." Further, inconsistent
with Likins’ announcement in February, Dr. Kay did not receive a regular paycheck,
with amounts going into her retirement account and set aside for health insurance,
until after these irregularities were brought to the attention of members of the
state legislature, in April. The banishment from campus, and suspension from research
and teaching have not been removed.