A former Wharton School employee filed a lawsuit against Penn on Saturday, alleging she faced retaliation for taking medical leave and was fired under false pretenses.
Kristin Weaver, who worked as a program coordinator for the Wharton-AltFinance Institute from June 2022 to October 2024, filed the May 30 complaint in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The suit names the University, its Board of Trustees, and Wharton-AltFinance Manager André Douglas as defendants.
Requests for comment were left with Weaver, her lawyer, Douglas, and a University spokesperson.
The lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated the Family and Medical Leave Act by retaliating against Weaver, who requested leave in June 2024 due to health conditions that included cerebral palsy, obsessive compulsive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
According to the complaint, Weaver requested FMLA leave on or about June 4, 2024, and the University approved the request. She filed an internal complaint against Douglas that same day, accusing him of discrimination and retaliation related to her leave request.
The complaint states that after Weaver moved the start date of her leave from June 19 to June 24, 2024, Douglas issued an Employee Counseling Form. The counseling form was the first disciplinary action Weaver received during over two years of employment at Penn, according to the complaint.
The suit also cites an email allegedly sent by Douglas scheduling a meeting to deliver the counseling form.
“Apologies for that, but because you pushed back your leave date, we are starting it now,” the lawsuit’s email citing Douglas read.
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Weaver contended that Douglas timed the delivery of the counseling form in an attempt “to avoid an inference of discrimination or of retaliation being drawn against him.”
Penn terminated Weaver’s employment on Oct. 15, 2024, the filing states.
A central allegation in the lawsuit concerns Penn’s explanation for the termination. According to the complaint, Penn submitted a position statement to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in October 2025 stating that Weaver’s position had been eliminated after a review found many of her responsibilities “were not being performed and/or were obsolete or redundant.”
The statement furthered that Weaver’s position “has not been filled and has not been posted - it was eliminated for business reasons and Ms. Weaver is not being replaced.”
According to the complaint, Douglas later posted an advertisement on the networking website Linkedin for a temporary program coordinator position that could potentially lead to a full-time role.
The complaint includes an excerpt of the posting: “Come join my team! We are currently looking for a temporary program coordinator to assist with the in-person programming aspect of Wharton Academy and Wharton Global Youth Programs.”
Weaver’s complaint alleged that the job posting demonstrates that her position was not actually eliminated and that the University’s explanation for the termination was pretextual.
The lawsuit also contends that Douglas posted the opening approximately three months after Weaver’s termination while Penn had maintained before the EEOC that her position had been eliminated.
Earlier last month, a former Penn employee similarly filed a lawsuit against the University, alleging discrimination and retaliation based on her race and disability. The employment issues raised in that suit also involved a termination that cited redundancy.
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Senior reporter Ananya Karthik covers central administration and can be reached at karthik@thedp.com. At Penn, she studies communication and economics. Follow her on X @ananyaakarthik.
