WACO, TX — A Baylor student has filed a lawsuit against the university following its closure this spring due to COVID-19.
Attorney Roy Willey of the Anastopoulo Law Firm is representing Allison King, who is seeking reimbursement from Baylor for the portion of the Spring 2020 semester that was held online after COVID-19 shutdown on-campus activities in March of 2020.
The lawsuit states that the closure took the benefits of education from King and other students that were already paid for. King is seeking a prorated refund of meal plans, dining dollars, and fees that went unused due to classes being held online.
King states that she has not had access to campus since March 8th. She says she paid for tuition, fees, and a meal plan that came with $150 in dining dollars for the spring semester.
So far, Baylor has only offered its students the opportunity to get a crediton housing fees, dining dollars, and meal plans. Other Texas colleges, including Texas A&M, have only offered students prorated refunds in those areas.
Roy Willey offered this statement below along with the filed complaint:
"These cases are about basic fairness. Colleges and universities are not unlike any other business in America and they too have to tighten their belts during this unprecedented time. They are not any more entitled to keep money for services they are not delivering than the mom and pop bakery on Main Street. Students and their families have pre-paid tuition and fees for services, access to facilities and experiential education and the universities and colleges are not delivering those services, access or experiences. Now universities are not delivering those services that students and their families have paid for and it's not fair for the universities with multi-million dollar endowments to keep all of the money that students and their families have paid. It is not fair to pass the full burden onto students and their families."
Baylor University issued a statement saying it stands its previous decisions.
“Baylor University stands by the decisions that were made during the spring semester as part of an unprecedented time for our country and all of higher education. In a time where businesses and other organizations shut their doors from coast to coast, Baylor stepped up on behalf of our students through many unique, creative and sacrificial ways to fulfill our mission and provide educational services during a pandemic not experienced in more than 100 years.”
