Princeton reaches agreement with DoJ after attempted suicide suit

The Justice Department has recently concluded a review of Princeton University which was started in May 2014 and has reached an agreement with the school’s administration.

The review was started shortly after the lawsuit W.P. vs. Princeton University was filed, alleging that the university mishandled the plaintiff’s attempted suicide in February 2012. The plaintiff claimed that after the incident, the school locked him out of his dorm and refused to allow him to attend classes. The university then told him to voluntarily withdraw or he would be forced to withdraw due to mental health reasons. He also claims that Princeton breached confidentiality during a meeting in which his personal medical records were “raised and freely discussed by Princeton officials.” He was allowed to return to school a year later after satisfying certain requirements issued to him by the university.

After the lawsuit was filed in March 2014, the Justice Department started reviewing the university concerning the university’s practices in regards to “reasonable modifications, withdrawals, and leaves of absence”. The Justice Department has determined that there have been no instances of non-compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), but that Princeton should “update its policy language to better explain University procedures and options available to students with disabilities”. The Justice Department has asked Princeton to revise university policies to more explicitly state the kinds of accommodations students may request and how they may request them, to revise leave policies and practices, and to require annual training on Title III of ADA for all staff involved in decisions relating to requests for accommodations.

This agreement comes the day after a Princeton student was found deceased in his dorm room. The exact circumstances of this death are unclear at this time.

As of now, W.P. vs. Princeton University is ongoing and has not yet been settled.