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Former Lehigh University Student Suing School For Receiving 'C+' Grade


By Jericka Duncan

BETHLEHEM, Pa. (CBS)
- Twenty-seven-year-old, Megan Thode, is suing Lehigh University for $1.3 million for breach of contract and sex discrimination.

Thode got a C+ in one of her graduate classes back in 2009, which, she says, impacted her degree and earning potential.

She also claims the University discriminated against her because she supports gay rights.

In court Wednesday, Thode and her attorney Richard J. Orloski, declined to comment on the case, but Thode's father, a Lehigh University professor, described the lawsuit as a disagreement between families.

Thode's attorney says Thode never received less than an "A-" in graduate school before getting a "C+" in a course she needed a "B" in, to advance to the next course.

Thode's attorney says after getting that "C+" the university sent his client a letter telling her she needed to take a number of other classes just to stay in the program.

At least one of the classes she had already taken and received an "A."

"Evaluating students' academic work is a core component of the educational process. The University and our faculty have a responsibility to evaluate students fairly and accurately as to their attainment of competency in their field and to grant a Lehigh degree only when Lehigh's standards of competency are met," says a spokesperson from Lehigh University.

Instead of getting a master's in counseling human services, Thode earned a master's in counseling in human development. She currently works as a drug and alcohol counselor.

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