BATON ROUGE — A lawsuit filed by a former associate dean of the Louisiana State University School of Dentistry alleging discrimination, harassment, retaliation and wrongful termination has been removed to federal court.
According to court records, Dr. Toby Cheramieinitially filed suit April 9, in Louisiana’s 19th Judicial District Court in East Baton Rouge Parish against the Board of Supervisors of Louisiana State University and A&M College.
The university removed the case to federal court last month after Cheramie amended his petition to assert federal discrimination claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in addition to claims under Louisiana law.
In his petition, Cheramie, a dentist, alleges he began working at the LSU School of Dentistry on Jan. 6, 2003, as a Clinical Assistant Professor of General Dentistry and was later promoted to Professor and Associate Dean.
He states that he served in that role until what he characterizes as his constructive discharge on Sept. 23, 2025.
The lawsuit describes Cheramie as a longtime faculty member who was well regarded by students and colleagues and who received numerous awards during his tenure.
The petition states he was selected to present white coats to graduating students during the LSU School of Dentistry’s 2025 commencement ceremony.
Cheramie alleges that, as Associate Dean, he was responsible for ensuring admissions standards were applied consistently and fairly to applicants.
He contends that he worked to ensure admissions decisions were based on established criteria rather than favoritism or personal connections.
The lawsuit further alleges that Cheramie, who is married to a man, was subjected to harassment beginning in 2022 because of his sex and his marriage.
According to the petition, the alleged conduct included repeated derogatory comments about his sexual orientation and relationship status by an LSU School of Dentistry administrator.
Cheramie claims that despite reporting the alleged conduct, similar offensive comments continued. The allegations have not been proven in court, and LSU has not filed a response to the merits of the claims in the court documents provided.
A central issue in the lawsuit involves the admission process for an applicant identified in the petition only by initials. Cheramie alleges that the applicant did not meet minimum admission standards but received special consideration because of family connections to LSU leadership.
According to the lawsuit, the applicant participated in the standard admissions process, including interviews and orientation activities.
Cheramie claims the applicant made comments indicating confidence that admission would be secured because of family relationships with members of LSU’s leadership.
The petition further alleges that LSU officials pressured Cheramie to provide favorable treatment to the applicant.
Cheramie contends he evaluated the applicant using the same standards applied to all candidates and concluded the interview performance was poor.
He alleges that his assessment was documented in university records and that he was later summoned to a meeting with university officials and others where his handling of the admissions process was questioned.
According to the lawsuit, university officials allegedly accused Cheramie of promoting diversity, equity and inclusion considerations in admissions and insisted that the applicant be admitted.
Cheramie alleges he refused, maintaining that doing so would violate admissions standards and applicable law. He further claims that officials later directed him to conduct another interview with the applicant and that he again refused.
Cheramie alleges he was then threatened with termination and, facing what he viewed as no reasonable alternative, indicated he would retire rather than be fired.
The petition states that he was immediately removed from his position on Sept. 23, 2025, escorted from the building, denied continued access to his office and email accounts, and effectively terminated.
The lawsuit also alleges that the applicant later received a second interview and was moved ahead of other candidates on an admissions waitlist despite not meeting admission standards.
Cheramie claims LSU violated Louisiana’s employment discrimination laws by discriminating against and harassing him because of his sex and his marriage to a man. He also alleges retaliation, contending he opposed practices he believed violated state law and was forced from his position because of those objections.
The petition states that Cheramie filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and reserved the right to pursue federal claims.
He seeks damages including lost wages and benefits, emotional distress damages, attorney fees, costs and other relief available under state and federal law. He is represented by Jill L. Craft and W. Brett Conrad Jr. of Craft Law.
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana case number: 3:26-cv-00653
