Southern Illinois University Carbondale faces a Title IX lawsuit - alleging sexual harassment, assault, retaliation, and negligence.
The plaintiff - identified only as "Jane Doe 5" - claims she was working in the Plant Biology Department in 2016-2018 when a graduate assistant harassed and assaulted her.
She says when she reported the abuse, her supervisor and the university did not adequately respond.
SIUC Spokeswoman Rae Goldsmith couldn't comment on the specific case but says they have guidelines in place.
"The university investigates every complaint very thoroughly, and we take appropriate action based on the findings of any investigation. So we take this very seriously, and we will continue to do so."
The plaintiff's attorney, Nicole Gorovsky, says the abuse shouldn't have happened. She says SIU discriminates based on gender in failing to protect people on campus.
The suit claims Jane Doe 5 was pressured into a relationship with the graduate assistant - identified as Nicholas Flowers - by her then supervisor, Karen Renzaglia. It goes on to say when the plaintiff reported the assault, the university failed to investigate properly and take appropriate action.
The complaint was filed in Federal Court, and demands a jury trial.
