Texas Southern has fired athletic director Kevin Granger amid an ongoing civil lawsuit alleging the administrator sexually assaulted a staff member.
TSU placed Granger on leave in June, and his attorney Letitia Quinones-Hollins, said that TSU's decision to fire Granger was "disappointing and disheartening."
The university defended its decision in a statement.
"Any suggestion that the University failed to act or acted without due consideration is inaccurate," TSU officials said, according to the Houston Chronicle. "Texas Southern University followed a deliberate administrative process, assessing the facts, applicable law, and policy, over several months to ensure a fair and responsible review and determination."
The employee who filed the lawsuit alleged that Granger made vulgar comments and inappropriately touched her at work last April. Court documents show that the employee also filed a police report but never filed charges.
TSU also ordered two outside inquiries under federal Title VII and Title IX statutes, and while the details of the investigation aren't known, Granger's attorney said the Title IX inquiry did not substantiate the allegations.
On March 5, university President J.W. Crawford III decided to remove Granger's jersey from its place in H&PE Arena, where he played from 1992 to 1996 and later served as an assistant coach.
"Dr. Granger remains an incredibly well-respected part of the community, and he will always be proud of his work at the university as well as the opportunities he created for TSU and its students over the years," Quinones-Hollins said in a statement. "It is unfortunate that his stellar reputation has been tarnished by a financially motivated litigant, but he intends to challenge this complaint at every step of the judicial process. In the end, it matters not if his jersey hangs in the rafters of the H&PE Arena. His legacy and footprint will inevitably be present."
Granger's trial is scheduled for June 15 in the 157th Civil District Court.
