English professor sues Florida college over dismissal tied to assigned short story

Vinita Prabhakar, an English professor at South Florida State College, has sued the institution, its president Fred Hawkins, and the board of trustees, asserting that her dismissal breached constitutional free-speech protections and academic freedom. The dispute centers on her assignment of Ottessa Moshfegh’s short story "Bettering Myself," a Plimpton Prize-winning work about an alcoholic Catholic schoolteacher, which she had taught for nearly a decade.

Following a student’s expression of unease, Hawkins called the story "political" and instructed her not to use it again, despite support from her department chair and dean. The next day Prabhakar was placed on leave and informed her contract would not be renewed after the semester, without any formal complaint or hearing. The lawsuit seeks reinstatement, damages, and a court declaration that the college acted unlawfully.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression is assisting her legal team. The case has yet to be adjudicated.