Students Sue College for Diplomas

In a challenge to Harvard's controversial disciplinary procedures, two members of the Class of 1999 have sued the College for denying them their diplomas, claiming they were treated unfairly by the administrative board which suspended them for a year just days before they were scheduled to graduate.

Yesterday, District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns agreed to issue a decision on one of the claims in the suit--which argues that the College did not have the right to discipline the students so close to graduation--in the coming week.

The two students--Valentin Dinu and Abraham Tsoukaldis--were suspended just nine days before Commencement, after the administrative board concluded that the students had stolen money from Harvard Student Agencies (HSA), according to court documents. They are seeking an injunction that would force the College to award the diplomas.

In papers filed with the US District Court of Massachusetts, the College argued that the two students received substantial sums of money from HSA's Distribution Services for work they never performed as part of a scheme to defraud the agency of thousands of dollars.

But Dinu and Tsoukaldis--who will have to wait until next spring to receive their diplomas if their suit fails--claim the checks they received were simply compensation for work they performed.

"My feeling is that I have done nothing wrong," said Tsoukaldis, who declined to comment on the specifics of the situation. "I didn't feel I got a fair hearing."

In addition to arguing that the administrative board did not try Tsoukaldis' and Dinu's case fairly, the suit claims that the University had no right to discipline the students after they completed all their degree requirements.

"Once a student has completed all the requirements for a degree, the student must get the degree," said Harvey A. Silverglate, who is representing Tsoukaldis. "They have sued the University under contract theory, simply claiming that the University can't do this under its own regulations."

"At a certain point the University loses its grip on you," Silverglate added. "And we claim that the University lost its grip."

If the judge rules against the students on this portion of the case in next week's decision, Silverglate said the students will continue to pursue the claim that they were treated improperly by the administrative board.

"There is an account that the ad board treated these students terribly, but this isn't news," Silverglate said. "The ad board treats all these people terribly." Silverglate has been an outspoken critic of Harvard's disciplinary system in the past, calling the system "right out of Orwell."

The two students could face troubles with immigration authorities if they do not receive their diplomas. Dinu is a citizen of Romania and Tsoukaldis is a citizen of Greece.

Tsoukaldis said his visa expires on July 30, and without a college degree, he does not expect to be able to stay in the country.

"As a Greek citizen, I think the main problem is you cannot get a work permit here unless you have a university degree," he said.

Robert W. Iuliano, the attorney handling the case for the University, was away from the office and could not be reached for comment today.