[smt88]

> This is true only if the school administrators are cowards. The law doesn't say...

It doesn't matter what the law says.

"Autism-spectrum student sues [college] for discrimination" is a bad headline, even if the school was 100% justified.

It's also expensive to fight in court.

> School administrators being afraid to do anything involving someone like this is cowardice that we shouldn't excuse.

It's more an issue with the massive and insane costs of litigation.

> I'm not a lawyer, and I don't know the laws for a classroom situation, but in a workplace I think you'd have grounds to sue.

Workplaces have different protections than classrooms do.

Also, no one is saying the other students can't sue the student who's on the spectrum. But it's not something the university is likely to push themselves.

[scottlamb]

You're making my point with every sentence. The University doesn't want headlines like "U of WTF condones classroom screaming" or "Student Sues U for Abusive Workgroup". When it comes down to it, the other student's parents likely don't want his name and behavior in any of these stories either. Bad for job prospects. The person acting with integrity is the one with the least to fear from press or the legal system.

Again, I'd first try explaining the rules to the other student as another commenter suggested. But the University has a responsibility to step in if that doesn't work. I would remind them they have more to fear from failing to act than from acting properly. I likely wouldn't actually sue—as another commenter said, students don't want to deal with that. A private threat is likely enough, and certainly a story in the press would do it.

[smt88]

> You're making my point with every sentence.

No, I'm not. You're treating your own ethics as being universal and absolute. I don't agree with all of your implied premises.

In a vacuum, defending the harassed students would be ethical. But it isn't a vacuum, and the university has a responsibility not to burn cash (or brand value) on lengthy legal battles that only affect a small minority of students. A large public school in the US could harm literally 100,000+ people (with degrees completed or in progress) just to spare a few students from an unpleasant project.

> But the University has a responsibility to step in if that doesn't work.

Yes, they do. That's a much milder assertion than your original one. "Stepping in" does not immediately mean a lawsuit, disciplinary action, or expulsion. It probably means the professor would just ask the student to complete the project alone.

[scottlamb]

Please don't put words in my mouth. I made the point that they are not legally prevented from even expulsion, but I never said that should be their first step. There are plenty of ways of solving the problem. Their current approach, denial, isn't one of them.