Ross

BACKGROUND

The factual record in this case is extensive. We begin with a general background and discuss additional facts as relevant to our analysis in the discussion section, below. Plaintiff Operstein is a linguistics scholar with numerous publications to her name. She holds a doctorate in Indo- European studies from University of California Los Angeles and has taught over 100 undergraduate and graduate level courses on various topics in linguistics. This litigation arises from her stint as a professor of linguistics at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF), which is part of the California State University (CSU) system. Defendant Trustees of California State University controls CSU. Plaintiff Ross is Operstein’s husband. Operstein’s employment at CSUF began in 2011 when she accepted a full-time tenure track appointment for the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 academic years. This two-year appointment was “probationary,” meaning that any subsequent reappointments would be conditioned on her job performance. Operstein’s appointment letter specified that performance reviews would be made pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement and a CSUF statement of faculty personnel policy…