A former Iowa State University graduate student is accusing the university of discrimination and harassment after she disclosed her “documented disabilities.”
Hayley P. Masching, a former ISU teaching and research assistant, said in a Story County lawsuit filed July 27 that she started working in the Iowa State Department of Chemistry in 2020.
Masching says she was in good academic standing until she disclosed her disabilities and requested specific safety accommodations. She also said her insurance was revoked while on medical leave in 2025.
Before Masching said she disclosed her disabilities, she passed her Ph.D. preliminary examinations, was head quantum mechanics teaching assistant for multiple semesters and received a teaching excellence award in 2022.
Masching’s lawsuit against ISU and the Iowa Board of Regents claims she’s suffered loss of wages and benefits; physical injury aggravation; emotional distress, anxiety, humiliation, and trauma; loss of academic standing and career opportunities; and damage to professional reputation.
She is seeking back and front pay, lost benefits, compensatory damages for emotional distress, medical expenses, prejudgment interest and attorney fees and costs.
Masching’s attorney declined to comment further. Iowa State had yet to respond to the lawsuit as of Thursday, Aug. 6. Court records indicate the university has 20 days from the date of the filing to file a motion or an answer.
Masching said her disabilities limit her ability to stand, sit, lift and sleep
Masching has “multiple documented disabilities, including anxiety, depression, PTSD-like symptoms, and chronic spinal injury with bilateral sciatica,” according to her lawsuit.
Her disabilities “substantially limit major life activities including standing, sitting, lifting, bending, stress regulation, sleep, and interpersonal communication.”
She said she initially disclosed her disabilities to ISU in November 2023. She also provided medical documentation and requested “reasonable accommodations.”
Hayley Masching says her insurance was canceled in August 2025
Masching’s lawsuit alleges she was pressured by her advisor, chemistry professor Emily A. Smith, to accept a terminal master’s degree in February or March of 2025.
That July, Masching was allegedly issued a letter from chemistry department chair Dr. Theresa Windus “misrepresenting (Masching’s) academic progress immediately after (Masching) submitted medical documentation for a medical leave of absence for Fall 2025.”
ISU allegedly refused to assign Masching a temporary advisor in August 2025 “knowing she had no major professor and was going on a planned medical leave. Presently, all incoming graduate students are assigned a temporary advisor.” The university allegedly terminated her stipend and reduced her pay to $0 that same month, despite “available funding mechanisms for students on medical leave,” according to her lawsuit.
Masching said her health insurance was retroactively terminated on Aug. 31, 2025, while she was on approved medical leave for her disabilities. Her lawsuit claims she “received ambiguous notice and incurred thousands of dollars in medical expenses.”
ISU allegedly reinstated her insurance “only after (Masching) notified University Counsel of potential legal claims.”
ISU grad student’s requests for disability accommodations were denied
Masching’s lawsuit said she requested accommodations in November 2023 and April, July 2025 and August 2025.
Her requests included temporary reassignment to clerical duties because of her spinal condition, “leave accommodations,” and safety-related adjustments regarding lab conditions. She also asked for a temporary advisor.
ISU revoked Masching’s Ames National Laboratory appointment a week after her request for “disability accommodations and accommodations for the hostile and discriminatory environment” in April 2025. She said her laboratory and building keys were taken from her within two weeks of her request.
ISU allegedly reassigned Masching to manual labor cleaning abandoned laboratories despite knowing of her spinal disability and prior accommodations, her lawsuit says.
Masching claims she encountered “severe chemical hazards” in June 2025, including a large bottle of cyclohexanone with visible peroxide crystals, a shock-sensitive explosive. These assignments were “unrelated to her academic program and placed her in foreseeable physical danger,” according to her lawsuit.
Her request for clerical duties was denied July 14, 2025, “despite medical documentation showing manual labor aggravated her spinal injury.”
Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Disabled Iowa State grad student sues school for discrimination
Reporting by Celia Brocker, Ames Tribune / Ames Tribune
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By Celia Brocker, Ames Tribune | USA TODAY Network
