UNL lecturer reassigned after verbal altercation

A University of Nebraska - Lincoln lecturer who exchanged words with a student on Aug. 25 regarding recruitment for a political group has been removed from her duties.

The University released a statement on Thursday regarding the incident, saying the lecturer did not meet expectations, and did not correctly represent the university "where the robust free exchange of ideas takes place 24 hours a day, seven days a week."

The lecturer has been re-assigned to non-teaching duties.

A sophomore at the University said she was berated and intimidated by people on campus, including the lecturer, when she tried to recruit people for the conservative group Turning Point USA.

Kaitlyn Mullen of Colorado said she met resistance from several university faculty and graduate students.

Mullen resumed recruitment outside the Nebraska Union the following week. She says she had more than 60 people sign up as of that morning.

Mullen says she likes Turning Point's pro-capitalism, anti-big government message. She hopes to start a chapter at the university.

Below is the entire statement from the University of Nebraska:

"The university has concluded its investigation related to the exchange between a student and a lecturer that took place Aug. 25 in front of the Nebraska Union. Our expectations for civility were not met by the lecturer in her behavior toward a student, and not representative of a university where the robust free exchange of ideas takes place 24 hours a day, seven days a week. While privacy laws prevent us from discussing specific personnel actions, we can say that because of safety concerns raised by this incident, we have removed the lecturer from the classroom and re-assigned her to non-teaching duties."