By: Derek Hawkins//January 30, 2018//
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Case Name: Ayesha Khan v. Midwestern University
Case No.: 17-1055
Officials: BAUER, KANNE, and ROVNER, Circuit Judges
Focus: Rehabilitation Act Violation
Ayesha Khan struggled academically in medical school from the outset. She failed three of her courses in her first year of medical school at The Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine at Midwestern University. Ordinarily, under the school policy, this would permit the school administrators to dismiss her from the program. They opted not to do so. Instead, they gave Khan a second opportunity to prove herself able to satisfactorily complete the program. She was able to pass the classes on her second try the following year, but she continued to fail new classes in the second year (Block II) of her medical school curriculum. This time, however, she was pregnant and after being expelled, she sued the University, claiming that it had violated the Rehabilitation Act by failing to accommodate her pregnancy-related disabilities. The University filed a motion for summary judgment arguing that even if all the facts she alleged were true, she was not otherwise qualified for the medical school program.
Affirmed