Conservative Professor Disciplined for Criticizing DEI Gets $2.4 Million to Settle Lawsuit Against College

A Bakersfield College professor who was investigated and disciplined after he questioned the use of grant money to fund social justice initiatives at his school has agreed to a $2.4 million settlement to resolve his lawsuit.

Matthew Garrett, formerly a tenured history professor at the California community college, will receive $2,245,480 divided into monthly payments for the next 20 years as well as an immediate one-time payment of $154,520 as “compensation for back wages and medical benefits since [his] dismissal,” according to the July 10 settlement agreement.

Also under the terms of the settlement, Garrett agreed to resign from his job with the Kern Community College District. Administrators, in turn, have withdrawn and sealed any and all accusations and reports accusing him of “unprofessional conduct.”

Bakersfield College and Kern district administrators did not immediately respond to an emailed request from The College Fix seeking comment Saturday.

Reached by The College Fix for comment via email, Garrett said he cannot discuss the settlement. However, he said he is able to speak on matters leading up to it.

“After five years of administrative misconduct, a decisive courtroom display exonerated me of all allegations and exposed that Kern Community College District engaged in flagrant retaliation for my questioning of partisan policies and wasteful expenditures,” he said via email.

“Facing an imminent ruling in my favor and the prospect of paying millions of dollars in damages, KCCD had only one viable option: settlement. I am grateful to the many who stood by my side during this difficult time and invite them to join in our triumph.”

“To my colleagues at Bakersfield College and nationwide, I say: Keep the faith; we are winning the battle, one case at a time.”

As The College Fix previously reported, part of the controversy dates back to at least 2019, when Garrett in a speech vigorously defended free speech on campus — including speech some deemed offensive and racist — as well as questioned grant funds that appeared to bankroll a social justice agenda.

Those concerns were then parleyed into accusations he accused his peers of fiscal malfeasance or misappropriation of funds, which led to an administrative determination against him.

In 2021, Garrett and his colleague Professor Erin Miller, who faced similar accusations, filed a federal lawsuit against the college district alleging their employers violated their civil and First Amendment rights and academic freedom.

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