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Despite a $12 million legal payout tied to explosive workplace misconduct claims, outgoing Cal State San Bernardino President Tomas Morales is poised for a cushy landing.
Morales remains in “good standing,” making him eligible for a lucrative executive transition package that would keep him on the university payroll before his potential return to a faculty position.
On Wednesday, the California State University Board of Trustees is expected to consider awarding him the honorary title of president emeritus.
The university has not revealed what Morales’ new job will be, saying only that his position and salary will be announced during Wednesday’s meeting.
Morales collected $655,626 in salary and benefits in 2024, according to Transparent California.
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The proposed sendoff comes after the California State University system agreed to pay $12 million to settle claims brought by former administrators Clare Weber and Anissa Rogers, who accused Morales and former Palm Desert campus dean Jake Zhu of fostering a workplace plagued by sexism, retaliation and bullying.
The university denied any wrongdoing as part of the settlement.
Faculty leaders, whistleblowers and the two women behind the lawsuit have all condemned the decision, arguing Morales should not be rewarded after what they described as a “cesspool of gender harassment and discrimination” in their filing.
“The lawsuit raises serious questions about whether President Morales should be regarded in good standing for those benefits,” Thomas Corrigan, communications coordinator for the Cal State San Bernardino chapter of the California Faculty Association, told LAist.
“Dr. Rogers’ and Dr. Weber’s case really stands out as a moral outrage with exceptional financial, reputational and human costs.”
The faculty union had already urged the CSU system in 2024 to deny Morales certain retirement-related benefits.
“We just feel that under his leadership, he has not been an effective leader, therefore, should not ultimately be rewarded,” union chapter president Tiffany Jones told The Sun.
Weber and Rogers have also submitted a public comment urging trustees to scrutinize whether Morales should remain in “good standing” before approving the transition package or emeritus title.
According to the lawsuit, Weber was fired after raising concerns about what she believed was a gender pay gap among CSU vice provosts.
After requesting a 12% equity raise, she said she was asked to resign and fired when she refused.
“I explicitly raised concerns that these female Vice Provosts were being paid less because of their gender,” Weber wrote in an email to Morales before her termination.
Rogers, then associate dean at the Palm Desert campus, said women were routinely screamed at, belittled and interrupted while men were treated with respect.
“When I interviewed, it was perfect,” Rogers told CalMatters. “Then I quickly realized that I had just been immersed in hell.”
She said she was later given an ultimatum.
“I call it fired,” Rogers said. “They told me, ‘Either leave or you will be fired.'”
The lawsuit also alleged Morales routinely berated and intimidated women and held them to harsher standards than men.
Criticism of Morales predates the lawsuit.
A 2016 campus survey found more than 60% of employees believed conditions had worsened under his leadership, and the faculty senate later approved a vote of no confidence citing bullying, favoritism and retaliation.
Morales had also faced a no-confidence vote while serving as president of the College of Staten Island before arriving at Cal State San Bernardino.
During testimony, Zhu defended his management style, saying, “I raised voices to make a point, to change the tones, not in the malicious way or discriminatory way.”
The legal battle ultimately split into separate proceedings.
Rogers won a $6 million jury award in October 2025, while Weber accepted a separate $6 million settlement before trial.
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