faculty and staff are not Buddhist, said there was no evidence of preferential treatment, and said that the institution has never taught nor will it teach Buddhist—or any other—religious practices. One professor took legal action against SUA based on these allegations, but her case was dismissed on summary judgment. Another one, Linda Southwell, a terminated fine-arts professor, sued the university, alleging religious discrimination, wrongful termination and fraud. The SUA came to a settlement with the plaintiff, which included a confidentiality clause.
In 2011, Michelle Woo wrote an article for OC Weekly, a local publication in Orange County, California, in which she mentioned possible proselytizing of non-Buddhist staff and students. The article was disputed by Soka University students, faculty, and staff. It stresses that "a quarter of the 20 faculty members (...) a dozen of students (...) and four employees in key administrative and faculty roles have resigned since the campus opened in August 2001".
== …
