The Department of Civil Engineering has been instructed by administration and by Dean Richard Williams not to comment about professor Elena Zagustin's personal matters regarding her condemned home.
Zagustin, a tenured civil engineering professor at Cal State Long Beach since 1967, was driven from her Huntington Harbour house early last week on the basis of severe fire and code enforcement violations.
Williams has instructed the engineering department to refer all calls regarding Zagustin to public affairs.
He did not return phone calls made to his office.
"It would be absolutely inappropriate for me to comment on the situation," Tony Berone, the assistant vice president for public affairs said. "It is not university business."
Issues that happen outside of the university do not generally affect a professorŐs teaching status.
Article 20 of the CSU-California Faculty Association Collective Bargaining Agreement state the primary professional responsibilities of instructional faculty. They are: teaching, research, scholarship, creative activity, and service to the university, profession and community. The guidelines do not include restrictions for lifestyle.
"If there was a conviction of a crime, that would be taken into account," said Armando Contreras, executive assistant to President Robert Maxson. "Since it was a civil judgment against her, it does not affect her teaching."
Attendance and student evaluation are also taken into consideration.
In a recent letter to David Flynn, the leading spokesperson for the civil suits against Zagustin, former CSULB student Lisa Rothbart claimed that Zagustin repeatedly failed to show up for classes.
This statement conflicts from statements of her current students who say that Zagustin is always on time for class.
Gary Reichard, associated vice president of Academic Affairs, said that a professor's attendance is only considered when large numbers of complaints are received.
Reichard said he has received no reports that Zagustin has not shown up for her classes.
According to Article 15.29 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, all tenured individuals are required to be evaluated every five years.
Zagustin is scheduled this year for an evaluation.
Her last evaluation was in the spring of 1990. At that time she had a two-year sick leave of absence.
Evaluations are based on currency in field and evaluation of student effectiveness.
None of Zagustin's students would go on record named, but one did say that she was a nice lady and that if he had a problem that she was helpful.
Simon Desoto, a mechanical engineering professor, said that her personal lifestyle has nothing to do with her teaching abilities.
He defended his collegue, saying "they had no right to take her house away."
"When you have 33 families ganging up on one person, that person is going to lose," Desoto said.
Zagustin did not return several messages left at her CSULB office.