Prof. said to have bullied gay student Christina Santiago at Eberly College is identified; Prof. Maali Ashmalla accused before; other students rate her

Maali H. Ashamalla

The Eberly College of Business and Information Technology professor at Indiana University of Pennsylvania who allegedly abused gay student Christina Santiago in class has been identified.

She is Maali Ashamalla, a member of the university's MBA management program.

Towleroad.com, in a post several days ago, reported

During a discussion that turned to homosexuality, her business professor, who has not been identified, called it "disgusting, unnatural, and abnormal" and when Santiago identified herself as a lesbian he told her that the words applied to her. The teacher continued, telling her that "God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Adam.

Since then, another student has come forward with similar accusations. He said he complained to IUP at the time and is frustrated that he's hearing about similar comments.

Joey Nolfi, of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Christina "Nina" Santiago, 23, a graduate student in the MBA program, spoke out Wednesday at a campus forum filled with students and faculty in IUP's Sutton Hall hosted by the chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, John Cavanaugh.

     Nearly 600 students have pledged support for Ms. Santiago on a Facebook event page, and roughly 100 students and faculty members protested on campus Oct. 12 with placards saying "Everyone is Welcome at IUP" and "Don't Hate My Humanity."

     Ms. Santiago's girlfriend, Gina Szepesi, 21, of Indiana, was arrested by university police on Oct. 3 after she staged a silent, one-woman sit-in outside Ms. Ashamalla's classroom where she held a sign which read "Hate is disgusting. Hate is unnatural."

     Ms. Fryling, IUP's spokeswoman, said all charges against Ms. Szepesi have been dropped and, according to Ms. Szepesi, a verbal apology was issued on behalf of the officers involved. IUP Police declined to comment.

     Ms. Santiago has also taken her concerns to the American Civil Liberties Union, which told her it would monitor the situation. An ACLU representative did not return calls for comment.

Ratemyprofessors.com has quite a few comments about Professor Ashamalla; the consensus seems to be that she is quite knowledgable about her subject, thorough, a fair grader, and that her class is not especially difficult.

The students who dislike her REALLY dislike her and seem to echo the sentiments of Ms. Santiago about her lack of respect for some students, her political soapbox and her insulting, rude behavior in the classroom.

These are the more critical student comments:

10/11/11

I am taking this prof right now. She is a horrific person, forces you to read out of the book in class out loud like a third-grader. She speaks slow and conveys her messages ineffectively. Constantly changing her assignments and you never know what she wants from you. I wish this box would let me write a lot more. DO NOT TAKE THIS PROF!!

10/6/11

Bad prof, constantly asks people questions only to interrupt their answer with an obnoxious "HELLO?!?!". Focuses way too much on minute, unimportant details. Every class is 100% lecture with no visual aid.

6/26/10

I took this class in the pre session of this Summer. Dr. Ashamalla is a great professor. She asks many questions to see if you understood, and she also uses repetition which helps you retain the materials. You can learn a lot from her if you pay attention. One more thing, some of her comments might sound insulting to you.

3/20/09

Her thought process and speech is slow and labored. Yells "hello!?!" to elicit responses from class. Occasionally uses improper grammar when speaking (I'm not sure why that is acceptable from a professor). Tests largely follow the text. Bland and dry, but not an especially difficult professor. Political commentary could be highly offensive.

1/8/08

she's definitely a trip. spends majority of her time horribly embarassing students and ranting and raving about things that are no way related to the class. however, she does give you a study guide for each test and the class consists of only 3 tests and a project. not bad if you can tolerate her insults.

10/11/06

She is terrible, all she does is complain about the class and society and how our generation will ruin it and i have not learned anything and were half way through the semester, i would not recommend this professor to anybody, she is the worst i have every had!!!!!

10/26/06

I don't know why people complain so much about her...

4/12/06

Tangential subjects became highly offensive to many minority groups.

12/16/05

everyone says she's terrible but you just can't argue with her. I would NEVER recommend her but her tests are fair. She gives you exact questions that will be on the test and she picks a few from the list that are essay format. Presentations in her class are hard because she rips you apart!!! She can be very nice if you get on her good side.

9/25/05

WORST teacher ever in the history of all teachers. She hates everyone, including you, even though you have'nt met her yet.

4/20/05

I think that I could have ate a huge pile of donkey**** and had a better experience than I had in her class. If you feel like being treated like a little child and can bite your tounge very well, then this class is for you.

3/1/05

Beware of the fire that shoots from the devil's mouth. Avoid her at all costs. A rather unpleasant creature at best.

1/7/05

She is the worst professor I have ever had. She was very inconsiderate to all of her students. She actually told one of my classmates she hated her and wished she would not come back after spring break. VERY UNPROFESSIONAL! Told us we were "Dumb Americans."

11/24/04

Spawn of the Devil! She is here "to help students" but she doesn't check her email and isn't at her office hours. Poses a question, gives you two seconds to think then starts yelling...."HELLO!!!!??? Use your Jello!!" Take your Jello and shove it!