A former Pennsylvania State University English professor has claimed he was told to inflate the grades of certain minorities.

Zack De Piero, 40, who worked as an assistant teaching professor at Penn State-Abington from 2018 to 2022, has alleged he was forced to grade hispanic and black students differently and was told how a staff member grades its students determines whether they are racist.

Mr De Piero is suing the university, several faculty members and the 30 members of the board of trustees over claims he and other white staff were racially discriminated against.

The lawsuit, filed on June 14 with the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, alleges that “Penn State pressured De Piero to ensure consistent grades for students across ‘colour line(s)’, otherwise his actions would demonstrate racism and he would be condemned as a racist”.

It said the university’s “bigotry manifests itself in low expectations”, adding: “They do not expect black or hispanic students to achieve the same mastery of academic subject matters as other students and therefore insist that deficient performance must be excused.”

The lawsuit alleges he was also told to “penalise” students from East Asia or the Indian subcontinent “in order to equalise outcomes on the basis of race”.

‘Racially hostile environment’
Mr De Piero, who currently works as an assistant professor of English at Northampton Community College in the Lehigh Valley, also claimed anti-racism training created a “racially hostile environment”.

He was also pressured to conform to the political viewpoints of his colleagues and was forced to teach that the “English language is racist and embodies white supremacy”, it has been claimed.

When he criticised the “continuous stream of racial insult directed at white faculty”, he alleges he was targeted by a bullying and harassment complaint and lower performance reviews.

An investigation by Penn State’s Affirmative Action Office found Mr De Piero was not discriminated against and that he had bullied his colleagues.

He was reportedly told by the director of the Affirmative Action Office that “there is a problem with the white race”.

The filing claims he was told to attend “anti-racist workshops” and it was suggested he might have mental health issues.

Lisa Powers, assistant vice-president of strategic communications at the university, said: “Penn State does not generally comment on pending litigation.”

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer.