EducationMay 28, 2026

Settlement at Ball State After Employee’s Charlie Kirk Post

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Key Vocabulary

settlement/ˈsɛt.əl.mənt/

money paid to end a legal case

"The settlement ended the case."

fired/faɪərd/

told to leave a job

"She was fired from her job."

lawsuit/ˈlɔː.suːt/

a legal case in court

"They filed a lawsuit."

Listening

Settlement at Ball State After Employee’s Charlie Kirk Post

Ball State University will pay $225,000 to Suzanne Swierc. She was the director of health promotion and advocacy at Ball State in Muncie, Indiana. She was fired in September 2025 after a private Facebook post about the death of Charlie Kirk.

The ACLU of Indiana sued Ball State and its president, Geoffrey Mearns, saying her firing violated her free speech rights. Ball State said the post caused a large disruption and that leaders worried about enrollment and donations. The settlement ends the lawsuit.

83 words

Quiz

1. How much will Ball State pay?

2. Who will receive the settlement?

3. Who sued Ball State?

Reading Practice

Read the article from the Listening section aloud. Your AI teacher will give you pronunciation feedback.

Discussion

Do you use social media to share political opinions? Why or why not?

Have you ever had a private message or post become public? What happened?

What do you think about workplaces checking employees' social media?