Iowa State settled an Office of Civil Rights complaint with former Iowa State tennis player Erin Freeman in August, 2018. Freeman received $100,000, according to records obtained by the Iowa State Daily. 

The settlement included an agreement between the university and Freeman that Iowa State, Freeman and her attorney would not “actively seek or participate in press coverage of the settlement.” The settlement follows a complaint filed by Freeman in early May that claimed the Iowa State athletics department created a “hostile work environment.”

The allegations in the original complaint frequently mentioned former assistant coach Olga Elkin, stating that Elkin “frequently engaged in openly hostile behavior towards both African-American players,” and alleged that Iowa State attempted to “drive me out of the Women’s Tennis program.”

As part of the settlement, Iowa State paid Freeman $100,000 in total, a lump sum of $66,666.67 to Freeman and $33,333.33 in legal fees to Freeman’s attorney, Don Maurice Jackson of The Sports Group. The payment was signed off by Iowa State President Wendy Wintersteen.

Freeman agreed to waive all liabilities between herself and the State, as well as dismissing the Office Of Civil Rights complaint.

Freeman, a senior studying journalism and mass communications, will still receive her academic scholarships from the university for “the equal level of monetary benefits as her athletics scholarship for the same term of her athletic scholarship.”

The agreement states Freeman “agrees to voluntarily withdraw from participation of the Women’s Tennis team.”

According to the settlement, Freeman’s cooperation allows the university to “maintain Freeman’s roster spot and scholarship allocation for future use at its discretion and so that Freeman will not count against the University’s scholarship allocation under NCAA rules.”