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A former administrator at New Mexico Highlands University who was terminated during a mass ouster in May along with former university President Neil Woolf is suing the school, claiming his firing was an act of retaliation.

Former Vice President for Advancement and University Relations Paul Grindstaff alleges in the suit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court, that he was terminated as retaliation for raising concerns about several 鈥渟erious safety hazards鈥� facing student athletes, including outdated football helmets and a deteriorated and unsafe practice field, which allegedly left 28 out of 30 women鈥檚 soccer players with lower-body injuries.

Grindstaff alleges in the complaint that he broached the issues in several reports to administration and to the state Higher Education Department. Grindstaff claims he submitted his final safety report to the university鈥檚 general counsel on the morning of May 4, the day he was terminated.

Grindstaff, Woolf, men鈥檚 basketball coach Zach Settembre and Vice Presidents Johnny Montoya and David Lepre were all terminated from the public Las Vegas university earlier this year, along with other staffers.

NMHU leadership did not immediately provide an explanation for the firings, though in a letter to the Office of the State Auditor, the NMHU Board of Regents accused Woolf of financial mismanagement, nepotism, retaliation, procurement code violations and a pattern of religious preferential treatment with employees who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Regents allege Woolf, who is a member of the Latter-day Saints, created new positions for Latter-day Saints candidates and showed favoritism toward employees who were members of the church. The letter alleges Settembre and Grindstaff were selected through inappropriate hiring methods because of their Latter-day Saints faith.

Grindstaff, in a news release from his attorney, said he is not Mormon, and is instead 鈥渁 lifelong Methodist.鈥�

This month, the 4th Judicial District Attorney鈥檚 Office and the state attorney general launched a criminal investigation into allegations raised in the letter that Grindstaff had forged the signature of NMHU Athletic Director Scott Noble on Settembre鈥檚 new contract, which had been renewed April 22, days before he was placed on leave.

The contract was completed via electronic signature software DocuSign, which attorneys for Grindstaff allege contains evidence that Noble signed the contract himself from his email and IP address.

Settembre told the Journal last month that the forgery allegations were baseless.

鈥淚t was a DocuSign agreement,鈥� Settembre said. 鈥淣o one could forge a signature on DocuSign. It goes to someone鈥檚 email. 鈥� That鈥檚 impossible to do.鈥�

Regents also allege that while employed, Grindstaff attempted to drive a university vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, but was stopped by police chief Romero, who arrived on the scene of a restaurant where Grindstaff was seated and walked him to his hotel.

Tim White, Grindstaff鈥檚 attorney, said the allegations of attempted drunken driving are 鈥渄efamatory.鈥�

鈥淗e didn鈥檛 try to drive, nor was he intoxicated,鈥� White said in an email.

Grindstaff claims he was terminated after receiving a pay bump to a salary of $213,200 and a satisfactory performance evaluation, and did not receive any severance pay, unlike other ousted NMHU officials. He is suing under the Whistleblower Protection Act, a federal and state law that protects public employers from retaliation after reporting unlawful or improper conduct. Grindstaff is seeking double back pay, compensatory and punitive damages and 鈥渁 name-clearing hearing,鈥� his attorney said.

鈥淒r. Grindstaff raised documented safety hazards that were injuring student athletes at a public university,鈥� White said in a statement. 鈥淲eeks later he was fired without a stated reason, and then he was accused of a crime that his accusers鈥� own records disprove. The certificates, the emails and the letter鈥檚 own metadata will do most of the talking.鈥�

NMHU officials, in a statement, disputed the allegations that Grindstaff鈥檚 firing was retaliation for raising student safety concerns, and that the letter to the state auditor was prepared or submitted as retribution.

鈥淭he university will not try this matter through the media,鈥� NMHU general counsel Doajo Hicks said in an email. 鈥淏ecause the lawsuit concerns personnel matters, disputed facts and communications with oversight and law enforcement authorities, the university will not comment on specific evidence, individual employees or the details of any pending review. The university will preserve all applicable privileges, protections and defenses.鈥�

Grindstaff is an alum of NMHU and worked at the university from September 2024 until May 2026. He was previously affiliated with New Mexico State University and the University of Texas at Arlington, and currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Both Woolf and former Athletic Director Shanna Halalilo have each filed their own suit against the university in recent months. Woolf alleges his termination was also retaliatory and that he too was a whistleblower for unsavory university actions, while Halalilo claims she experienced sexual harassment and discrimination while employed at NMHU.

Natalie Robbins covers education for the Journal. You can reach her at nrobbins@abqjournal.com.