An Iowa State University assistant professor fired for job abandonment is entitled to unemployment benefits, a judge has ruled.
State records indicate John Grundy served as an assistant professor in the ISU psychology department from 2018 until Dec. 3, 2025, when he was fired.
According to evidence presented at Grundy’s recent unemployment-benefits hearing, he informed the school in March 2025 that he broke his foot while in Florida, sought X-rays, and then returned to Iowa wearing a protective boot. He returned to work and was given the accommodation of working on the first floor of the building where he was assigned. At some point in March 2025, he fell down a flight of stairs at his apartment building, lost consciousness but did not seek medical treatment, according to hearing testimony.
State records show Grundy then stopped reporting to work, teaching classes and responding to students’ inquiries. He also failed to inform the psychology department as to what had transpired, and remained absent from work from March 31, 2025, through April 22, 2025, the school alleged.
During that time, the staff attempted to contact Grundy by email, text messages and phone, but Grundy allegedly failed to respond. At the school’s request, Des Moines police conducted at least two welfare checks on Grundy – first on April 2, 2025, and again on April 19, 2025. Grundy then explained he had been “medically unable to communicate” and had been “incapacitated,” the school alleged, but he continued to disregard communications from ISU. In mid-April, Grundy’s mother contacted ISU to explain her son was in Canada and was doing well.
On April 23, 2025, Grundy returned to work at ISU, at which point the school notified him a faculty-conduct complaint had been filed against him by the dean of the school’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
That complaint triggered a lengthy disciplinary process that involved a preliminary evaluation in the matter, an investigation by a three-member peer review board, a review by a seven-member peer review panel, a hearing, ISU leadership recommendations for action, a final recommendation to the ISU president, and then a final decision by the president.
State records show that while the disciplinary process moved forward, Grundy resumed teaching at ISU, finishing the spring semester in mid-May 2025. He also returned for the fall 2025 term, but was removed from teaching classes and supervising graduate students, and instead performed other work for the psychology department.
The disciplinary process concluded on Dec. 3, 2025, at which point Grundy was fired and began collecting $622 per week in unemployment benefits. The school contested the payments, leading to a March 19, 2026, hearing before Administrative Law Judge Jennifer Beckman.
In a March 23, 2026, decision, Beckman ruled that while the school may have had cause to fire Grundy, his termination in December 2025 was not for a “current” act of misconduct, but for his actions months earlier. As such, Beckman found, Grundy was qualified to collect unemployment.
In her ruling, Beckman acknowledged Grundy had “abandoned his job” and “missed classes, meetings, and failed to communicate with staff in a reasonable manner.” She also stated the actions and explanations offered by Grundy were “questionable” and that his recollection of events “appeared selectively vague” and was inconsistent with prior statements made to ISU.
“It cannot be ignored that (Grundy) had the ability to travel to Florida and Canada yet did not seek immediate medical treatment for matters that prevented him from being at work or respond to nearly 10 attempts of communication from the employer and two welfare checks from the Des Moines police department,” Beckman stated in her decision.
“However,” she added, “the crux of this case is that the employer waited nearly eight months to discharge (Grundy) for conduct they were aware of as it occurred in March and April 2025 … The administrative law judge is sympathetic to the employer, but put simply, (Grundy) was not discharged for a current act, and therefore is not disqualified for unemployment insurance benefits accordingly to Iowa law.”
