By Chelsea Hadaway
chadaway@scbiznews.com
Published Feb. 4, 2010

Andrew Hugine, former president of S.C. State University, has settled a lawsuit he filed against the school and its board, which fired him in 2007 before his contract ended.

Hugine filed a lawsuit against the board of trustees and faculty members for defamation of character and breach of contract. He had been president since 2003, and the board cited a mediocre performance review as the reason for his firing.

Hugine, S.C. State’s ninth president, was placed on administrative leave until his last day in January 2008. He had been president since 2003.

S.C. State announced on Wednesday that the lawsuit has been resolved and a dismissal “has been filed forever ending this litigation,” according to a statement the university released.

“This action demonstrated the former president’s desire to move beyond this controversy and to look forward only to the future,” the university said in the statement.

Hugine is now the president at Alabama A&M, where he took over in July 2009.

S.C. State did not release the details or amount of the settlement, and Hugine’s attorney could not be reached for comment.

Related stories
Former S.C. State president a finalist to lead Alabama A&M University
Former employee files lawsuit against South Carolina State University
Cooper to be inaugurated as president of S.C. State
S.C. State University president looking at economic challenges