UA Alleges Prof Used Research Dollars on Wedding

The University of Arkansas system board is countersuing a professor who filed a civil rights lawsuit against the university this past spring, claiming the professor defrauded the institution by using research funding to pay for his wedding reception and honeymoon, The Arkansas Democrat Gazette reported. 

In the counterclaim, university officials argue that Najja K. Baptist, a tenured associate professor of political science, lied about how he spent the university’s money. The filing states that Baptist sent an invitation to political science chair William Schreckhise for a June 7 wedding reception in Columbia, S.C., at the Gala Event Center. An internal audit—which flagged $48,000 of “questionable” spending by Baptist—found that, in paperwork filed to the university, Baptist reported that he rented the Gala Event Center for a 75-person focus group on June 7.

Baptist denies the fraud allegations. He originally sued the university in April, arguing that the internal audit of his spending only began after he reported “racially charged” remarks made by College of Arts and Sciences Dean Brian Raines in 2025. Raines removed Baptist as director of African and African American studies in March and recommended him for dismissal, the Democrat Gazette reported. Baptist is challenging the decision through a faculty panel.