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A class of former Martin University students and faculty has sued the university president and the board of trustees for breach of contract following the school’s abrupt closure this semester, leaving the university community in limbo. The class also asked the court to halt any sale of university property.
The complaint, filed in Marion Superior Court on Wednesday, accuses the university leaders of failing to provide sustained educational instruction throughout the designated degree period and failing to offer tuition and financial aid refunds to those eligible to receive them. It also seeks answers.
“I’m not in any way targeting or upset with Martin [University],” said Robert Turner, an Indianapolis attorney representing the plaintiffs. “I just think that in light of what the students have told me, there’s a lot of work Martin’s got to do to explain their actions and also suggest a remedy, how they want to address the concerns of the students.”
Keona Williams, a Martin University spokesperson, said in a written statement Thursday that the university does not comment on pending litigation.
The Indianapolis-based university is Indiana’s only predominantly Black higher education institution. The school had been operating since 1977 before the university board of trustees announced in December that the school faced “financial and student enrollment challenges,” which led them to abruptly shut its doors.
The same month that the school announced its closure, it also voluntarily resigned its accreditation with the Higher Learning Commission, meaning the school could no longer receive financial aid.
Kevin Getter, a former Martin University student named in the lawsuit, affirmed in the complaint that around Dec. 13, 2025, he had completed all required courses and credits to graduate from the university’s master’s program when he received the email that the university would be “pausing operations.”
“I had no prior knowledge of the actions of Martin University Administrators in pausing operations and I was never afforded the opportunity to attend a graduation ceremony nor permitted to receive my graduate degree,” Getter affirmed in the complaint.
Based on graduating from Martin University, Getter applied for and was accepted into Minneapolis-based Walden University’s Ph.D. program.
“[B]ut when I applied for financial aid at Walden University I was informed that Martin University was actively attempting to collect from my financial aid account for the present semester,” Getter affirmed. “My financial aid account was still listed as active at Martin University.”
As a result, Getter said he was forced to withdraw from Walden University.
“I contacted Martin University Financial Aid via email in an effort to obtain an explanation and/or a correction of the problem, but I received absolutely no response from Martin University Administrators or staff,” Getter affirmed. “I am presently not enrolled in any college and unable to pursue financial aid based upon my open financial aid account and the paused operations at Martin University.”
Getter is among three other former students named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit, each saying the university failed to provide them with assistance post-closure.
For sale
In February, the Indianapolis Business Journal reported that Martin University’s campus on the city’s northeast side had been listed for sale at an asking price of $3.5 million.
Williams told IBJ that any proceeds from the sale of university assets “will be applied toward outstanding obligations, including past debts and employee payroll.”
But the plaintiffs in Wednesday’s lawsuit are asking the court to step in and stop any sale, pending further investigation and hearing.
The case is Martin University Alumni Association v. Martin University President/Board Trustees (49D13-2604-PL-022280).
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