LISTEN: Pennsylvania college professor fired after using the N-word three times during online class

A professor at Duquesne University in Pennsylvania has been fired after using the N-word three times during an online class, KDKA-TV reports.

Professor Gary Shank claimed that he used the word only to "demonstrate a point," but officials aren't buying his explanation. Shank’s attorney says that he plans to file a grievance against the university.

In a letter to students, Dean Gretchen Generett said that she believes "that there is never a time, pedagogically or otherwise, for a professor to create a hostile learning environment."

"I know this from my experience as a student, a professor, and now as Interim Dean of the School of Education," she wrote. "Using the ‘N word’ or seemingly encouraging students to use that word is not in keeping with the mission of the University, the School of Education, or the Pennsylvania Department of Education."

Generett went on to apologize to students for the incident.