Elizabeth Denise Caldon, formerly employed at Macon State College, appeals from the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia “the Board” as to Caldon’s claim that she was unlawfully discharged in violation of the Georgia Whistleblower Act, OCGA §45-1-4 et seq. For the reasons that follow, we affirm. Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56 c. A de novo standard of review applies to an appeal from a grant of summary judgment, and we view the evidence, and all reasonable conclusions and inferences drawn from it, in the light most favorable to the nonmovant.1 Viewed in this light, the record shows that Caldon worked as an administrative assistant in the office of the President of Macon State College from 1993 until 1997 and worked directly for President David A. Bell from 1997 to 2008. In addition to other duties, Caldon prepared Bell’s monthly leave reports,2 which Bell later reviewed and signed. Caldon deposed that in 2006 she began discussing with Bell her concerns that he was under-reporting his use of leave. In July 2008, the Board issued a publication discussing leave reports, and Caldon expressed to Bell that she understood the Board policies to require him to account for more leave taken in his reports than he included. Caldon deposed that Bell’s under-reporting of leave time for July 2008 was so egregious that she declined to complete his leave form for August 2008. On September 15, 2008, Caldon attached a note to Bell’s August 2008 leave form, stating “With your medical and personal leaves, and the stricter auditing guidelines, I feel it more appropriate for you to complete your personal leave reports”; Bell recalled receiving the note and that Caldon had objections to his leave reports. In support of her claim that she was engaged in whistleblowing activity, Caldon pointed to Bell’s leave reports from the months before and after her termination, which show that Bell reported a greater amount of leave after her September 15 note. In addition to leave reporting, Caldon deposed that she engaged in other activity, which she contended should be considered whistleblowing activity, including: 1 reporting in July 2008 a conflict of interest between Bell and his personal financial advisor, Jimmy Patton, who as the chair of the Macon State College Foundation was in a position to vote on Bell’s compensation, which report led to Patton’s recusal from Foundation business related to Bell’s compensation; 2 as late as August 28, 2008, reporting Bell’s practice of registering for but not attending various professional functions, which were paid for using state money; and 3 voicing concerns related to Bell’s mental ability to handle his job responsibilities to Vice President Levy Youmans, who in August 2007, asked Caldon to limit Bell’s participation in meetings.
Although Bell gave Caldon good ratings on annual performance reviews through 2008, Bell received complaints about Caldon’s interactions with him and others, including from Youmans, Vice President Barbara Frizzell, and former Chief of Staff Larry Stinson.
