Diplomats' son sues University of Michigan, claims was denied in-state tuition

Charles E. Ramirez, The Detroit News on Sep 17, 2026

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DETROIT — A student is suing the University of Michigan's Board of Regents, claiming the school denied him in-state tuition because his parents work overseas for the U.S. government.

Attorney David Nacht filed a civil complaint last week on behalf of Alen Bean against the university's board in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

The lawsuit asks a judge to stop the university from charging Bean out-of-state tuition, refund the excess his family has already paid, and order the school to pay damages and his legal costs.

"Defendants have wrongfully denied Mr. Bean in-state tuition classification, forcing his family to pay over $50,000 per year in excess tuition charges," the complaint said.

University of Michigan officials said Thursday they had no comment on the pending litigation.

What the suit claims

The suit names university regents Jordan Acker, Michael Behm, Mark Bernstein, Paul Brown, Sarah Hubbard, Denise Ilitch, Carl Meyers and Katherine White as defendants. It also names Jon Kinsey, vice president and secretary of the university, as a defendant.

Bean and Nacht allege in the complaint that the university violated federal law and Bean's constitutional rights.

"Defendants’ actions have deprived Mr. Bean of his federally protected right to in-state tuition, violated his constitutional rights to due process and equal protection, and imposed severe financial hardship on his family at a time when his mother has lost her employment due to the dissolution of USAID."

Bean's father works in Kazakhstan as a member of the U.S. Foreign Service, and his mother worked in Serbia for the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, according to the complaint. The Trump administration abolished USAID last year.

Both of Bean's parents list their permanent address in Ann Arbor, the lawsuit said.

The document also said Bean applied for in-state tuition for UM's fall 2024 enrollment period, the first after a federal law mandated that public institutions of higher education grant in-state tuition rates to Foreign Service members, their spouses and dependents in their state of domicile.

The university denied his application in May 2025 "due to a lack of documentation," the complaint said. Bean appealed the denial the next month and submitted further documentation in support of it.

However, the school informed Bean in August 2025 that it denied the appeal after "the Appeals Committee had determined his application was based on circumstances that are temporary or indeterminate," according to court records.

Furthermore, the university told him there was no further recourse.

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