"She said the lab was such a big project and that in order to succeed with it, McGee at times had to sacrifice his grades."

That's a terrible excuse. I'm a graduate student, and if I couldn't keep up with both my schoolwork and my research, I would expect to get fired. I think McGee just wants the university to pay his retirement because he's old, can't get a job and isn't willing to work hard enough to get his degree!