( CNN ) The University of North Carolina will pay whistleblower Mary Willingham $ 335,000 to settle her lawsuit with the university , following the largest academic fraud scandal in NCAA history . Willingham is the former athletics literacy counselor who blew the whistle about the fake classes that went on for nearly 20 years at the prestigious university . Willingham spent years fielding attacks from university officials -- including accusations that she was lying when she said that officials within the athletic department steered underprepared athletes into the fake classes to keep them eligible . For nearly five years , UNC denied those claims , but Willingham refused to keep quiet . She first told her story to the News & Observer in Raleigh , and then to national media when the university refused to admit that the classes were well-known to faculty . The added attention forced UNC to hire a new investigator and launch a new probe in 2014 . That latest review , led by Ken Wainstein , a 19-year veteran of the U.S. Justice Department , found exactly what Willingham had always claimed -- widespread and systematic cheating . Willingham left her job last spring after complaining that she was being retaliated against . `` The University 's settlement with Mrs. Willingham resolves all of the outstanding legal issues in the case , '' said Rick White , associate vice chancellor of communications and public affairs . `` We appreciate the efforts of the mediator to help us achieve a successful and timely conclusion to the mediation . We believe the settlement is in the best interest of the University and allows us to move forward and fully focus on other important issues . '' When she sued , Willingham said she hoped to accomplish what no other investigation has done -- to subpoena documents and to depose university officials under oath . Her lawsuit never got that far . Instead , she says she 's hoping that will be accomplished by a larger class-action lawsuit filed by powerhouse attorney Michael Hausfeld on behalf of two former UNC athletes . Devon Ramsay and Rashanda McCants both sued in January , saying they were promised an education but did n't get one because of the paper class scandal . Hausfeld is the attorney who beat the NCAA last summer in federal court on behalf of former UCLA player Ed O'Bannon , winning a case that will forever change college sports by forcing the NCAA to eliminate the rule that forbids schools from paying players . That lawsuit is the reason Willingham says she was OK with entering into mediation in her whistleblower suit . She shared the settlement document with CNN . `` It 's about the students and not about me . I do n't need it to be about me , '' Willingham said . `` I got an education , but those students left without one , and we still have a system that does n't work . And so I 'm hopeful that ( the Hausfeld lawsuit ) will move forward and prove that ( NCAA Division I ) schools all across the country have a flawed system where a promise of an education is n't happening , and therefore these students are getting nothing . '' Willingham is co-founder of Paper Class Inc. , which serves as a portal and rallying point for the college sports reform movement and includes a program to give students reading help in middle school . CNN Analysis : Some college athletes play like adults , read like fifth-graders .
Mary Willingham accused Hausfeld of holding fake classes that helped athletes stay in school . The university denied the charge for years , but independent investigation confirmed it .