U Of I Trustees Take Up Professor’s Tenure Battle

The University of Illinois Board of Trustees could take the unprecedented step of dismissing a professor who's taught at the Champaign-Urbana campus for half a century.

Louis Wozniak could learn Thursday whether the board will revoke his tenure for a list of charges including harassing a student, improperly obtaining and publishing grades, and sending an email to students that included a sexual reference.

Wozniak said it's a case of an administration rejecting his rebellious ways and that he's fighting an "authoritarian-type of supervision.''
 
The engineer's problems began when he investigated why he didn't receive a 2009 teaching award after getting the most votes. He was suspended with pay from his $85,000-a-year job in 2010.
 
A spokesman says university officials are unaware of trustees dealing with a similar case previously.