The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, August 26, 1998, Page 8, Image 8

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silent after his firing
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By Lindsay Young
Senior staff writer
The UNL English professor who
became a target of criticism and center
of attention last semester has been qui
eter since he was fired.
The university revoked David
Hibler’s tenure and terminated his
employment on June 20.
But contrary to his affinity for press
conferences and publicity stunts, he has
been silent in public and in the courts.
NU Attorney Richard Wood con
firmed Monday that Hibler has not
countered the firing with any lawsuits.
The NU Board of Regents voted
unanimously to accept a committee’s
recommendation to revoke Hibler’s
tenure and terminate his employment
with the university.
The only lawsuit Hibler filed regard
ing this case, Wood said, was before the
hearing. Hibler filed a suit in Lancaster
County District Court requesting a
restraining order on the committee that
recommends termination of employ
ment, so it couldn’t hold a hearing.
. “(Hibler) alleges he was denied due
process in conjunction with the pro
ceedings leading up to the termination
of his employment,” Wood said.
His request was denied, Wood said.
He said it is doubtful there will be any
more proceedings on die case.
The termination of Hibler’s employ
' ment was not a result of an allegedly
racist e-mail he was notorious for send
ing to more than 300 faculty members
and students last spring, Regent Nancy
O’Brien of Waterloo said.
The committee found that Hibler
was guilty of sexual harassment and
poor judgment and that he was unpro
fessional and insubordinate, O’Brien
said.
“My colleagues and I feel that the
whole e-mail issue was really a smoke
screen created by Dr. Hibler to push the
university into a position” where Hibler
could say it violated his First
Amendment rights, O’Brien said.
The revocation of tenure is not so
common, Wood said. In the 1997-98
academic year, three cases were consid
ered in the entire University of
Nebraska system.
“That was an unusually large num
ber of cases,” he said. On average, only
one occurs each year. Some years, there
are none.
Right now, Wood said, two cases are
approaching the hearing process.
* Investigations into Hibler’s actions
as a professor at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln had been going on
for more than a year, she said.
According to Wood, the steps to
decide whether to revoke tenure awl ter
minate employment are under the
regents’ bylaws and work as follows:
The bylaws state that any adminis
trator within the university can request
that NU President Dennis Smith con
duct an investigation as to whether ade
quate cause exists to terminate employ
ment of a tenured faculty member.
The university then hires an outside
attorney to conduct this inquiry.
That attorney writes a report to
Smith. If this report concludes that ade
quate cause exists, the president directs
the attorney to file a complaint with a
special hearing committee constituted
under the rules of procedure of UNDs
academic rights and responsibilities
committee.
The complaint, filed in writing,
states what the adequate cause is to ter
minate the employment.
After the faculty member writes a
response to the hearing committee, the
university then conducts the hearing.
At the hearing, the university must
prove cause exists to terminate a
tenured faculty member’s employment.
The committee then issues a written
report and recommendation to the
regents, who, after reviewing the report
and the record of the hearing, vote
whether to accept the recommendation.
Two former students filed suits
against Hibler in federal court last
spring.
The first case involved an alleged
copyright infringement by Hibler. The
student said Hibler posted the student’s
writing on the Internet without
approval. That case was dismissed by
the plaintiff this summer.
In the second case, which is still
pending, a student alleged that Hibler
sexually harassed her and the university
mishandled her claims.
The student alleged that Hibler con
tinued to harass her after she filed com
plaints with the Affirmative Action
office. '
The sexual harassment case is still
in the early stages, and likely will not
come to trial until next spring.
Senior staff writer Josh Funk
contributed to this report
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