Six months after announcing that all 10 professors in the physics department would be fired, the administration at James Madison University has changed its mind.
Last month, the university said none of them would be terminated. Instead, it is reducing the number of faculty members in the physics department to seven. One senior professor is retiring, and the equivalent of two professors in physics will be assigned to teaching duties in mathematics, other science departments, and another college at the university.
Without any advance notice or discussion, the administration unveiled plans last January to fire the 10 physicists. It said it had decided to eliminate the physics major because the program was expensive and had low enrollment.
Most faculty members were outraged. Professors voted 305 to 197 that they had no confidence in the president, Ronald E. Carrier. In May, a group of professors sued the university for breach of contract, saying the administration had failed to consult the faculty about the changes.
But the physics professors never received pink slips. In an interview, H. Kent Moore, head of the physics department, said its members were “gratified” by the administration’s change of heart. “But it still doesn’t take away the cloud that has been hanging over us for the last several months because of the way this was done,” said Mr. Moore, who is retiring at the end of August.
Still undecided is the fate of the physics major. In a statement, Norman E. Garrison, interim dean of the university’s College of Science and Mathematics, said it was possible that a revised physics major will be offered. It would be designed for students who have no plans to do advanced academic work in the field. A panel of outside experts is reviewing the physics major, and an internal committee has proposed some changes.
Meanwhile, depositions began last week in the lawsuit filed by the faculty group, Faculty for Responsible Change.
“Of course, we’re very pleased that our colleagues were reinstated,” said Caroline T. Marshall, a professor of history and vice-president of the group. “But our issue isn’t really a labor dispute. It’s a question of academic review. It’s a question of the faculty’s role in the curriculum, and those issues haven’t been addressed.”