In fact, he seems to have done all that he could upon entering the department to reshape it to fit his own ideas. While freedom of expression is valid, the department also has a right to advocate a particular approach to education and to choose new professors who fit into that approach. Under the circumstances, the President should in no way disagree with the recommendation and submit his own recommendation to grant tenure to the Board. There seem to be valid reasons to not grant the professor tenure. The President may wish to interview members of the department individually who have allegedly said nasty things about the professor that should have had no bearing on the tenure decision before he comes to a final instance. If he determines that their reasoning was indeed based upon the professor's record and not personal grievances, then he should affirm the recommendation to deny tenure and submit it to...

However, if he is suspicious that there were personal issues that affected the decision-making process he should return the case to the department with instructions for reconsideration. The issue is not simply one of legal due process: the university must wish to preserve its reputation as a fair institution that judges professors on merit, not on their interpersonal finesse.
If the professor's candidacy must be reconsidered, new faculty members must be solicited to review his case who are sufficiently well-versed in the social studies, but who do not have a personal history of animosity with the professor.

Works Cited

Wilson, Robert. (2008, September 29). Ithaca College professor says political views influenced her tenure denial. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved April 25, 2009 at http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/article.php?pg=11&ar=2029