University of Colorado professor Ward Churchill is delaying the appeal of a recommendation to fire him, trying first to force CU to help pay his legal fees.
CU-Boulder interim chancellor Phil DiStefano recommended in June that the university fire Churchill, who was found by a faculty committee to have plagiarized and fabricated his research.
Churchill was appealing the recommendation to another faculty committee but has received a 60-day extension. He wants to seek an injunction to halt the dismissal process until CU can resolve the issue of attorney fees.
The rules of the faculty committee that’s hearing Churchill’s appeal say the university “shall contribute” up to $20,000 for attorney’s fees when a faculty member is recommended for termination. But CU regents never accepted that as policy, and state law is unclear.
CU is advertising for an American Indian studies professor in the ethnic studies department, where Churchill taught. He is on paid administrative leave during the dismissal process.
