Dive Brief:

• The furor over the University of Saskatchewan’s disciplining of a tenured professor who spoke out against budget cuts has claimed another victim: A provost who was involved has resigned.
• The resignation of the provost, Brett Fairbairn, was announced before an emergency board of governors meeting Monday night, the Globe and Mail reported.
• The university last week had fired Robert Buckingham, a tenured professor and dean of the School of Public Health after he wrote in a letter that he and others would have their tenures cut short if they publicly commented against the school’s cost-cutting plan. He was then reinstated the next day as a professor, but not as dean.

Dive Insight:

The Buckingham demotion/ouster has been condemned by professors and students as an attack on academic freedom, and has also prompted 850 academics from across Canada to sign an open letter to the board of governors stating that the University of Saskatchewan events could have implications for other postsecondary schools. Also, the letter states, deans “must be free to criticize and speak publicly against decisions being taken by their university administration.”