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McAdams reinstated
McAdams reinstated
John McAdams
MILWAUKEE — The Wisconsin Supreme Court is ordering Marquette University to give a suspended professor his job back.
"That feels very good. My case has finally been vindicated," John McAdam McAdams said Friday, July 6.
It's been nearly four years -- seven semesters -- since John McAdams taught a political science course at Marquette University.
Marquette University
"It's frustrating. I don't like being out of the classroom. I like teaching," McAdams said.
McAdams was suspended in 2014 for a blog post that criticized another instructor who had refused to allow a debate over gay marriage in her classroom.
"Marquette Warrior"
"Dr. McAdams does not believe that that's what a university is about, and he said so," said Rick Esenberg, Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty.
Rick Esenberg
On Friday, July 6, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 4-2 that the university was wrong to discipline McAdams because the blog post was protected by the doctrine of academic freedom.
"Academic freedom means something. It doesn't mean that the administration or your colleagues get to decide after the fact whether they like what you say or they like the way you said it," Esenberg said.
"This has nothing to do with politics," said Ralph Weber, Marquette University attorney.
Ralph Weber
Despite the ruling, Marquette University is not backing down from its position.
"A tenured professor put a graduate student`s name and a link to her contact information on the internet so that people could go after her. That`s not academic freedom, that's cyber bullying," Weber said.
"It's unfortunate that Marquette was not able to see the blog post for what it was. The Wisconsin Supreme Court corrected them. Unfortunately, the statement that they put out today suggests that they still do not get it," Esenberg said.
As for McAdams, he is looking forward to teaching once again -- and of course, continue his now-infamous "Marquette Warrior" blog.
"Marquette Warrior"
"Do you expect that you'll be right back at criticizing Marquette administration and its professors?" asked FOX6 Investigator Bryan Polcyn.
Marquette University
"Anytime something comes to my attention that's pretty outrageous, and I can source it properly, yep. It'll be on my blog," McAdams answered.
In a dissenting opinion, Justice Ann Walsh Bradley wrote that the majority failed to recognize the university's academic freedom to fulfill its mission as a private, Catholic university.
Marquette University released the following statement on this story: