NEW YORK (JTA) — The former head of the Yeshiva University honors program, allegedly pushed out because of his blog, will return as a professor in the fall.
In an e-mail to JTA, James Otteson confirmed that he was returning to YU in the fall as a professor of economics and philosophy after spending a year teaching at Georgetown University.
Otteson, an award-winning professor of economics and philosophy, once was touted as the new face of YU, a symbol of University President Richard Joel’s efforts to improve the school’s academic reputation.
Otteson left a tenured position at the University of Alabama in 2007 to become director of the Yeshiva College men’s program. But after months of rumors that he had run afoul of the faculty and administration, the university announced last summer that he was "transitioning out" of his role as director of the honors program and taking a leave from the university.
According to copies of correspondence obtained by JTA, Otteson believes he was asked to resign as director because of his blog, which contained a number of posts that were deemed offensive. Otteson also quoted Joel describing him as a "right-winger" who was an inappropriate role model for students.
Joel declined to comment.
See JTA’s original report here.
