Hedrich v. Board of Regents

Mary Hedrich (plaintiff), a tenure-track professor at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, was denied tenure for failing to meet scholarship standards and to submit required documentation. Told the coming year would be her last, she unsuccessfully applied for seven other academic positions. She sued the Board of Regents (defendants), claiming the denial deprived her of a liberty interest in her reputation without due process. The district court dismissed.

Whether the denial of tenure, by itself, is sufficiently stigmatizing to result in a deprivation of due-process liberty rights.