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Students, alumni and others are rallying behind Patricia Prechter, whom they say was ousted unfairly as head of the nursing program at Our Lady of the Holy Cross College, in Louisiana. The college says simply that she resigned. But The Times-Picayune reported on email messages between Prechter, who had also been serving as provost, and President Ronald Ambrosetti. In the emails, Prechter says that she was trying to resign as provost to focus more of her attention on the nursing program. She said she had long worked in the nursing program and took on the provost's job in 2011 at the request of the nuns who run the college. She said she could no longer do two full-time jobs and so was giving up the provost's position. But the president said that in leaving that job, she was resigning from all employment.
An online petition seeking her reinstatement at the nursing program says in part: "Dr. Prechter is also the heart and soul of the OLHCC community. She maintains an 'open door' policy that allows students to approach her with their needs as they arise. She is a student advocate for not only the students in the nursing department, but also for students throughout the OLHCC community."
