A faculty panel found Texas A&M’s firing of professor Melissa McCoul over a classroom gender-identity lesson was wrongful, ruling the termination violated academic-freedom norms. The unanimous panel decision has thrust the institution into a national debate over curricular authority and personnel procedures. Florida Atlantic University reinstated two professors placed on leave after social-media comments related to the Charlie Kirk shooting, after an independent investigator concluded their speech was protected. That decision and the investigatory process have reignited campus debates over faculty speech, due process, and the boundaries of behavior deemed incompatible with university duties. These cases signal intensified legal and reputational risk for colleges that move quickly on disciplinary or termination actions without robust adjudication procedures and transparent shared-governance engagement.