Austin Peay State University has reinstated a tenured theater professor and agreed to a $500,000 settlement after improperly terminating him for a social‑media post about the killing of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, campus and local reports said. The settlement, authorized by state officials, required the university to acknowledge procedural failures in its tenure‑termination process and to reimburse counseling. The case highlights external political pressure on campus personnel decisions, tenure due process and the fiscal and reputational costs institutions face when termination procedures are mishandled.