High‑profile faculty disputes intensified as Harvard Business School ally Bill Ackman publicly backed Francesca Gino’s legal fight after Harvard stripped her of tenure, and another university concluded that a professor’s threatening online post constituted disruptive conduct rather than protected satire. Donor involvement, public commentary from prominent alumni, and contested interpretations of academic misconduct and free speech are pressuring faculty governance processes. Legal scholars and faculty advocates warn that aggressive administrative responses and public donor campaigns risk chilling scholarly inquiry and complicating tenure adjudications across research universities.