University of South Florida

The school's sports teams are called the Bulls. They participate in the NCAA's Division I-A and in Conference USA.

The Al-Arian Controversy USF became nationally prominent in 2001, when computer engineering professor Dr. Sami Al-Arian appeared on the popular polemical television show The O'Reilly Factor[?] on September 26, 2001, shortly after the September 11th attacks. On the program, host Bill O'Reilly resurrected 15 year old charges that accused Al-Arian of using a now-defunct university affiliated Islamic think tank that he headed as a front for Palestinian terrorist organizations. USF and the INS had both long since completed formal investigations of that charge and found no wrongdoing; the FBI has been investigating Al-Arian off and on since, but no charges were ever filed. Though Al-Arian denied all links to terrorists, O'Reilly made it clear that he believed Al-Arian has terrorist connections.

Following the program's airing, USF received several death threats for Al-Arian. University president Judy Genshaft[?] placed Dr. Al-Arian on paid leave and barred him from the campus on September 27, ostensibly for his own safety and the safety of others at the university.

After Dr. Al-Arian was formally terminated on February 27, 2003, representatives from the American Association of University Professors[?] indicated that the AAUP does not feel that due process has been followed in Al-Arian's case, and that the organization will likely issue USF a formal censure at its annual meeting in June. Such a move will practically guarantee that no top professors will come to USF to teach.

See Sami Al-Arian for more information on the Al-Arian case.

External Links

• Official Website (http://www.usf.edu/)

References

• USF'S Official Al-Arian Case News Archive (http://www.usf.edu/News/2001/arianindex.htm)
• The United Faculty of Florida's Al-Arian Page (http://w3.usf.edu/~uff/AlArian/), the teacher's union representing Al-Arian
• Judge Tosses USF Suit Against Al-Arian (http://www.tampatrib.com/MGA1ZISBT9D), Ben Feller, The Tampa Tribune, December 17, 2002
• Al-Arian Demands USF Restore his Standing (http://www.sptimes.com/2003/01/07/TampaBay/Al_Arian_demands_USF_.shtml) by Anita Kumar, The St. Petersburg Times, January 7, 2003