After an evolution dispute, Mississippi University for Women has rescinded its decision to remove Nancy Bryson as head of its science and mathematics division.
Bryson said her removal stemmed from her recent lecture on flaws in Darwin's evolution theory and evidence for "intelligent design" in nature, an academic approach being promoted by some scientists and religious thinkers.
After protests, the public, coeducational school's president, Claudia Limbert, decided Bryson could keep the job and insisted her removal had nothing to do with the lecture. Limbert was concerned that the timing of Bryson's ouster gave the impression the school was limiting academic freedom.
Bryson supporters flooded Limbert and state education officials with hundreds of e-mails.