February 21, 2003

Texas Tech Professor's Policy on Student Recommendations Prompts Federal Inquiry

By MEGAN ROONEY

The U.S. Department of Justice is examining whether a professor of biology at Texas Tech University is discriminating against students' religious beliefs by refusing to write letters of recommendation for those who do not profess a belief in the theory of evolution.

The professor, Michael L. Dini, maintains on his Web site a page that outlines his policies for writing recommendations for students. He has since altered the wording on that page slightly, but as of last month, when the