A story printed in AT Jan/Feb 2001 (volume 9, No. 1) "Turmoil and Turf Wars," reported the dismissal (or nonrenewal of contract) of Dr. Richard Jensen from the history department. Jensen was described as a popular philosophy teacher, but one who stirred the ire of students for his insistence on failing some who he suspected of plagiarizing sources for term papers. Jensen objected to the termination of his position and threatened to sue the school. According to Rosa Jimenez, Director of College Relations, Jensen's case was filed with the Walla Walla County Superior Court, charging breach of contract and defamation. The court finally handed down a summary judgment on July 3, 2002. It said, "The court finds that there are no genuine issues of material fact to allow the case to proceed to trial." Jensen took his case to the Court of Appeals, and it upheld the Superior Court's finding, issuing its opinion on June 19, 2003. Jensen did not take his case further.

Faculty members at WWC tend to regard the case as simply another indication of the school's right to hire and fire for reasons known to the administration and department chairpersons. According to sources close to the college, two more contracts were terminated in 2002, but without lawsuits. Some faculty feel that the rank and tenure process there is flawed because it can't deal with departments that have personality conflicts among their staff. Considering how much emotional energy and financial outlay are represented in hiring a new faculty member, "it seems tragic to drop them a year or two down the road just because of friction between a couple of department members," one informant said.