Garrett Felber Inside and outside the University of Mississippi’s history department, scholars are protesting the sudden termination of a respected colleague. Hundreds of supporters have already signed a letter promising not to speak at Ole Miss until he's reinstated. Garrett Felber, an assistant professor of history in his fourth year at Ole Miss, stands accused of failing to sufficiently communicate with his department chair. The chair, Noell Howell Wilson, informed him via letter this month that she was recommending him for termination and that his last day “will” -- not “may” -- be in December 2021, suggesting the action is final. But Felber has said he was in communication with his chair throughout the fall term, even as he was on approved research leave at Harvard University's Hutchins Center for African and African American Research.