Hill’s departure had been rumored for some time. For the three years, a feud raged over a $500,000 professorship named for her. Assailed by critics, the university finally funded the post in 1995–only after Hill agreed not to seek it. At the height of the controversy, she told her dean she might quit. But when word leaked, she stayed. Friends say it was an act of defiance.
Her future is unclear. Hill has already tapped the lucrative guest-speaker market, and her new book–an autobiography–could make her a hot commodity again. Friends say she’s looking at academic options, too. One rumor: Berkeley, where she’d fit right in.
