Inspirational, powerful and passionate is how junior Michelé Prince describes Mae Henderson, a lecturer in the American ethnic studies department.

However, Prince said there is much more to say about Henderson. After she leaves one of Henderson's classes, she feels "lit on fire," and Henderson makes some students feel empowered and able to make a difference.

Prince and other black students see Henderson, a black woman, as a role model and a mentor. This, she explained, is why she and her classmates are upset and confused as to why Henderson will not return next year.

Henderson's contract came up for renewal in 2007, and although Prince said she thinks Henderson wanted to stay, the University won't be renewing her contract.

In response to this, many of Henderson's former students are engaging in a movement spearheaded by Prince and others in the Black Student Union (BSU) to retain Henderson and other faculty of color. Since students are only beginning to discuss their plans, they were hesitant to talk about the specifics, but did say they have plans for a rally on the HUB lawn.

BSU volunteers are also going to start a petition with hopes of getting at least 250 signatures. Prince said she is confident the group could do more than that, noting that on some Web sites that rate professors, Henderson gets a perfect 4.0, sometimes even receiving an exceptional 4.5 rating from current and former students.

The BSU created a Facebook group titled "I support Mae Henderson," which has more than 129 members asking that she be made a full-time faculty member.

BSU vice president and sophomore Vanessa Vassall said she doesn't think the University understands how important it is to recruit and retain professors of color, calling the UW an uncomfortable place for minorities. Without Henderson and other black teachers, she said she feels as though the University's diversity climate will only become colder.

"It makes me feel like the school doesn't care about the program if all the teachers there are white," she said. "The school needs to cater to the needs and requests of the students. If we like a professor, do they not read our evaluations? They know these professors have a certain response from students; why wouldn't they work harder to keep them?"

According to a diversity report released by the UW, the American ethnic studies department had a high percentage of black faculty members, 81 percent in 2002.

Vassall said it's important to have black role models for students to look up to and something to strive for. When these teachers leave, she said it makes her feel as though she should too.

Vassall said it is important for minorities to be around other minorities.

Henderson is a recent graduate of the women's studies program at the UW, and Prince, said, she is the first black woman to graduate with this degree.

Henderson said that she didn't want to comment on student efforts to retain her except to say that she is not involved in their efforts.

Though Vassall said she doesn't know how the hiring process works at the UW, she suspects the reason Henderson is not being retained is because she hasn't published anything yet.

The public relations department at the UW also didn't comment on why Henderson will not be retained, saying sometimes spots open up and sometimes they don't. It has nothing to do with how well a teacher is liked; it just comes down to availability, it said

Henderson is a lecturer in the American ethnic studies department and has taught courses such as Race, Class and Gender and History of the Afro-American Women and the Feminist Movement, as well as a class that focused on African-American motherhood and its representation in popular culture.

"If this school lost her, they'd lose something very special," Vassall said. "The classes that she teaches, you can't find anywhere else. ... They're so important to us as women and black women."

Reach reporter Erin Hicks at news@thedaily.washington.edu.