(Radio Iowa) – The Northeast Iowa Community College Board of Trustees has voted for a second time to fire president Herbert Riedel after an appeal ruling. And independent administrative law judge determined the Board of Trustees was justified in terminating Reidel’s contract, an action the board took in March. Riedel appealed the decision, and after Thursday’s hearing, the Trustees voted unanimously to terminate his contract.

Reidel was placed on administrative leave in October of last year. In a letter to the editor of the Driftless Journal, Riedel claimed he was put on leave as retaliation for complaints he made about Trustee Chair Jim Anderson.

The college stated the decision came down to issues raised during his initial evaluation and complaints regarding hiring practices and treatment of administrative staff.