Like a hero of the Old West, Noel Ignatiev is known by a nom de guerre.

But that nom de guerre is less than glamorous. To hundreds on the Harvard campus, Noel Ignatiev is the "Toaster tutor."

Forget about his four years as a tutor in History and Literature. Forget about his academic study of Irish immigrants. To much of the Harvard community, Ignatiev's identity has become inextricably linked with that of the electrical appliance he took issue with in Dunster House.

Ignatiev gained notoriety two months ago after writing a letter to Jerry Ardolino, manager of Dunster House Dining Hall, asking that the University remove of find private funding for a toaster oven placed in the Dunster House dining hall and designated for kosher use only.

Harvard's purchase of the toaster was a violation of the principle of keeping church and state separate, Ignatiev said. "Its use was restricted on sectarian grounds. I thought something like that should be purchased privately, by contribution or subscription."

But when his letter was released to The Crimson, Ignatiev found himself the center of a storm of campus debate.

"I didn't expect quite the general outcry that it provoked," he says.

His supporters call him a champion of free speech and intellectual debate. His critics think his action was improper and insensitive; some say, anti-Semitic. And Dunster House Co-Masters Karel and Hetty Liem seemed to side with the critics last week when they chose not to renew Ignatiev's contract as house tutor.

The question is far from closed, however, for some Dunster residents. In the past week, students in the house have written letters, held meetings, and briefly, displayed a large "Save Noel" banner outside the house.

Karl Liem said yesterday that he believed it would be inappropriate for him to comment on the situation. "We are in the middle of a controversy here," he said.

Those participating in the debate over Ignatiev's appointment draw a Jekyll and Hyde character sketch. His supporters describe him as an active, thoughtful tutor and accuse the Liems of thought control. Other students portray Ignatiev as a destructive force Dunster would be better without.

Speaking Out on' Something Wrong'

Sitting on a balcony outside Adams House in the early evening last week, Ignatiev seemed dismayed and slightly puzzled by the response to his letter.

"I thought something was wrong, so I wrote a letter and said so," he says. "I don't write letters every time I see something that stresses me. But this was an issue that directly affected the community I was part of, this was an issue where I could have some effect."

Ignatiev pauses. "In some sense this is a trivial issue. Clearly I have a sense of humor over it--it's only a $40 toaster."