Part of the difficulty in discussing the issues of academic freedom, job security, and tenure is that the three have become conflated in our discourse. I offer a set of questions that I feel should frame the debate, along with answers based on my own experience and reading.
- Does the tenure system protect academic freedom? Many of us have discovered that, A.A.U.P. guidelines and Constitutional protections notwithstanding, academic freedom for non-tenured faculty members is a function of the whims of the individuals in charge of the tenure process. Consequently, that process may, in at least some instances, be accurately viewed as one in which those individuals most likely to exercise their academic-freedom rights are weeded out long before those rights can be secured. It's a weak protection indeed that only takes force after seven years, and then only occasionally.
- Does tenure mean a job for life? According to my reading, it's not at all impossible for tenured faculty members to be dismissed for cause. The institution must be prepared to make a case for non-performance of professional responsibilities, but that should hardly be perceived as a major obstacle! The idea that the threat of lawsuits prevents such action is, to me, of dubious value: Institutions have far more resources available for such fights than do individuals, and the judiciary system has historically been very reluctant to interfere with hiring and firing decisions within academia.
- If, in fact, tenure guarantees neither academic freedom nor a job for life, then should we keep it? In spite of my own experiences with the system, I would hate to see us abandon it entirely. To me, the tenure system and the tenure process are symbols of ideals I refuse to abandon: of a system of higher education in which governance is shared; in which students and faculty alike are free to explore and expound; and in which vigorous debate among intelligent people of good will may never result in complete agreement, but may generally result in a vibrant learning environment for us and our students.
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- --Kerry S. Kilburn, Lecturer, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Va. (posted 3/13, 12:40 p.m., E.S.T.)
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