Let’s start with another question:
Is tenured faculty good for the institution and the students from a return-on-investment point of view?
Decline of the Tenure Track Raises Concerns, published by the New York Times in 2007, refers to tenured professors as being in a minority on most college campuses. “Professors with tenure or who are on a tenure track are now a distinct minority on the country’s campuses, as the ranks of part-time instructors and professors hired on a contract have swelled, according to federal figures analyzed by the American Association of University Professors.”
The article goes on to report, “The shift from a tenured faculty results from financial pressures, administrators’ desire for more flexibility in hiring, firing and changing course offerings, and the growth of community colleges and regional public universities focused on teaching basics and preparing students for jobs.
It has become so extreme, however, that some universities are pulling back, concerned about the effect on educational quality. Rutgers University agreed in a labor settlement in August to add 100 tenure or tenure-track positions. Across the country, faculty unions are organizing part-timers. And the American Federation of Teachers is pushing legislation in 11 states to mandate that 75 percent of classes be taught by tenured or tenure-track teachers. “
Janet D. Stemwedel, in 2011published a piece on institutional ethics, Mandatory Training Violates my Rights, in which she draws attention to the story of Dr. Alexander McPherson who resisted the attempts of the University of California Irvine to take the mandatory sexual harassment training: “I have consistently refused to take such training on the grounds that the adoption of the requirement was a naked political act by the state that offended my sensibilities, violated my rights as a tenured professor, impugned my character and cast a shadow of suspicion on my reputation and career,” McPherson said. “I consider my refusal an act of civil disobedience. I even offered to go to jail if the university persisted in persecuting me for my refusal. We Scots are very stubborn in matters of this sort.”
Don’t we have better things to do on our College and University campuses?
5 comments:
I am not sure how Ms. Stemwedel's opinion fits in with the rest of the post, so let me comment on that first. Sex harrassment in the work place is very common in the private sector, so probably is no different in our learning institutions. That is because it is common place outside the work place. Therefore each workplace needs to "educate" the employees about what is acceptable or not. Otherwise they can't hope to control it. Ms. Stemwedel things she has all the answers and doesn't need to learn. She should know that learning is never complete for anyone.
Regarding tenure, I like the percentage idea. My sister quit studies at the University of Nebraska because they were hiring lowest wage professors in order to cut education costs (yet the sports venue gets unlimited $$ including a Taj Mahal workout facility). Her problem was that she could not understand them because they came from foreign countries and had very thick accents. Her learning as a result was disabled. "Learning ability" always has to be the focus of good education, not just how to cust costs further, as is going on now.
I Think she is included because she is abusing her tenured position and would not have refused training if she was not on tenure, one would suppose.
Not all tenured faculty, are poor instructors but if one is not being measured, then what's the point of trying?
It happened again. I posted a comment and it disappeared into never never land. I will wait and see if it shows up and if not will comment again.
Ms. Stemwedel and Dr. McPherson, having tenure, are MORE than entitled to their opinions. Tenure allows him to dissent from prevailing opinion or even openly disagree with authorities, without fear of job security. Tenure sounds wonderful, does it not?
BTW with an ace and tenure a sure winner in Vegas. (groan)
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