This paper explores the conceptual history of academic freedom and its emergence as a substantive right that pertains to either the academic or the university. It is suggested that historical reconceptualisations necessitated by contingent circumstance may have led to academic freedom being seen as a form of protection for those working within…

One may ask, "What is tenure today with its fuzzy parameters?" Is it a property right that a faculty member may earn and "hold" to retain employment? To understand the issue, educators must first understand what they are tenured to. Since the tenure process emanates from a department, are they tenured to a department or to a…

These days, most newly hired faculty are appointed on a part-or full-time nontenure- track basis. The AAUP has reported that between 1975 and 2003, full-time tenure-track positions increased by only about 16 percent, while full-time non-tenure-track positions grew by 178 percent, and part-time appointment rose by 189 percent. Yet tenure…

In what Carroll College president called "fiscally driven decisions," four professors failed to win tenure because they did not match "institutional needs." The decision caused great public outcry since each of the four professors excelled in teaching, research and service. What angered people most is that the college planned…

Describes how a language professor who was denied tenure now specializes in helping academics challenge their colleges. (EV)

Three AAUP cases involving academic freedom and tenure are discussed. Cases at Jackson State University and Talladega College, and two cases of excessive probation at Pennsylvania State University are reported. Some developments relating to censure by AAUP are described. (MLW)

Academic freedom, collegiality, and tenure are addressed with focus on how collective bargaining affects them. This material is intended to give college and university attorneys a feel for the challenges and problems that collective bargaining has brought to academia. Three sections look at the following: (1) academic freedom (what it is, academic…

Historian Joan Wallach Scott has served on the AAUP's Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure since 1993. She was committee chair from 1999 until this past June, when she became a consultant to the committee. To mark her transition from chair to consultant, "Academe" asked her to participate in an interview about her experience with the…

The relationship between faculty union mandatory membership provisions in a collective bargaining agreement and the rights of faculty protected by tenure and academic freedom are examined, and college options and considerations in negotiating contracts under collective bargaining laws are discussed. (MSE)

Presents a theoretical construct for understanding job discrimination and affirmative action in higher education. Focuses on three areas of concern: (1) job listings; (2) use of the terms "qualified" and "qualifications" to purge competent Black job candidates; and (3) the role of publications in tenure decisions. Outlines strategies for…

The actions of Clark College in terminating, for reasons of financial exigency, two faculty members previously granted indefinite tenure are reviewed according to the AAUP statement of principles and recommended institutional regulations on academic freedom and tenure, and procedural standards, and found to be in violation. (MSE)

Analysis of a Supreme Court case, in which university use of academic freedom as a basis for protecting confidential peer-review documents was rejected, explores the general development and this application of academic freedom doctrine. Individual academic freedom is distinguished from institutional autonomy in protection of the free exchange of…

Questions and answers address: defining financial exigency, how tenure affects termination, selecting faculty for severance, faculty's due process rights, tenured faculty challenges to termination, the institution's responsibility, and the governing board's responsibility in policy formation and implementation. (MSE)

The American Association of University Professors may sanction five institutions for policies and practices concerning faculty criticism of church doctrine (Catholic University) or the administration (Alvernia College), tenure denial (State University of New York, Stonybrook, and New York University School of Medicine), and sex discrimination…

An overview is provided of the issues, procedures, and prevailing judicial rationale for faculty tenure decisions in the state of Washington. All legal cases decided in Washington and cases from other jurisdictions that have had an impact on Washington law are summarized in this digest. Each case summary consists of an introduction of issues…