As universities grow apprehensive of lawsuits filed by junior faculty hired for tenure-track positions but then passed over for tenure, they are accelerating the trend toward classifying more junior positions as non-tenure-track — hastening, perhaps, the eventual demise of the tenure system entirely. (Robert Weissberg, Minding the Campus, Apr. 10). P.S. Our post has prompted a discussion at Workplace Prof Blog.
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I think its about time “tenure” was retired. I went to a private school and got a much better education. Although I am not rich I believe I have a much better value system then what our “public” education system has to offer.
Scott Moss (Colorado Law Prof) responds to Weissberg argument on a comment on Workplace Prof Blog:
This would be a good argument if it were true, which it’s not. Lawsuits about denials of tenure (1) are among the most impossible to for a plaintiff to win, and (2) are rarely filed because suing your university would turn you into a pariah. Because academia is one of the fields of employment with the lowest risk of litigation, I see little reason to think that schools will change their whole employment structure (i.e., the tenure system) based on a quite minimal litigation threat. I’ve written about this, citing all the cases applying an “academic deference” doctrine to explain why such cases almost always lose: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=892806
As a university faculty member, I am always discouraged to read so many posts opposed to academic tenure on libertarian and center-right sites.
Currently about 5 to 10% of university faculty members are libertarian or center-right in political view. If tenure were abolished, do you not think that nearly all of these few would soon be dismissed and replaced by minions or co-conspirators more congenial to the reigning liberal (meaning social elitist, forced multiculturalist) viewpoint. A handful of libertarian useful idiots and a few neoconservatives (liberals for war) would remain on the “right”.
Nearly every non-conforming university faculty member can be replaced by a cheaper H1B visa holder or a leftist with lucrative contacts in DC.
Is this what you want??
Remove tenure and this is what you get.