Politician for President? Consider This.

BY BRIAN C. MITCHELL Some politicians make good college presidents, at least on paper. As Rick Seltzer reported in Inside Higher Education last week , the best possess many of the same skills as successful college and university presidents. They are typically well connected with outside stakeholders, enjoy good name recognition, and know how to…

Title IX Gone Wild?

BY HANK REICHMAN The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that “University of Tennessee officials are investigating a claim of sexual harassment after reports surfaced online that a student received a zero on a geology quiz for answering a question about his lab instructor’s name with that of a semifamous lingerie model. Neither the student nor the…

Climate Scientist Awarded Damages

BY HANK REICHMAN [CORRECTION: Professor Mann has pointed out to me that the damage award was made two years ago.  Someone tweeted a link to a story on it this week and I mistakenly thought it was current.  Nevertheless, the issue certainly is still alive] The Virginia Supreme Court has [in July 2014] ordered the…

NLRB Declares Speech Restrictions on College Football Players Illegal

BY HANK REICHMAN In a potentially landmark victory for the free expression rights of student athletes and other student employees, the National Labor Relations Board has declared that Northwestern University must eliminate “unlawful” rules governing football players and allow them greater freedom to express themselves, ESPN reported today. The ruling found that as employees the…

Harvard Recruiting Volunteer Scabs

BY HANK REICHMAN Today Harvard University entered the seventh day of its standoff with striking dining hall workers, who have walked out for the first time in over 30 years. The cafeteria staff are demanding affordable health care and base pay of $35,000 for year-round workers. But while low-paid dining hall workers strike, the wealthiest…

AAUP Letter to Kennesaw State

BY HANS-JOERG TIEDE Below is the October 10, 2016 letter to the Kennesaw State Board of Regents from the AAUP: Members of the faculty at Kennesaw State University have urged the American Association of University Presidents to take an official interest in the issues of academic governance raised by the recommendation of the board of regents’ Executive and…

From Academe to Activism: We Gon' Be Alright

BY TIFFANY KRAFT Guest blogger Tiffany Kraft tells who she is through the following post: It’s eight years and three months since I sat for my viva voce exam to defend my thesis (in the United Kingdom the doctoral manuscript is called a thesis not a dissertation), George Moore: Innovation and Decadence in the Victorian…