We have written a great deal about the conditions under which grants from the Koch Foundation are offered and received, in particular the strings attached to those grants that fund faculty positions. But we have not looked at the actual grant agreements; so I think that the following agreement between the Koch Foundation and the…
Here is another opinion piece from a member of the Progress Coalition at Florida State University, a group with a diverse membership that has been protesting the increasing influence of the Koch Foundation within the university. A somewhat shorter version of this op-ed has appeared in the Tallahassee Democrat [http://www.tallahassee.com/story/opinion/2015/01/10/lakey-koch-funded-positions-raise-serious-concerns/21575141/]. The author of the piece…
The University of Illinois Board of Trustees today announced that it will never reconsider the dismissal of Steven Salaita, and it will not listen to any faculty committee about Salaita’s qualifications: “That decision is final.” According to the trustees, “The decision concerning Dr. Salaita was not reached hastily. Nor was it the result of external…
BY AAUP STAFF In the January–February 2015 Academe issue, Robert O’Neil explores the AAUP’s foray into the federal courts over the last century and the resulting impact the Association has had in shaping the law of higher education. In his article, “The AAUP in the Courts,” O’Neil demonstrates the major role the AAUP has played…
BY AAUP STAFF In her January–February 2015 Academe article, “Investigative Procedures in Academic Freedom and Tenure Cases,” Debra Nails describes the AAUP’s procedures for academic freedom and tenure investigations, in which dedicated member-volunteers work closely with staff to produce widely respected reports that treat serious violations of the AAUP’s principles and standards. Using her own…
BY ERNST BENJAMIN This is a guest post by Ernst Benjamin, a contributor to the January-February issue of Academe. Benjamin served as AAUP general secretary from 1984 to 1994 and 2006 to 2008. He also has served as AAUP director of research, chair of the AAUP Collective Bargaining Congress, and president of the Wayne State University AAUP chapter. He is coeditor of Academic Collective Bargaining.…
BY AAUP STAFF In the January–February 2015 Academe issue, Ann H. Franke provides an overview of the AAUP’s century-long role in upholding and protecting the principles of academic freedom and tenure. In her article, “A Century of Change,” Franke offers her thoughts about “how things have been going and where they may be headed with that…
BY AAUP STAFF In the January–February 2015 Academe issue, Jordan E. Kurland—the AAUP’s associate general secretary—reflects on ten important AAUP investigations, one from each decade the association’s history. From the 1915 report of an investigation at the University of Utah to the 2007 report on Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans Universities, Kurland, an AAUP staff…
Does your university have troubles? At the risk of turning this post into the academic equivalent of Monty Python’s “Four Yorkshiremen” sketch, your school probably has nothing on Northern New Mexico College. The situation there has come up before on this blog, and to summarize let’s just say their administration hasn’t exactly covered itself in…
BY AAUP STAFF The AAUP has reached its centennial year—a major achievement in the life cycle of a professional organization. The newest issue of Academe, now posted online, looks back at the Association’s work over the past century. Titled “AAUP: The First Hundred Years,” the issue examines the AAUP’s work in the courts, in carrying…