Wisconsin to remove tenure
qwerty (guest) 05 Jun 2015 15:01
Thought you all might want to read the following:
Job applicants, be wary of Wisconsin…
Wisconsin to remove tenure
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» Wisconsin to remove tenure
qwerty (guest) 05 Jun 2015 15:01
Here's the key paragraph:
"Under the proposal, the board’s 18 members — 16 of whom are appointed by the governor subject to the confirmation of the State Senate — would be permitted to set a standard by which they could fire a tenured faculty member 'when such an action is deemed necessary due to a budget or program decision requiring program discontinuance, curtailment, modification or redirection,' not only in the case of just cause or a financial emergency, as permitted previously. Critics deemed it tenure with no actual promise of tenure."
This doesn't sound like removing tenure to me. It doesn't even sound that bad. Can someone explain?
Item 12 from this omnibus motion:
"12. Tenure: Approve the Governor's recommendation to delete the definition of a "tenure appointment" and language establishing the conditions under which the Board of Regents may grant a tenure appointment to a faculty member. Delete current law specifying that a person who has been granted tenure may be dismissed only for just cause and only after due notice and hearing."
See also Item 39 (too long to reproduce here).
Here is a statement signed by over 450 UW-Madison faculty members who oppose the changes.
Tenure is being moved from state law to the Board of Regents faculty policies. Wisconsin was the only state in the country that had tenure protections written into state law, meaning it was the strongest tenure guarantee in the world. Now that it will be moved to Board of Regents, it is just like any other state university (and better than most states still!). Tenure will remain.
Come to Wisconsin… it is a fantastic place to work!
@wisconsinprof
If the change is just cosmetic and trying to bring WI in line with other states, then why bother? What other reason could Walker have other than 1) use this as a step to try to cut faculty and/or 2) make himself look "tough on unions" ahead of his presidential run? (Not mutually exclusive). Given his history of union-busting, I suspect it is a combination of both. Even if it is a political stunt, it is still not nice.
I'm not invested in this because I don't live in WI and won't move there (too cold and far from family, though the cheese is probably good). I just think it's interesting how a college dropout governor now wants to cut higher ed.
Tenure isn't necessarily good. At my institution, tenured faculty are notorious for turning into dead wood. Having colleagues who constantly take 3 or 4 day weekends during regular terms and haven't published anything in 5+ years gets demoralizing. Tenure won't do you any good if your workplace depresses you for lack of enthusiasm or scholarly engagement.
I was at a regional state U in the state of Indiana. Saw the same things happening there, although not as bad. Huge push for larger class sizes, greater retention, training for work - basically adopting a 'for profit' mentality.
It was a factor in my decision to leave. Why get tenure at a place that forces me to teach a 4-4 and is apathetic towards my research?
/forum/t-1228410/wisconsin-to-remove-tenure#post-
