Western Front - 1978 June 2

              WESTERN FRONT Vol. 70, No. 52
Friday, June 2,1978
Faculty tenure necessary despite conflict
by LAURIE DUNHAM
Tenure remains a desirable,
though somewhat controver­sial,
system at Western. The
faculty appears willing to ac­cept
its shortcomings in ex­change
for its benefits.
Recently tenure has been an
issue of controversy in circles
of higher education in the state
and at Western.
Gov. Dixy Lee Ray has sug­gested
abolishing the system,
saying it promotes "dead-wood."
She also has proposed
periodic reviews of tenured
instructors.
Job security
Tenure, as defined in the
1940 Statement of Principles on
Academic Freedom and Tenure
formulated by the American
Association of University Pro­fessors
(AAUP), guarantees
certain procedural rights for
instructors.
It is an agreement between
the institution and instructors
that they will not be fired
except under certain condi­tions.
These conditions include fi­nancial
difficulties faced by the
university, curricular changes
eliminating the need for the
instructor and adequate cause,
in which an instructor is proved
incompetent.
Tenure is the only form of job
security the faculty has, Leon­ard
Helfgot, history instructor
and president of American
Federation of Teachers at
Western, said. The faculty has
nothing it considers a contract,
he said.
University President Paul
Olscamp said the instructor's
letter of appointment is a
contract. The faculty does not
recognize it as one, however,
Helfgott said.
Tenure shifts the burden of
proof from the instructor to the
institution, Robert Thorndike of
the psychology department
said.
Untenured instructors must
demonstrate why they should
be retained, he said. Once
tenure is granted, the univer­sity
must prove why the in­structor
should not be retained.
Constance Faulkner of Fair-haven
said tenure is a protec­tion
against erratic decisions
by the administration.
"There may be real problems
with the system," she said,
"but it is the only security a
faculty member has against any
kind of capricious action by the
administration."
Tenure is necessary for aca­demic
freedom, Harry Jackson,
history instructor and presi­dent
of the AAUP at Western,
said. It prevents an instructor
from being fired for advancing
unpopular views, he said.
Olscamp said he feels strong­ly
about the preservation of the
tenure system.
"I worked damned hard to
get tenure and I'll be darned if
somebody's going to take it
away from me," he said.
Jackson said he disagrees
with the governor's statement
that tenure promotes "dead-wood"
and complained she
does not define the term.
"Under tenure, we've had a
lot of creative teaching," he
said. "We ought to do things to
emphasize that.
"If we'd get off this business
of beating up the majority for
the sins of the few and encour­age
those doing something ex­citing,
we may be able to drag
those others along."
Fifty-fifty chance
An instructor at Western has
a maximum seven-year proba­tionary
period. If tenure has
not been granted by the end of
that period, the instructor will
not be rehired, according to the
Faculty Handbook.
The tenure applicant must
survive a series of evaluations.
Tenured members of the indi­vidual's
department make the
first recommendation. From
there it moves to the depart­ment
chairman, a tenure and
promotion committee, the dean,
the vice president for academic
affairs and the president. A
final decision is made by the
Board of Trustees.
A recommendation can be
overturned anywhere along the
line. About 50 percent of the
applicants must go through a
second time, James Davis, Col­lege
of Arts and Sciences dean,
said at a recent meeting on
tenure.
Thorndike said an individual
who makes it through the
process is a "tough creature."
"There's an incredible a-mount
of selection that goes on
before an instructor is ten­ured,"
Thorndike said. "You're
talking about the most select
group of individuals in any
profession in the world."
Administrative problems
Though Olscamp supports
the tenure system, he said it
does create some problems.
The greatest problem is the
reallocation of faculty posi­tions,
he said. With steady
enrollment and a high percent­age
of tenured faculty mem­bers,
it is difficult to take
positions from one department
and give them to others as
demands shift, he said.
Currently, 82 percent of
Western's faculty is tenured.
The administration says 85
percent will be the limit. When
Continued on page 6
BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING - don't think you can hide
behind any Foster Grants if you shoplift because that everyday
shopper over there may just flip out a badge. Problems have
been encountered in a local store. See page 2.
Policy of hiring minorities called inadequate
by JOHN HICKS
Joyce Gomez, assistant dean
of students of the office of
minority affairs, said West­ern's
policy toward hiring mi­norities
is inadequate and un­fair.
Referring to positions other
than part-time staff, she said
the Viking Union, Office of the
Registrar, Career Planning and
Placement Center and Office of
Admissions "simply haven't
hired minorities."
"They (minorities) apply, but
they never seem to meet the
qualifications," she said, "It is
the failure of the school for not
hiring them."
Gomez said a major reason
for the lack of minorities in
administrative and faculty po­sitions
is "inbreeding."
"There is too much of a ten-
Inside
Horseshoe
The Horseshoe Cafe, on
Holly Street for the last 91
years, pulls in a variety of
patrons for its late night meals.
See an inside look on page 3
dency for people to be given
positions simply because they
already work on campus," she
said.
Gomez's criticism of these
departments prompted re­sponse
from department heads.
Jim Schuster, assistant VU
director, said the VU adminis­tration
has three people re­ferred
to it by personnel for
each position, and therefore
has no control over further se­lection.
VU director Jack Smith said
minorities have had adminis­trative
positions in the Viking
Union.
Dick Riehl, admissions direc­tor
and Louie Lallas, career
planning and placement direc­tor,
said their offices work with
Affirmative Action and "hire
the most qualified personnel."
"That (most qualified per­sonnel)
just hasn't been a mi­nority
up till now," Riehl said.
Robert Thirsk, past associate
registrar, said he didn't want to
comment on Gomez's criticism
because he plans to work with
her to "solve the problem."
"I empathize with Joyce
(Gomez)," he said. "This is a
problem I'd like to help her
eliminate."
Gomez also said minority fac­ulty
and administration mem­bers
are not given fair oppor­tunities
for tenure.
"Even though certain faculty
members in ethnic studies were
good, they're leaving because
they're not wanted by the de­partments
they teach under,"
she said.
One way to correct this is to
have a central ethnic studies
department rather than ethnic
studies classes "spread out in
various other departments,"
she added.
Gomez said because West­ern's
College of Ethnic Studies
disbanded two years ago, peo­ple
tend to look elsewhere for
an ethnic studies program.
Gomez said attitudes are the
main problem.
"There is always the attitude
that minorities must continue to
prove themselves," she said,
"so they have to be three to
four times better to be ac­cepted."