THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 1, 1995 TAG: 9512010222
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B9 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium: 64 lines
Educators staunchly defended the university tenure system, which has been under increasing attack nationally, at a conference Thursday.
Yet they said colleges must reward teaching more and must make a better attempt to address the public's concerns about tenure to win back support.
``Tenure provides an important security that allows faculty members to do what they do best - to conduct inquiry and guide the learning process - without a lot of anxiety about their future,'' said David Hager, Old Dominion University's acting provost.
Hager added, however: ``We have not made our case well to the public or to those who are our supporters. I know we don't drink cappuccino and mow the lawn all day. Professors work 60 or 70 hours a week.''
The tenure system, which usually guarantees lifelong employment at a university, has become a leading issue of concern in higher education. Nationally, some legislators and administrators have tried to drop it altogether. In Virginia, the push has been to toughen evaluations of tenured professors.
Critics say tenure gives professors a free ride, allowing them to slough off without fear of penalties. Supporters say it permits them to voice unpopular views or research unpopular subjects without fear of repercussions.
Most of Thursday's speakers were supporters. ``One can live without tenure, but I would argue one lives far more comfortably in a system that permits people to speak and write freely,'' said Robert M. O'Neil, director of the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression at the University of Virginia.
Yet Russell Edgerton, president of the American Association for Higher Education, warned: ``A lot of questions need to be asked about tenure. . . .We have a one-size-fits-all system for a workforce and industry that needs more flexibility.''
Others said the debate on tenure reflected other gnawing concerns.
``One of the biggest reasons tenure has become such a big issue is that very often excellent teachers are penalized (in tenure decisions) because they aren't good researchers,'' state Del. Panny Rhodes (R, Richmond) said. ``I don't think until that's addressed, it (the controversy) is going to go away.''
Mary Burgan, general secretary of the American Association of University Professors, agreed that universities ought to pay more attention to good teaching. But she blamed the overemphasis on research not on professors, but on ``ambitious state legislators and administrators who want to make Harvard of this and Harvard of that.''
The conference, which drew about 40 people, was sponsored by the Virginia conference of the professors organization.
Even supporters of tenure say colleges have been too lax in policing tenured professors. ``We need to act responsibly about what we do,'' Hager said. ``We cannot expect to be exempted from the consequences of poor performance.''
About three years ago, ODU instituted annual reviews of tenured professors. If professors continue to perform below expectations, they could be dismissed. No professors have actually been fired, Hager said, but five have retired as a result.
ODU's program has become a model for state education officials, who are pushing all universities to adopt similar policies. by CNB