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TEXAS ACADEMETexas ConferenceAmerican Association of University ProfessorsPhone: (832) 692-2306 www.ktcinet.com/aaup
National Office: 1012 Fourteenth Street, N. W., Suite 500, Washington, D.C. 2005 Phone (202) 737-5900, Fax: (202) 737-5526, www.aaup.org ________________________________________________________________________ April 2005 _____________________________________________________________________________ AAUP's purpose is to advance academic freedom and shared governance, to define fundamental professional values and standards for higher education, and to ensure higher education's contribution to the common good. President’s Message
By David Michael Smith The Spring Meeting of the Texas Conference AAUP was held at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel in Austin on February 18-19, 2005. Faculty members from Baylor University, College of the Mainland, University of Houston—Downtown, North Harris College, Schreiner University, Texas A&M University—College Station, and University of Texas—Austin participated in the meeting.
Mark Smith, AAUP Director of Government Relations, addressed a joint session of the Texas Conference AAUP and the Texas Association of College Teachers. His presentation, “Ensuring the Nation’s Future: Preserving the Promise of Higher Education in an Era of Fiscal Challenges,” was highly informative and very well received. TACT President Jim Puckett reported on his group’s Legislative Day activities, and Texas Conference AAUP President David Michael Smith discussed the threat to academic freedom posed by the attacks on Professor Ward Churchill in Colorado. [The AAUP has witnessed an extraordinary outpouring of criticism aimed both at Professor Ward Churchill of the University of Colorado at Boulder, for his written remarks describing the attacks on the World Trade Center and at Hamilton College in New York for inviting him to speak there. For more information, visit the National AAUP website at www.aaup.org]
Other highlights of the meeting included a joint banquet with TACT and the Texas Council of Faculty Senates, and two Texas Conference AAUP business sessions. It was a special honor to present Mrs. Lillian Brigman with an award honoring the contributions to the AAUP made by her late husband, Professor Bill Brigman of the University of Houston—Downtown. Texas Conference AAUP representatives also voted unanimously to award the Jack Kilgore Academic Freedom Award to the late Dr. Frank Vandiver, former President of Texas A&M University—College Station.
All AAUP members in Texas are invited to attend the Annual Meeting at the Washington Court Hotel in Washington, D.C. on June 9-12. This is a great way for members to learn about the national organization and become involved with the work of the Texas Conference. Members are also invited to attend the AAUP Summer Institute in Durham, New Hampshire on July 21-24. Some financial assistance to defray travel expenses may be available. The Fall Meeting of the Texas Conference will be held at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel in Austin on October 21-22. If you would like to join colleagues from across the state in the struggle to defend academic freedom, tenure, shared governance, diversity, and quality in higher education, please make plans to attend. For more information on upcoming AAUP meetings and activities, please call (832) 692-2306 or (409) 938-1211, Ext. 217. Political Intrusions into the Academy
From the AAUP Web Site –
Posted April 2005
AAUP Condemns Academic Bill of Rights as Threat to Academic Freedom
From the AAUP Web Site –
Posted April 2005
Higher Education Issues in the 79th Texas Legislature
By David Michael Smith
Rona Smith and I visited the Texas Legislature on Thursday, March 10. Our meeting with a member of Senator Florence Shapiro's staff was canceled at the last minute, but we had helpful discussions with the staff director for the Senate Subcommittee on Higher Education and a staff member in the office of Representative Pete Gallego, who serves on the House Committee on Education.
We learned that major questions on state funding for public higher education for the next two years have still not been decided. Apparently, the Senate is more inclined to approve adequate funding for public universities and colleges than the House of Representatives. The staff members with whom we spoke indicated that many Representatives are more concerned about K-12 school finance this year and do not want to have to vote on a second controversial revenue bill during the session.
These staff members also indicated that bills to "cap" the number of hours required for a B.A. degree and to standardize core curriculum requirements are being driven by some legislators' desire to have more students complete their studies in a timely way. No one knew whether the Legislative Budget Board's recommended elimination of undergraduate Government and History course requirements have been incorporated in a bill this session.
Even if such proposals do not become law this year, they apparently reflect some legislators' concern with increasing the number of students who graduate despite possible detrimental effects on the educational process. We were told to look for similar proposals to surface in the next legislative session--perhaps with growing support from the Senators and Representatives.
We were also warned about possible future legislative attempts to promote "accountability" in public higher education. There seems to be some support for linking funding to graduation rates and other indices of "success"--almost like a "No Child Left Behind" proposal for colleges and universities.
When we asked about the likely outcome of bills to eliminate or modify the "ten percent rule," we were told to expect "a bad compromise." There are now several different proposals being considered, and we were informed that all of them--or a compromise among them--could adversely affect access for traditionally under-represented groups.
The staff members did not know the status of a legislative proposal to require that textbooks in core courses be used for a minimum of three years. We explained the importance of safeguarding instructors' academic freedom in the textbook selection process. We also shared our views on the need for faculty members and administrators--not politicians—to make the vital decisions on degree requirements, curriculum, etc.
We asked if there have been any noticeable repercussions in the Texas Legislature from the Ward Churchill affair. One staff member told us there have not been any direct effects from that case but also said that some legislators grumble quite a bit over the fact that a well known radical professor at UT-Austin is "untouchable." It would seem that not everyone in the Capitol has a very deep appreciation of academic freedom.
The staff members with whom we spoke urged the Texas Conference of the AAUP to continue to monitor legislative developments. We told them that we would do so and that we would be glad to address any of these issues with individual legislators or committees if needed. We came away from our meetings more convinced than ever of the need to keep up with the legislative and budgetary processes in Austin. AAUP to Release Report on Salary Inequities in Academe From the AAUP Website – Posted April 5, 2005 Washington, D.C.—On April 18, 2005, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) will release its Annual Report on the Economic Status of the Profession, 2004-05, titled "Inequities Persist for Women and Non-Tenure-Track Faculty." A seminar and media conference is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Monday, April 18, 2005 at the ASAE Conference Center, East Room. The conference center is located at 1575 I (Eye) Street, NW, Washington D.C., immediately across the street from the McPherson Square Metro Station - White House exit. Copies of the report will be available at the seminar/conference. The author of the report, Dr. John Curtis, director of research at the AAUP, will present the report's findings and respond to questions. The data gathered in the annual faculty compensation survey revealed a substantial variation in salaries among different types of institutions and different categories of faculty. The report examines current figures and trends in these variations, and explores the contrasts among faculty of various ranks, tenured vs. nontenured faculty, and female vs. male faculty of the same rank. The report also compares salary increases at various types of institutions, and summary tables describe faculty salaries, benefits, and tenure status by type of institution, academic rank, geographic region, and gender. The report includes institutional data for the 1416 institutions that participated in the survey. This year's report shows, for the first time in eight years, that faculty salaries failed to keep pace with inflation. Overall salary levels for all types of faculty rose 2.8 percent for 2004-05 compared with 2003-04, which falls short of the 3.3 rate of inflation during the year. The report also highlights three special issues:
The presentation on April 18 will include a description of a new measure of progress toward gender equity among faculty, called the "gender equity index." The index tracks four indicators of equity to enable institutions to measure their relative progress toward attaining comparable status for men and women faculty. The indicators will track relative salaries, tenure-track status, promotion to the rank of full professor, and proportion of all full-time faculty. The gender equity index study is under way now; a first set of results will be reported in the fall of 2005. Media representatives may reserve a complimentary copy of the complete report by calling 202-737-5900, x 3013, or by e-mail rburns@aaup.org. Reserved copies will be available at the AAUP offices, 1012 Fourteenth Street, NW, Suite 500 after noon on April 18. At that time, the report and major tables will also be posted on AAUP's web site. Listings for individual institutions are available only in the written report.
Texas Conference AAUP Officers and Contact Information
President Vice President—East Texas David Michael Smith Glenn Ware College of the Mainland North Harris College (409) 938-1211 Ext. 217 (281) 618-5534 dsmith@com.edu glenn.ware@nhmccd.edu
Past President Vice President—South Texas Fred Stevens Paul Vowell Schreiner University Texas A&M University, Kingsville (830) 792-7248 (361) 593-2826 fstevens@schreiner.edu kfprv00@tamuk.edu
First Vice President Vice President—West Texas Marc Giaccardo Bill Short University of Texas, San Antonio McMurry University (210) 458-3013 (325) 673-5901 marc.giaccardo@utsa.edu shortb@mcmurryadm.mcm.edu
Secretary Vice President—Central Texas Tom Wells Ann McGlashan Schreiner University Baylor University (830) 792-7429 (254) 710-4282 tom.wells@schreiner.edu ann_mcglashan@baylor.edu
Treasurer Member at Large (Position 1) Jonathan Coopersmith Lynn Tatum Texas A&M University Baylor University (979) 845-7148 (254) 719-4533 j-coopersmith@tamu.edu lynn_tatum@baylor.edu
Vice President—North Texas Member at Large (Position 2) Philipp Rosemann Arthur Hobbs University of Dallas Texas A&M University (972) 721-5166 (979) 845-3250 rosemann@acad.udallas.edu hobbs@math.tamu.edu
Texas Conference AAUP Website: http://www.ktcinet.com/aaup National AAUP web site: http://www.aaup.org
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