The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is the union to which the State of Connecticut requires me to pay dues as a faculty member of a state university. Today, the AAUP sent me an e-mail asking that I sign onto its Centennial Declaration. Surprise! Im not signing. Here it is: 1) The university is a public good, not a private profit-making institution, and corporations or business interests should not dictate teaching or research agendas. 2) The life of a university should reflect all dimensions of human endeavor and be built on the full and open participation of diverse faculty and students. 3) The main aims of teaching are the dissemination of knowledge and the fostering of creativity; learning is not just about developing “job skills.” 4) The main aim of research is to create new knowledge, and academic freedom is essential for the free search for truth and its free expression. Research is not just about enhancing the profit margins of corporations. 5) After teaching and research, the third mission of universities is about engaging communities and addressing social disadvantage, and not just about “enterprise engagement” or “economic development.” 6) All who work at universities are entitled to a dignified and collegial workplace free of surveillance and authoritarian dictates and to resist the degradation of their working conditions. 7) Students are the next generation of enlightened and humane citizens, not just revenue streams or the bearers of collateral for unsustainable debt loads. 8) Information and communications technologies are welcome tools for teaching and research but should not be used to impoverish the quality of education or reduce faculty-student contact time. 9) University management should resist public education cutbacks and reverse the multiplying of senior management posts, many of which are unnecessary. 10) Faculty shared governance is the cornerstone of any university that values teaching and research. The authority of faculty in hiring decisions, promotions, and curricular matters should not be compromised by donors, trustees, or administrators. Similarly, the faculty voice in budgeting, institutional planning, and other internal operations should not be marginalized. Guess which parts I reject.
Posted on: Fri, 05 Dec 2014 16:21:46 +0000
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