Defending DEI

AAUP Statement on DEI  Criteria for Faculty Evaluation

The AAUP has released ​a new statement titled ​​Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Criteria for Faculty Evaluation​, which holds that, when appropriately designed and implemented, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) criteria for faculty appointment, reappointment, tenure, and promotion are compatible with academic freedom and may serve as an important means of fostering a diverse and inclusive academic environment.

There's a link to a new AAUP video below, "​Defending Academic Freedom in the Era of Trump 2.0,​" from an event on January 24, which includes a panel and then a keynote at 1:20 in which Patricia McGuire, president of the Catholic institution Trinity Washington University and recipient of an AAUP academic freedom award, gives the keynote.

She says in this speech, "It feels like we are in turbulent moment in which we are trying to save ourselves. But we can only save ourselves if we understand our larger purpose in rescuing our nation, our very democracy, from the strangling grip of the most authoritarian president ever to take over the White House ...the entire government, and the private sector that colludes with him."

She continues, "In the era of Trump 2.0, higher education is being tested to prove our worth as never before to prove our worth, not just in terms of educational outcomes for our students, but in terms of the role we play as a necessary pillar of democracy and courageous stewards of the values we hold dear in academic freedom, freedom of expression and of the press, equal protection, and equity and justice for all. Politicians have launched this war against higher education because of what we do. Let's stop self-flagellation and be clear about this: we create and convey knowledge, and knowledge is a fundamental threat to authoritarian power."

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Research Support Consortium

The ​Research Support Consortium​ recommends that we create a "Researcher Support Team" in case of external attacks, and we also have campus-wide policies on academic freedom and freedom of speech, as well as policies for what to do when academic freedom is threatened. You can find these in the Journal of Record and the Handbook, and we will be drawing together into a handout as part of the Freedom of Speech Working Group. We will reach out to the administration and continue to investigate this and put together more guidance in the coming weeks.