• Finkelstein: Tenure Denied

    by  • 06.09.2007 • Beyond Chutzpah, News, Past Features

    Editor’s note: The Chronicle of Higher Education: a reliable source

    Tenure denial letters from readers.



    Reverend Holtschneider’s (DePaul President) letter (PDF, 228KB)



    “Academic freedom is alive and well at DePaul”

    DePaul University Statement on the Tenure and Promotion Decision Concerning Professor Norman Finkelstein

    06.08.2007

    DePaul University confirms that it informed Professor Norman Finkelstein
    today that Rev. Dennis Holtschneider, C.M., DePaul president, upheld a
    recommendation by the University Board on Promotion and Tenure (UBPT) -
    the final stage in the faculty review process – to deny his application
    for tenure and promotion.

    Granting tenure equates to a guarantee of lifetime employment, and the
    same standards are applied to all faculty members under consideration.
    In every case, the final decision is one of balancing the various
    arguments for and against tenure. The tenure process, which is detailed
    in DePaul’s Faculty Handbook, involves a rigorous review of each
    applicant’s scholarship, service and teaching, with the recommendations
    at each level forwarded up to the next level for consideration. It is
    an evaluation of faculty by faculty.

    In Professor Finkelstein’s case, a faculty committee of the Department
    of Political Science voted in favor of tenure, submitting statements for
    the majority and minority, with a response from the majority. The
    Personnel Committee for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences then
    voted to support tenure and promotion, with reservations that it asked
    the college dean to note in his report. Subsequently, the college’s
    dean issued a written opinion against tenure and the UBPT voted against
    tenure. The UBPT report and materials from the lower committees were
    forwarded to the president for review. As in all cases of tenure, the
    final decision was made by the president.

    Fr. Holtschneider said, “According to DePaul’s Faculty Handbook, the
    president can overturn the UBPT’s recommendation in rare circumstances
    and for compelling reasons. I find no compelling reasons here to
    overturn the UBPT’s decision.”

    Fr. Holtschneider continued, “Over the past several months, there has
    been considerable outside interest and public debate concerning this
    decision. This attention was unwelcome and inappropriate and had no
    impact on either the process or the outcome of this case.”

    He added, “Some will consider this decision in the context of academic
    freedom. In fact, academic freedom is alive and well at DePaul. It is
    guaranteed both as an integral part of the University’s scholarly and
    religious heritage, and as an essential condition of effective inquiry
    and instruction. On a daily basis, DePaul faculty and students explore
    the most important ideas of our time, including difficult and
    contentious issues, and they do so in ways that adhere to professional
    standards of academia and respect the dignity and worth of each
    individual.”



    More articles on tenure denial:

    More articles leading up to the tenure decision: