Iowa State University


Inside Iowa State
Oct. 4, 1996

Senate backs Minnesota colleagues

by Linda Charles
The Faculty Senate has declared its support for University of Minnesota faculty, who are engaged in a struggle with their board of regents. During the Oct. 1 meeting, the senate approved a motion supporting the Minnesota faculty "in its struggle to save academic freedom."

The motion reads, "We are alarmed by reports that the Minnesota Board of Regents wants -- among many unacceptable changes -- the power to discipline individual faculty members merely for their attitudes, with the regents themselves evaluating the attitudes."

The Minnesota regents proposal would allow officials to cut faculty base salaries for reasons other than financial emergency and to terminate tenured professors when their programs are eliminated or restructured and officials believe they will not be able to retrain or reassign them.

Provost John Kozak noted the Minnesota situation "is just the tip of the iceberg." He said four to five members of the Big 12 are having to "move aggressively" on tenure because of potential legislative action.

The senate motions calls on the presidents of the three state universities as well as the faculty senates at the University of Iowa and University of Northern Iowa to join in the motion. The senate also will send the motion to Minnesota's faculty senate, president and regents, as well as Minnesota newspapers and various other entities.

In other business, the senate agreed to conduct a review of both the Office of the President and President Martin Jischke. The senate also approved the appointment of Richard Seagrave, distinguished professor of chemical engineering, as the review committee chair. Other members of the committee will include Suzanne Hendrich, John Kluge, Tom Loynachan, George McJimsey, Ann Thompson and a university president yet to be named.

The next senate meeting will be at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5, in 260 Scheman.

Iowa State homepage

Inside Iowa State, inside@iastate.edu, University Relations
Copyright © 1996, Iowa State University, all rights reserved
URL: http://www.iastate.edu/general/Inside/1996/1004/FacSen.html
Revised 10/3/96