Perspectives: Current Tenure Process Deters Minority Women Professors
Diversity efforts at the University of Michigan have been stalled by the denial of tenure to five female professors of color.
2 Responses to “Perspectives: Current Tenure Process Deters Minority Women Professors”
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December 17th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
If a university weighs race and ethnicity in its hiring and promotion decisions, then it is discriminating on the basis of race and ethnicity, and this violates the prohibition against such discrimination in Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The Supreme Court’s 2003 decisions in the University of Michigan decisions, allowing such discrimination in the name of “diversity,” are inapplicable here, since student admissions involve a different statute.
Legal problems aside, it is very unlikely that students or fellow faculty members will be benefited by any policy that weighs race instead of simply merit. If a school really thinks it will hire better professors if it considers publications in nonprestigious journals, fine–but it should then consider such publications for all applicants, not just some.
December 17th, 2007 at 2:12 pm
I am glad that this article is posted under the “Perspectives” heading lest anyone should take its anecdotal evidence and the assumptions drawn from them as actual facts. Lets look at the fallacy of some key points:
“Indeed, tenured positions at colleges nationwide are characterized by patterns of segregation.”
The assumption here is that any racial imbalance must be caused by segregation which is rooted in racism. Colleges are the most liberal institutions in the country and the most fervent defenders of all forms of arrifmative action and racial quotas. If universities could somehow rig the system in order to hire entirely female minority faculties they would. The real problem here is that females and minorities fail to achieve the same level of merit as their non-female, non-minority (White and Asian male) counterparts.
“In other words, because the work of women of color may be published in venues outside traditional academic journals, their research is perceived to have less academic validity.”
This builds on my prior point. Every PhD and most Master’s students know that traditional academic journals are the only place to establish oneself as a valid scholar. Publications in any other venue have such limited value to a scholar that you will rarely find them publishing outside of academic or trade journals without being paid a handsome fee for their work.
“A homogenous faculty cannot meet the needs of a diverse student population, especially not minority students who seek faculty of color who they can relate to on personal and academic levels.”
So is the problem with homogenous (White) faculty or minority students? How does the color of one’s skin dictate who can be a good mentor or relate to someone else on a personal or academic level? If you believe that a member of a particular race can only connect with someone of their same race, then you are a racist.
“…I actively seek out faculty of color…”
If professors are held to the same standards then why would a student seek out “faculty of color?” The only reason I can think of is racism. Clearly the author does not feel like lightly pigmented faculty members are good enough for her.