Tenure

Origins of Tenure

As noted, tenure grants faculty members protection from unfair dismissal. In perhaps the earliest example of what might be considered protection akin to tenure, in 1245, Pope Innocent IV granted exemptions to scholars in the University of Paris excusing them from having to appear at ecclesiastical courts some distance from Paris. The following year, a Court of Conservation was founded to protect university faculty when the same types of issues arose. Over time, as reflected in practices such as academic abstention, universities and academicians were granted autonomy from local, civil, and ecclesiastical officials. There were some limits to these protections when attacks were made on the prevalent dogmas, but the concept of autonomy provided insulation from excessive encroachment by officials outside of the realm of the academy.

In the 1890s, Germany sought protection for educators through Lernfreiheit, or the freedom of university students to choose courses, move from school to school, and be free of dogmatic restrictions. Lernfreiheit, which essentially lies at the heart of academic freedom, also stressed faculty rights to freedom of inquiry and freedom of teaching with the right to report on findings [Page 461]in an unhindered, unrestricted, and unfettered environment.

Through the founding of the AAUP in 1915, John Dewey and others sought to help academicians be free from interference with their employment by external persons or groups. This protection was important, because during the 19th and early 20th centuries, faculty members were often dismissed for offending individuals or groups. Faculty members were also fired for criticizing business and corporate ethics.

During periods of international conflicts involving the expansion of feared ideologies such as communism, books by faculty members were criticized for their rhetoric, in some cases even banned. Based on fears of communism, others induced conspiracy theories that threatened academic freedom. Consequently, loyalty oaths, which had emerged earlier, became more widespread in the 1950s and 1960s with the Supreme Court reaching mixed results on their constitutionality in a variety of cases. The AAUP was a strong supporter of the rights of faculty members to academic freedom, freedom of speech, and tenure during these periods. Still, political interference was frequent, often leaving faculty members with limited recourse against unreasonable interference with their professional responsibilities.

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