While the proposed tenure ban will likely face steep opposition in the Texas House, faculty say lawmakers’ recent attacks on higher education have raised concerns about whether Texas is the best state to build their career.
, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.Eleven years ago, Tara Goddard left her city planning job to pursue a doctorate degree, setting a new course for her career.
But if some conservative lawmakers in the Texas Legislature get their way, tenure won’t survive long enough in Texas for Goddard to get it.Republican lawmakers, led by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, have pledged this legislative session to end in Texas the nearly century-old practice used by universities across the country to give faculty an additional safeguard to pursue long-term, independent research — which, in turn, helps schools attract and retain sought-after talent.
For faculty like Goddard, this legislation might mean a choice between working in the only state in the country without access to the job security that tenure offers, or leaving Texas and restarting the yearslong process to get the benefit elsewhere. Harris said he viewed the arguments made by Texas lawmakers as a misunderstanding of tenure at best and, at worst, as "intentional misinformation" against an idea they don’t like.
Faculty seek tenure because it provides more time and space to focus on ambitious research in their areas of expertise, rather than feeling pressured to write journal articles or rush through research to prove their professional worth. Tenure is especially attractive for those who are pursuing new scientific discoveries, conducting long-term studies or writing books, which can sometimes take decades to finish or even see any results.
The long process is also meant to help universities make sure they’re hiring the best faculty — the ones who will produce the best research and raise the university’s standing.Texas: The Issue Is - Rep. Joe Moody discusses HB 3 after it passed through Texas House When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it threw a wrench in many faculty members’ teaching and research progress. Things got even harder for Goddard, who was diagnosed with breast cancer a few months later and had to take the fall semester off while she underwent chemotherapy.
Then, Goddard has to compile a list of 10 candidates to independently review her work, according to Texas A&M’s tenure rules. These experts must be among the most experienced professors in her field and work at a university with the same level of research activity as Texas A&M. They cannot be Goddard’s friends, coworkers or collaborators, and she cannot have direct contact with them.
In February of next year, Texas A&M President Kathy Banks will consider and review the recommended professors. Those who make it through are sent to the university system Board of Regents, which will sign off on those recommendations next spring. The proposed ban on tenure "is demoralizing, and lots of people are going to look to places where [tenure] still exists," Goddard said.The agencies in charge of the Texas power grid gave a sobering warning about their ability to make sure there’s enough electricity to meet demands this summer.Ana Schwartz hates the cold.
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