Kudos to State College of Florida trustees for eliminating tenure in future
Recently, the Herald has demeaned the SCF trustees on their decision to eliminate tenure. It appears the trustees want the ability to dismiss ineffective educators to ensure students get the best education possible.
Kudos to the SCF trustees for putting the students first. This trend is likely to continue, making the SCF trustees a transformative force in education.
The Herald stated their own opposition, as well as "current faculty" as proof this was a faulty proposition. What a surprise -- recipients of these absurd protections support these absurd protections!
Keeping just one poor professor can affect hundreds, even thousands of students, yet we're told tenure is "for the students." Faculty tenure is "for the faculty" and no one else.
Just because a professor does a decent job for three to five years to gain tenure does not mean they will continue to do the same for the next 30 years. They should be judged on what they do every year just like the rest of us.
Educators do not have to fear being terminated any more than anyone else in U.S. society. Educators claim they need tenure so they can speak freely without condemnation. Here's a news flash: Normally, the only educators that are condemned are conservatives, which happen to be an endangered species on college campuses.
The Herald stated "professors are there to nurture the mind, not align with a political agenda." In that case, the Herald should be very concerned that many campuses have become bastions of liberalism.
Perhaps the Herald should turn its attention to taxpayer-supported New College, one of the most liberal colleges in the country. How many conservative faculty, clubs, and speakers are on campus? When they find the answer is at or near zero, will we see an editorial condemning their liberal "political agenda" lacking diversity?
Sam Carson
Lakewood Ranch
This story was originally published February 6, 2016 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Kudos to State College of Florida trustees for eliminating tenure in future ."