Date of Award
Spring 2000
Document Type
Dissertation - Restricted
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Education
First Advisor
Bogenschild, Erika G.
Second Advisor
Platz, Donald
Third Advisor
Cepelka, A. K.
Abstract
Tenure is a long-standing tradition in higher education. Though originally based on the concept of academic freedom, today it also strongly applies to 'Job security." Awarding of tenure to experienced members of a university faculty is usually based on merit in teaching and scholarly achievements among other things. Recent articles in several publications such as the Chronicle of Higher Education, the AAUP Bulletin, and books such as Pro/scam, read by both the professoriate as well as the general public in some cases, have raised the issue of how tenure awards are actually based. The phrase "publish or perish" has been used frequently in many articles. Since small colleges in the liberal arts tradition, often direct their efforts to undergraduate levels of education, teaching, rather than scholarly publication is often emphasized. This dissertation sought to provide information on how often tenure systems exist at the small college level as well as to provide a detailed study as to how tenure is awarded. Further, the role of teaching effectiveness in tenure decisions was studied. The paper's purpose was to provide data and analysis regarding tenure systems and tenure the process with respect to teaching effectiveness evaluation at the small independent liberal arts college.