Steven Salaita, Civility, and Academic Freedom--Report of the Committee on Academic Freedom and Tenure at the University of Illinois

(Pix (c) Larry Catá Backer 2014) I have not spoken to the Steven Salaita affair at the University of Illinois since the story broke earlier ...

On the Diseases of University Administration--Lessons From Pope Francis

(Pix (c) Larry Catá Backer 2014) The Roman Catholic Pontiff's annual greetings to the Roman Curia at the end of Advent usually goes unno...

Undermining Accountability and Enhancing Authoritarianism in University Faculty Senates--Is Penn State to Play a Vanguard Role?

It is well known generally that the early 21st century has seen a cultural shift toward authoritarianism--either in the form of authoritaria...

Indulging the Politics of Age in University Benefits--The Example of Move to Strip Older Family Members of Education Benefits

Universities sometimes provide a window onto the darker natures of societal expectations and beliefs.  And there is nothing like the drumbea...

The Riskless University and the Bureaucratization of Knowledge: From "Indiana Jones" to Central Planning

  (Pix (c) Larry Catá Backer 2014) It is now a commonplace to hear various sectors consider the "corporatization" of the universit...

University "Codes of Responsible Conduct"--Fashionable Gesture, Radical Imposition of Obligations to Mutual Spying, or Traps for the Unwary?

(Pix (c) Larry Catá Backer 2014) Ethics has become an increasingly import aspect of governance cultures in public and private institutions. ...