Professor Maria Ivancin was on the perfect track to get tenure. The student reviews gave her a great rating, former School of Communication Dean Larry Kirkman and the Department of Public Communication said she met the expectations. It seemed like a simple decision when the Committee on Faculty Actions approved her application.
But in May 2012, Ivancin was denied tenure.
This decision came from the judgement of one person: Provost Scott Bass. Bass claimed in a letter that Ivancin had not published enough work in “top-tier venues” to achieve tenure. This motivated Ivancin to sue the University in April 2013.
According to SOC policy, when professors are on the professional tenure track they are not required to publish work to achieve tenure. This being so, Bass’ reasoning for denial directly contradicts Ivancin’s contract.
The blatant abuse of power prompts many questions concerning the AU administration. Bass was able to deny tenure after every other step had been met, and without a solid reason. Despite the fact that Bass ignored the guidelines set in Ivancin’s contract, he should not have the power to undermine an entire process.
Even if Bass had a coherent reason for Ivancin’s tenure rejection, the lack of transparency throughout this entire process has been troubling. The provost’s one response was in a letter and it appeared to be very unclear.
Whatever his motives were to deny Ivancin tenure, they do not align with student interests. Ivancin received a score of more than six out of seven on her student rating form. With such a good review, it would be in student interest, and thus the University’s interest, to allow Ivancin to keep teaching.
It’s even more unsettling when we consider how secretive this entire process has been. The lawsuit began in April and the majority of the AU community still does not know about it. In 2010, when Professor and AU orchestra director Jesus Beard was denied tenure, students protested. They waved signs on the quad stating “Keep Professor Beard at AU.” People went crazy.
By other SOC professors, Ivancin’s lawsuit is whispered about throughout the hallways, but nothing more. Outside of the Mary Graydon Center there is only silence.
This is not to say that students do not care about Ivancin, they do. This is because students were not informed about what is going on. All problems lead back to a lack of transparency in the Provost’s office.
Lack of transparency within AU administration is not a new problem. As students, we cannot let this abuse of power slide. The silence needs to be replaced with anger. -E
