Faculty discuss their teaching freedoms in light of BB&T grant
Will Cloyd
Issue date: 11/21/09 Section: News
The Guilford faculty on Nov. 11 gathered to discuss an amendment to the Faculty Handbook on Academic Freedom, which, if approved, would deem the recently approved $500,000 BB&T grant unethical.
The amendment proposes an insertion stating that the solicitation or acceptance of gifts with stipulations that require the inclusion of specific course material or new programs that the faculty had not intended to teach "is inconsistent with principles of academic freedom."
In their discussion, the faculty agreed that the BB&T grant does not necessarily violate teaching freedom because the professors in the business management department, which applied for the grant, support the course that the grant stipulates, and because faculty would not be required to treat stipulated material in a particular way.
The faculty requested that the amendment be sent back to the Clerk's Committee to be revised in light of their conclusion that the use of certain material does not necessarily violate a professor's freedom.
In debating this proposal, the faculty specifically debated whether Guilford had violated these principles in accepting the BB&T grant.
The grant would also support students in the Principled Problem Solving Scholars program and a series of speakers who will educate the community on the connection of capitalism and environmentally sustainable development.
The controversial part of the grant is that it would fund a stipulated economics course. The course would deal with theories of capitalism and would run for 10 years as a full course as well as a module within the Principled Problem Solving program.
The only curricular stipulation that BB&T placed on the course is that students would be required to read Ayn Rand's novel "Atlas Shrugged."
"The grant should not violate teaching freedoms," said accounting and business double major and junior Gilian M'maitsi. "The school and the professors are one team. They should all work together to achieve one goal."
The amendment proposes an insertion stating that the solicitation or acceptance of gifts with stipulations that require the inclusion of specific course material or new programs that the faculty had not intended to teach "is inconsistent with principles of academic freedom."
In their discussion, the faculty agreed that the BB&T grant does not necessarily violate teaching freedom because the professors in the business management department, which applied for the grant, support the course that the grant stipulates, and because faculty would not be required to treat stipulated material in a particular way.
The faculty requested that the amendment be sent back to the Clerk's Committee to be revised in light of their conclusion that the use of certain material does not necessarily violate a professor's freedom.
In debating this proposal, the faculty specifically debated whether Guilford had violated these principles in accepting the BB&T grant.
The grant would also support students in the Principled Problem Solving Scholars program and a series of speakers who will educate the community on the connection of capitalism and environmentally sustainable development.
The controversial part of the grant is that it would fund a stipulated economics course. The course would deal with theories of capitalism and would run for 10 years as a full course as well as a module within the Principled Problem Solving program.
The only curricular stipulation that BB&T placed on the course is that students would be required to read Ayn Rand's novel "Atlas Shrugged."
"The grant should not violate teaching freedoms," said accounting and business double major and junior Gilian M'maitsi. "The school and the professors are one team. They should all work together to achieve one goal."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Raleigh Movers
posted 12/03/09 @ 12:04 PM EST
Hm, this seems to make pretty good sense. It would degrade the genuineness of the coursework if teachers were required to teach something that they didn't attend to teach, due to a grant or a gift. (Continued…)
Corey Nelson
posted 12/08/09 @ 1:47 PM EST
How pathetic is it that some company is spamming the comments section of the Guilfordian, and appears to actually be hand-writing the comments? haha. (Continued…)
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