Academic Freedom and Responsibility
(TBR Policy/Guideline Area 5.02.03.30)
Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to establish the criteria and process regarding academic
freedom and responsibility at community colleges and technical colleges governed by
the Tennessee Board of Regents.
Definitions:
Academic Freedom - freedom in the classroom in discussing his or her subject, being
careful not to introduce into the teaching unrelated subject matter, freedom in research
and in the publication of the results, and faculty participation in institutional
governance.
Academic Responsibility - responsibility for the development and delivery of educational
programs and services to students, obligation to participate in tenure and promotion
review of colleagues as specified in policy, and obligation to take appropriate professional
action against faculty members who are derelict in discharging their professional
responsibilities.
Policy/Guideline
Each college in the System is required to develop a policy on academic freedom and
responsibility. As a minimum, institutional policies must cite, be in compliance
with, and incorporate all the procedures outlined in Board Policy 5.02.03.30. Once the institution has developed its policy, it must be forwarded to TBR System
Office for review and approval by the Chancellor or the Chancellor’s designee.
Procedures
- Minimum institutional policy requirements
- The following policy of the Tennessee Board of Regents on academic freedom and responsibility
is applicable to all colleges within the System. The statement in Article II on academic
freedom and responsibility may be adopted by each college, or a college may adopt
an alternative statement, provided that the statement is consistent with the procedures
set forth herein.
- College policies on academic freedom and responsibility must cite and specifically
acknowledge compliance with the Board Policy on Academic Freedom and Responsibility
(5.02.03.30). Likewise, college policies must embody and communicate clearly as a minimum all
provisions, definitions, and stipulations of the Board policy.
- Academic Freedom and Responsibility
- The faculty member is entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing his or her
subject, being careful not to introduce into the teaching unrelated subject matter.
- The faculty member is entitled to full freedom in research and in the publication
of the results, subject to the adequate performance of their other academic duties,
including and consistent with any and all policies pertaining to clinical and research
practices. Research for financial gain must be based upon an understanding with the
authorities of the institution, which is documented and signed by the faculty member
and the appropriate academic officer(s).
- The faculty member is a citizen, a member of a learned profession, and an officer
of an educational institution. When the faculty member speaks or writes as a citizen,
they should be free from college censorship or discipline, but their special position
in the community imposes special obligations. As scholars and educational officers,
they should remember that the public may judge the profession and the college by the
faculty member's utterances. Hence, a faculty member should at all times be accurate,
should exercise appropriate restraint, should show respect for the opinions of others,
and should make every effort to indicate that they do not speak for the college.
- Academic freedom is essential to fulfill the ultimate objectives of an educational
institution - the free search for and exposition of truth - and applies to teaching,
research, and faculty participation in institutional governance. Freedom in research
is fundamental to the advancement of truth, and academic freedom in teaching is fundamental
for the protection of the rights of the faculty member in teaching and of the student
to freedom in learning. Faculty participation in institutional governance is fundamental
to the development and maintenance of effective academic policies, national and regional
accreditation, and shared responsibility for the delivery of educational programs
and services to students.
- Implicit in the principle of academic freedom are the corollary responsibilities of
the faculty who enjoy that freedom. Incompetence, indolence, intellectual dishonesty,
failure to carry out assigned duties, serious moral dereliction, arbitrary and capricious
disregard of standards of professional conduct - these and other grounds as set forth
in TBR Policy 5.02.03.70 may constitute adequate cause for dismissal or other disciplinary sanctions against
faculty members.
- The right to academic freedom imposes upon the faculty an equal obligation to take
appropriate professional action against faculty members who are derelict in discharging
their professional responsibilities. The faculty member has an obligation to participate
in tenure and promotion review of colleagues as specified in policy. Thus, academic
freedom and academic responsibility are interdependent, and academic tenure is adopted
as a means to protect the former while promoting the latter.
- While academic tenure is essential for the protection of academic freedom, the full
benefits and responsibilities of academic freedom extend to all individuals teaching
in the TBR System, whether or not they are eligible for tenure.