Volume 67, Issue 7

Tenure Troubles
by Yonatan Miller

The recent denial of tenure to Dr. Alan Brill, Assistant Professor of Judaic Studies, has raised a number of serious questions regarding Yeshiva College’s official tenure policy.  Although the case of Brill is the most recent and poignant example of this issue, this cannot overshadow the numerous tenure debacles in recent years that have left many questioning whether the decision makers take the future of YC seriously.

With the exception of the apparent opposition of Dr. Haym Soloveitchik, University Professor of Jewish History and Literature at Revel, the circumstances surrounding Brill’s dismissal are still quite ambiguous. The fact that almost no professors are being issued tenure at YC further arouses one’s suspicion.

Whereas the abundance of tenure denials indicates that this is a prevalent phenomenon, the more pertinent question is whether the denials are connected in any way.  This would call into question the tenure process at YC, the administrators who control that process, and whether that process is fair to the students and the University as a whole.

Most students would expect that the giving of tenure to a YC professor solely concerns the professional qualifications of the teacher.  Indeed, this is generally true, according to the requirements listed by a Yeshiva insider, who pointed out the three main criteria considered for tenure: publications; teaching; and collegiality, or the usefulness of the candidate on administrative or academic committees.

As for the decision process itself, the candidate is judged by five committees.  When it comes to judging the publications of the candidate, “outside referees” are utilized in order to maintain the most objective assessment possible of the quality, content, and veracity of the candidate’s writings.

Some insiders have purported that there may have been cases in YC where even this supposedly secure “objective” criterion was tampered with.  This would entail a voting member on one of the Yeshiva tenure committees initiating contact with the outside referees, attempting to sway their opinion one way or the other.    

Speculation abounds as to which of the three above factors ultimately led to the termination of Brill.  Virulent student protests, along with a spirited letter-writing campaign, are only a small indication of the reaction of the student body to this recent decision.  If anything, these protests point to Brill’s appeal as a teacher, and as a masterful and original disseminator of intellectual Jewish history. 

The repercussions of the possibility of Brill’s termination have worried many teachers and shed light on an ever-growing trend in YC.  Professors are put on tenure track, and when the six to seven year period has expired, they find themselves looking for new jobs.

Since this phenomenon has occurred a number of times over the past few years, one can question whether the circumstances surrounding the various cases where YC denied tenure to faculty members are at all connected.  Granting a troubling snapshot of the bureaucracy involved with tenure decisions, one professor remarked, “It’s all about politics.”

While the members of the various boards may have personal vendettas or agendas at stake when it comes to making tenure decisions, that same professor admitted that there are economic issues at stake as well, although many would argue that the economic policy at Yeshiva is ultimately politically driven.  “The question of tenure ultimately boils down to whether the professor is worth the guarantee of a stable salary and benefits for life,” said another professor, who did not wish to be identified.  This “guarantee” that tenure offers is often a financial investment hovering at over a million dollars, and the Yeshiva administration “just doesn’t want to commit itself for life.”

Students who were aware of such financial interests in the tenure decision process found it preposterous.  “You have to invest in academic excellence,” according to Josh Goldman, President of the Student Organization of Yeshiva.  “Tenure is something that should be used to make professors work harder and not something that should be held against them,” added Zach Abramowitz, a YC junior, and vehement supporter of Brill.

Professor Brody* felt that treating tenure as an economic issue would be oversimplifying the ultimate problem.  The recent cases of tenure denial “are indicative of a pattern insofar as the fact that it’s happened a few times,” said Brody.  Quoting a parable from Pirkei Avos that shuns crass bureaucratic behavior, he added, “This is not a financial issue; this is a personal issue.”

Brody was dismayed at the deplorable treatment of Brill by those who denied him tenure, and at the broader situation in YC, where some professors are paid less than the most basic Burns security guards.  Speaking about a different professor (whom he did not identify because of the sensitivity and relevance of this very issue in his case), he was “appalled at the treatment of such a world class scholar; the content of his papers is extremely good.”

Brody is “happier teaching here than anywhere else,” and he boasts of a “great comfort level with the students.”  He lauded the accomplishments of Brill, saying, “I envy how the students respect him.”  Brody tempered his remarks, however, and said that there are times when the acts of the administration are so reprehensible that he could “just walk out the door.”

In the cases of Drs. Ross Zucker and Kenneth Danishefsky, both were voted teachers of the year in 2000, yet Zucker was denied tenure despite scathing student protest, and Danishefsky left YC for what was apparently a better offer. Both now teach at Touro’s Lander College for Men. The common denominator between the two is that the administration failed to recognize the value of these professors, while the overwhelming majority of students would beg to differ with their assessment.

Is there a solution to this problem?  Many professors were optimistic that the installment of Richard Joel as the new president of Yeshiva would bring a wave of change in eliminating the bureaucratic atmosphere that has pervaded the administration, and bring some level of influence back to the students. 

Another suggested solution, while not dispensing with the bureaucracy, would change the standards for tenure decisions.  The decision whether or not to give tenure to a professor would revolve around a set of predetermined objective requirements.

Such a solution would remove the tenure decision from the hands of administrators, thus ostensibly eliminating any danger of personal agendas getting in the way of a sound objective decision.  Objective standards for tenure exist in many institutions with which Yeshiva shares the top tier in recent US News and World Report university rankings.

Once a professor would publish the required amount of scholarly writings, be they books or articles, and whichever other requirements deemed necessary, after the prescribed amount of time, the professor would automatically be given tenure.

YC already makes use of such objective standards when it comes to filtering job applicants, said Professor Newberger.*  If the candidate for the open position has published a certain amount of books, or has published the requisite amount of articles in whichever journals the committee chooses, that candidate stands a higher chance of being considered for appointment.   

When it comes to other considerations, however, using objective standards for tenure could be opening a Pandora’s box.  “If the faculty, committees and deans aren’t rubber stamps, then there’s a serious issue,” in the opinion of Professor Newberger.  Once meeting the objective standards, any candidate, even one who is a total apikores (apostate), would have to be given tenure, despite any protestations from the administration.  Denying tenure to one who meets all the requirements might be sufficient grounds for a lawsuit against Yeshiva.

* Names in this article have been changed to protect the sources quoted.

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