Inside Higher Ed: Many at Michigan’s smallest public university see recent tenure denials — over departmental objections — as sign of disrespect for liberal arts
Lake Superior State University, a small public institution in northern Michigan, is used to fighting against the odds. Its hockey team has won three national championships since 1988 — much to the chagrin of powerhouses like the University of Michigan and Michigan State University. Faculty members have created a top robotics facility. The university’s press office, too, works hard each year to make sure that prospective students know about the remote institution, through such traditions as the annual announcement of the List of Words Banished from the Queen’s English for Mis-Use, Over-Use and General Uselessness.
But LSSU hasn’t been seeking attention for the tensions that have become widespread, spurred by a break with tradition to reject tenure for two English professors with strong departmental backing — and comments from the university’s board chair that were viewed as demeaning by many at the institution.
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