Good Decision for Tenure Rights at Tufts

In March, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued a positive decision in Wortis v. Trustees of Tufts College, a case in which the AAUP had submitted an amicus brief. The case concerned Tufts University School of Medi­cine’s unilateral imposition of a compensation plan that required faculty to raise a portion of their salaries by obtaining external grant funding. Several tenured faculty members sued, claiming that the plan violated the terms of their contracts, which included language concerning academic freedom and economic security that was taken verbatim from the AAUP’s joint 1940 Statement on Academic Freedom and Tenure. The opinion, which reversed a lower court decision that dis­missed the professors’ claims, recognizes academic freedom and economic security as “important norms in the academic community” and adopts crucial points made in the AAUP’s amicus brief. In particular, the decision stresses that “academic freedom is essential to the common good,” recognizes that the 1940 Statement is “an appropriate guide for interpreting tenure contracts,” and explains that the purpose of tenure is to safeguard academic freedom and ensure the economic security of faculty members. The court also explained that “permanent or con­tinuous tenure would seem to be a hollow promise if it came without any salary commitment,” adding that “there is a reason champagne corks pop when tenure is awarded, and economic security is one of those obvious reasons.” As a result of the court’s ruling, the profes­sors’ breach-of-contract claims will be sent back to the lower court for the development of further evidence.