Columbia University Chapter, AAUP

@aaupcu.bsky.social

“A bureaucratic restructuring that leads to the selective elimination of faculty members really puts academic freedom in jeopardy… particularly for professors who have displeased admin, trustees or donors.” — Mark Criley, Senior Officer in the AAUP Dept of Academic Freedom, Tenure & Governance.

He Had Tenure. The New School Laid Him Off Anyway.

The professor, a longtime critic of the university, was among 19 educators who lost their positions as the institution navigated financial woes.

nytimes.com

“Genuine intellectual diversity requires time for reflection, institutional independence, historical depth, ethical questioning, & the freedom to pursue research unconstrained by immediate market demands. These conditions cannot flourish where knowledge itself has become increasingly commodified.”

Higher Ed Can’t Be Neutral in an Age of Brutality. It Must Choose Democracy.

Contemporary proponents of “institutional neutrality” fail to grasp that universities have never been outside politics.

truthout.org

The AAUP stands with Mohsen Mahdawi & other faculty members, graduate students, & academic workers whose speech the federal government is attempting to censor. An injury to one is an injury to all. Full Statement: www.aaup.org/news/we-stan...

A black-and-white photo of the famous Alma Mater statue located at Columbia University in New York. The text reads AAUP STANDS WITH MOHSEN". This refers to a public support statement issued by the AAUP on behalf of Mohsen Mahdawi, a pro-Palestinian activist and graduate student at Columbia University who has faced high-profile federal immigration detention and deportation proceedings due to his protected speech.

The White House didn’t weigh scientific merit or alleged noncompliance of grant terms when they cut billions in life-saving research, they just looked for words they didn’t like. Blue states were specifically targeted for defunding.

Sarah T Roberts, PhD@ubiquity75.xyz · 2w ago

A reminder that UC _faculty_ and Faculty Associations — not the universities themselves nor their administrators — are waging this battle in court, demonstrating great bravery and moral clarity.

OUT TODAY, the AAUP just released the first comprehensive account of how the Trump administration has taken the same playbook it's used on law firms & foreign governments & turned it on American universities. US higher ed has, in effect, become a target of a massive extortion racket. 🧵

New Report on Extorted Compliance Charges “Massive Extortion Racket” Against Higher Ed

A new AAUP report, "Extorted Compliance: A Threat to Institutional Autonomy, Academic Freedom, and Shared Governance," exposes how the Trump administration has extended its pay-to-play approach to gov...

aaup.org

Tenure exists to safeguard #academicfreedom, which is necessary for all who teach & conduct research in higher ed. When faculty members can lose positions because of their speech, publications, or research findings, they cannot properly fulfill their responsibilities to advance & transmit knowledge.

Texas Conference of the AAUP@texasaaup.bsky.social · 2w ago

UT Austin doubles down on denial of tenure to leading borderlands tech scholar: “In an emailed statement to Inside Higher Ed, a UT spokesperson said, ‘Tenure is privilege, not a right.’” www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-t...

Today, the AAUP & Texas AAUP-AFT filed a motion for a preliminary injunction asking the court to immediately halt enforcement of unconstitutional Texas Tech policies that restrict teaching on topics related to race, gender identity, & sexual orientation. @texasaaup.bsky.social @texasaft.org 👊🏽👊🏻👊🏾

TEXAS AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS-AMERICAN
FEDERATION OF TEACHERS and the
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS,
Plaintiffs,
V.
BRANDON CREIGHTON in his official capacity as Chancellor of the Texas Tech University System, ARCILIA ACOSTA, CODY CAMPBELL, CLAY CASH, TIM CULP, SHELLEY SWEATT, DOUG MCREAKEN, DON SINCLAIR, DUSTIN WOMBLE, and RACHEL MCLELLAND, in their official capacities as members of the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents, Defendants.

“Should the university choose to compromise its commitment to academic freedom by seeking to settle w/ the DOJ on the basis of these spurious claims, the Yale AAUP will not hesitate to pursue its rights.” — Attorneys for Yale AAUP in a letter sent this week to Yale president Maurie McInnis

Yale Professors Vow to Fight Trump if the University President Won’t

The opposition to a potential deal with the government reveals a strategy that Yale groups have spent a year honing.

chronicle.com

Ohio’s #SB461 forces state universities to fund partisan "civic centers" at record levels—even if students aren't taking the classes. Instead of fixing soaring tuition, lawmakers are wasting tax dollars to force an agenda. Ohio families deserve affordable education, not mandated indoctrination. 🎓❌

Today, the AAUP & Texas AAUP sued Texas Tech Chancellor Brandon Creighton over directives he gave that mandated the censorship & thought policing of thousands of faculty & students leading to the suppression of academic freedom & the pursuit of knowledge. More Here: www.aaup.org/news/aaup-te... 🧵

Lawsuit cover page:

TEXAS AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS-AMERICAN
FEDERATION OF TEACHERS and the
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS,
Plaintiffs,
V.
BRANDON CREIGHTON in his official capacity as Chancellor of the Texas Tech University System, and ARCILIA ACOSTA, CODY CAMPBELL, CLAY CASH, TIM CULP, SHELLEY SWEATT, DOUG MCREAKEN, DON SINCLAIR, DUSTIN WOMBLE, and RACHEL MCLELLAND, in their official capacities as members of the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents,
Defendants.

Are the many “Intellectual Freedom Centers” being placed on college campuses nationwide really just mandatory ideological indoctrination centers? 🤔 #AcademicSky

AAUP members came together @ the Higher Ed Summit & Biennial to approve a package of critical proposals that will serve as a sweeping strategic blueprint for our Union to build structural power & go on the offensive against the political & economic threats to higher ed in this moment. 🧵

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Yet another disastrous move for public education: Shifting the Office for Civil Rights to the DOJ will strip marginalized students of vital protections leaving them more exposed to systemic discrimination, unsurprisingly subverting the core mission of the Office for Civil Rights. #AcademicSky

Trump further guts Education Dept. by shifting oversight of special ed, civil rights

The moves to the federal departments of Health and Human Services and Justice, respectively, would further dismantle an agency that President Donald Trump has vowed to close.

npr.org

That’s a Wrap! What a POWERFUL Higher Ed Summit this week in Chicago centering the work of building a strong movement to defend the quality & promise of higher ed & our democracy in this pivotal moment. LET’S GO! #AAUP2026 👊🏽👊🏿👊🏻👊🏼👊🏾

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“As authoritarians attempt to tear it down, we must fight for a fully funded education system in service of a robust democracy. And that’s what we will do. Full stop.” — Todd Wolfson, AAUP President #AAUP2026

Panel of AAUP leaders at the 2026 AAUP Higher Ed Summit in Chicago.

"Faculty are completely in the dark on the process, and to the extent we’ve heard anything it has been through the rumor mill...That’s a concern because faculty are no longer in control of the core curriculum at a research university."--D Morales, UH AAUP www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston...

A battle over 'indoctrination' is reshaping core curriculum at Texas colleges

A new state law mandates that Texas' core curriculum must be 'foundational.' No one is really saying what that means.

houstonchronicle.com