The Corner

Education

In Praise of Academic Whistleblowers

We have reached the point in higher education where it takes courage to call out the people who are ruining it with their “diversity” obsession. For such actions, careers can be destroyed.

In today’s Martin Center article, Graham Hillard writes about a case at the University of Washington where the hiring process was blatantly rigged against today’s disfavored groups, namely whites and males.

Hillard writes:

Hiring committees, the faculty-search handbook in question states, should

  • “deconstruct how evaluating candidates based on certain characteristics (e.g., productivity, verbal fluency under pressure, charisma, likeability, [or] visionary leadership) may advantage privileged groups over underrepresented groups”;

  • ask themselves, “On which criteria did White candidates, male candidates, etc. tend to receive higher scores [during past searches]?,” then alter or eliminate those criteria;

  • note that “rewarding spontaneous verbal participation”—i.e., the ability to converse fluently in a professional setting—“could advantage White American candidates”;

  • “visualize your ideal candidates and work backwards from there to word your advertisement.”

Fortunately, the dean refused to go along. This sort of discrimination is very common today, but she did not take the path of least resistance and quietly go along. Academics who uphold racially neutral standards of excellence are rare and deserve our support.

George Leef is the the director of editorial content at the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal. He is the author of The Awakening of Jennifer Van Arsdale: A Political Fable for Our Time.
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