FREE SPEECH UPDATE: Faculties’ outcries slow UA System’s tenure-policy redo: Tight revamp timeline, new wordings raise suspicions on campuses in state.

Faculty members at five University of Arkansas System campuses are waiting for a seat at the table.

In September, the system sent word to its campuses about proposed changes to its tenure policy, which lays out what faculty members have to do to earn the status, what their annual review entails and how they can be dismissed. System administrators initially gave until Oct. 20 for teachers to provide feedback with an aim of getting the proposal to trustees for a Nov. 9 vote.

But after an outcry — concerns over job protection, academic freedom and the way the system developed the proposal — the vote turned into an update item. And now, after the system has set up an email account for feedback and a frequently asked questions page — and received comments from several faculty senate groups — the professors are still waiting to be invited for a discussion.

Using “collegiality” as a means of dismissal is just an excuse for political witch hunts.