The Toxicity of Tenure
Written by Gylf Forsberg, Culture Staff Writer
On the cold afternoon of Dec. 8, hundreds of faculty, graduate and undergraduate students and staff gathered outside of the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering holding signs which read, “we are more than grants” and “care about your students.”
This rally occurred because of a decision made by UW-Madison to keep tenured faculty Akbar Sayeed following a report that intimidation in his research facility contributed to a graduate student’s death in 2016.
John Brady, a graduate student in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, studied under Sayeed as a graduate research assistant. In October of 2016, Brady passed by suicide.
In early November of 2019, an article published by the Wisconsin State Journal (WSJ) brought to light the events which lead to Brady taking his own life, with Brady’s parents claiming the unhealthy working environment under Sayeed was a major factor in their son’s passing (Meyerhofer, 2019).
The Wireless Communication and Sensing Laboratory at UW-Madison was described by other graduate students as an incredibly hostile environment, filled with toxicity and abuse. Sayeed, the primary researcher in the laboratory, was said to shout obscenities at students, referring to them as “chimpanzees” and “monkeys,” telling them it was necessary to “endure the pain, this will only last four or five years” (Meyerhofer, 2019).
Brady, however, was working his seventh year in the lab, even though his program was only supposed to last four years. During his time in the lab, he secretly recorded the professor’s tirades, determined to document and bring to light the issues that he and other graduate students faced in the lab (Suarez, 2019).
The truth about the lab was brought to light, but only after his passing. Once the WSJ article was published, many called for the removal of Sayeed but were met with one of the greatest issues in higher education. Tenure.
UW-Madison and the College of Engineering acknowledged the faults of Sayeed, however, due to the professor’s tenured position, they did not immediately fire him (Meyerhofer, 2019).
Which begs the question: how far should the protections of tenure be extended to a member of faculty? Tenured faculty in the University of Wisconsin system can only be dismissed with “just cause,” which has a very fuzzy definition not seen anywhere in tenure laws in the state code (Suarez, 2019).
What constitutes “just cause”? If intimidation to the point of taking one’s life does not constitute, then what does?
In the history of the UW System, there have only been four instances of tenured faculty being dismissed, only one of which was at UW-Madison. Apart from these four instances, more often than not, faculty who are found to be unfit, are merely suspended for one or two years—or as in Sayeed’s case, moved to “unspecified administrative duties” within the College’s Dean’s Office, maintaining his salary of $141,859 (Suarez, 2019).
The Graduate Student Association at UW-Madison organized protests and has called for a more just punishment for Sayeed. The Association claims that this situation proves several professors within the College of Engineering do not put enough importance on the graduate students themselves, rather value them only on their ability to bring in grant money (Meyerhofer, 2019).
John Brady’s story is not the only one of graduate student abuse though, as this is an issue across the nation. However, we can hope that Brady’s story and voice will help to mend what is wrong and contribute to a bettering of campus climates, not only here in the University of Wisconsin System, but on campuses across the country.
Sources:
Meyerhofer, Kelly. “’Toxic’ Lab Lasted for Years. UW-Madison Had Little Idea Until a Student Died by Suicide.” Madison.com. Wisconsin State Journal, October 31, 2019.
Meyerhofer, Kelly. “UW-Madison Professor at Center of ‘Toxic’ Lab Wasn’t Fired. Is Tenure to Blame?” Madison.com. Wisconsin State Journal, November 18, 2019.
Suarez, Miranda. “Grad Students To UW-Madison: Fire ‘Toxic Lab’ Professor.” Wisconsin Public Radio, December 8, 2019.