Written/Unwritten

The academy may claim to seek and value diversity in its professoriate but reports from faculty of color around the country make clear that departments and administrators discriminate in ways that range from unintentional to malignant. Stories abound of scholars — despite impressive records of publication excellent teaching evaluations and exemplary service to their universities — struggling on the tenure track. These stories however are rarely shared for public consumption. <i>Written/Unwritten</i> reveals that faculty of color often face two sets of rules when applying for reappointment tenure and promotion: those made explicit in handbooks and faculty orientations or determined by union contracts and those that operate beneath the surface. It is this second unwritten set of rules that disproportionally affects faculty who are hired to “diversify” academic departments and then expected to meet ever-shifting requirements set by tenured colleagues and administrators. Patricia A. Matthew and her contributors reveal how these implicit processes undermine the quality of research and teaching in American colleges and universities. They also show what is possible when universities persist in their efforts to create a diverse and more equitable professorate. These narratives hold the academy accountable while providing a pragmatic view about how it might improve itself and how that improvement can extend to academic culture at large.<br/><br/>The contributors and interviewees are Ariana E. Alexander Marlon M. Bailey Houston A. Baker Jr. Dionne Bensonsmith Leslie Bow Angie Chabram Andreana Clay Jane Chin Davidson April L. Few-Demo Eric Anthony Grollman Carmen V. Harris Rashida L. Harrison Ayanna Jackson-Fowler Roshanak Kheshti Patricia A. Matthew Fred Piercy Deepa S. Reddy Lisa Sánchez González Wilson Santos Sarita Echavez See Andrew J. Stremmel Cheryl A. Wall E. Frances White Jennifer D. Williams and Doctoral Candidate X.