Tenure Battle in Iowa
Pete Chadwell
In May of 2007, astronomer, Assistant Professor and co-author of the book "Privileged Planet: How Our Place in the Cosmos is Designed for Discovery" became eligible for tenure at Iowa State University, but ultimately his application was denied by ISU President Gregory Geoffroy. This has launched a battle between Gonzalez and ISU because from the outset, the denial of Gonzalez' tenure appeared to be less than legitimate.
Gonzalez is, after all, an advocate of the theory of Intelligent Design… a view that places him in the minority (to say the least) in the Astronomy and Physics Department at ISU. The Discovery Institute, a think tank in Seattle, WA that supports Intelligent Design is suspicious that ISU's decision may not have been based on Gonzalez' performance in his position at ISU, but rather that the denial of Gonzalez' tenure was based his view that evidence from astronomy demonstrates that the universe is a product of intelligent design, and even that the universe appears to have been designed for discovery.
In May of 2007, ISU President Gregory Geoffroy defended the decision by stating that Gonzalez “simply did not show the trajectory of excellence that we expect in a candidate seeking tenure in physics and astronomy.” And yet, the Discovery Institute points out that Gonzalez apparently exceeded performance expectations for tenure by as much as 350%. Plus, the ISU Astronomy and Physics Department uses a textbook called "Observational Astronomy" that was co-authored by Gonzalez.
But in June, one of Gonzalez' colleauges, John Hauptman, wrote an op-ed for the Des Moines Register in which he admitted that Gonzalez' views on Intelligent Design were essentially the only reason he voted against tenure for Gonzalez.
Since that time, Gonzalez has lost his first appeal and has now filed an appeal with the Iowa State Board of Regents. But in Early December of 2007, The Discovery Institute made public a record of e-mail traffic involving Gonzalez' colleagues as they discussed the upcoming tenure issue. The e-mail discussion does not bode well for the university's claim that Intelligent Design was not an issue in Gonzalez' tenure review.
The e-mails included discussions about how Intelligent Design does not qualify as science, and that if someone like Gonzalez thinks that ID is science, that would disqualify him as a science educator. One colleague mentioned that if Gonzalez continues his involvement with Intelligent Design, his tenure might be a "tough sell." There was also discussion about publishing a public statement denouncing Intelligent Design because some faculty were concerned that Gonzalez' advocacy might have a negative impact on ISU's reputation, however this was supplanted by a discussion about how the Discovery Institute could use such a statement to demonstrate in court that Gonzalez faced a "hostile work environment" at ISU and so the statement was abandoned. Someone admitted to watching the DVD version of "Privileged Planet" while "under medication."
It's not clear what Gonzalez' next move might be, but explaining away the e-mail traffic seems rather difficult to imagine.
For more information about this case, visit Discovery Institute's Evolution News and Views blog.