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External Review Succeeds
This is a hopeful precedent for UC women. External ad hoc committees,
composed of specialists in the grievant's field from other universities and
UC campuses, have resolved cases before, but this time one was appointed
voluntarily and before a final tenure decision was made.
The grievant in this case was an assistant professor whose charges of
gender discrimination remained largely within her department for four and
one-half years. She first filed a grievance with Privilege and Tenure in the
spring of 1992, immediately after the meeting of her first tenure review
committee. P&T found prima facie evidence that the department had not given
the grievant a fair review and sought to recommend the appointment of an
external committee. Instead, the case was returned to the department where
a second review was also plagued with procedural errors and gender bias. In
the spring of 1994 the professor filed a second grievance with P&T which
once again found prima facie evidence of the department's inability or
unwillingness to conduct a fair evaluation. This time an external committee
was appointed.
In the summer of 1995 the external committee provided an assessment
of the grievant's dossier unanimously recommending tenure and retroactive
promotion. Under the terms of the settlement, this report was sent to the
department for review and a third vote. Though the department dismissed the
committee's report with a letter full of errors and evidence of gender bias,
the professor decided against filing a third grievance and allowed her dossier
to be forwarded for campus review. In July of 1996 the grievant was given
tenure with her promotion to associate professor effective from July 1995.
Though this was less advancement than the ad hoc committee had
recommended, their report was none-the-less pivotal in resolving the case.
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