Professor sues University of Alabama at Birmingham, claiming pay discriminates by race, age
Posted by Hannah Wolfson -- Birmingham News December 04, 2008 5:27 PM
Categories: Breaking News
Professor Horace Huntley has sued the University of Alabama at Birmingham, claiming the school has discriminated against him and denied him fair pay because of his race and age.
He also claims, in the lawsuit filed in federal court Tuesday, that UAB "has a policy of discriminating against black persons with respect to recruitment, hiring, compensation, promotions, discipline, training, discharge, pay, fringe benefits and other terms and conditions of employment."
UAB spokeswoman Dale Turnbough said the university could not comment on pending litigation.
According to the lawsuit, when Huntley asked UAB Provost Eli Capilouto to correct the salary disparity, Capilouto suggested that Huntley retire.
Huntley has taught history at UAB for more than 30 years and founded the school's African-American studies minor in 1978. He has not been promoted to the highest academic rank of full professor, but remains an associate professor.
http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2008/12/prof...ng_pa.html
To make this more Blazer related, Huntley was the Academic Advisor to the basketball team in the late 1980's through the mid 1990's, possibly longer.
He is also director of the Oral History project at the Civil Rights Institute. If his lawsuit is correct and he was told to retire, that was pretty stupid and short sighted on someone's part. He should have been promoted to full professor some time ago.
"He should have been promoted to full professor some time ago."
Which of his books is your favorite?
blazerman2006 Wrote:He also claims, in the lawsuit filed in federal court Tuesday, that UAB "has a policy of discriminating against black persons with respect to recruitment, hiring, compensation, promotions, discipline, training, discharge, pay, fringe benefits and other terms and conditions of employment."
I don't know the specifics, but from my perspective that sounds like BS.
And the Provost may have told him to retire because we were not in a position to give him a raise. The money is tight y'all.
He probably was paid comparable to other professors who teach African American studies.
That is all that matters.
Maybe he should have complained 20 years ago.
It is hard to show how you are being done wrong when you have worked for the university for 30 years without complaining.
58-56 Wrote:"He should have been promoted to full professor some time ago."
Which of his books is your favorite?
bingo 58-56
He want to be rank professor because he is a minority ?????
Buddy or bro let me tell you something
If you are a minority , you need to work harder then everobody else .... not less then everybody else
Please don't play the minority card . it is getting old especially in 2008
AAS was one of my minors, and I was a student of Dr. Huntley's years ago. I don't know the full basis behind his lawsuit, but...
blazerman2006 Wrote:Huntley has taught history at UAB for more than 30 years and founded the school's African-American studies minor in 1978. He has not been promoted to the highest academic rank of full professor, but remains an associate professor.
...this is nothing short of a crime. Even if the AAS program is a minor, HELLO? The B in UAB still stands for Birmingham, doesn't it? Maybe they don't give full professor statuses to academic instructors in programs that students can only minor in, but I think a reasonable exception can be made for the man who helped start the thing.
I don't understand the notion why 'he should have complained 20 years ago' because I'm sure Dr. Huntley probably hoped to have kept building and maintaining the program [making it a major?], save for better opportunities elsewhere. Twenty years ago he probably didn't yet qualify or merit for the pay/benefits/departmental recognition that he probably expected to enjoy as a tenured educator today. So if he's being denied it now, how is the complaint really late?
Again, I'm not in any way plugged in toward the inner workings of the current academic scene at UAB. But while the Horace Huntley I knew might have been a lot of things, dishonest wasn't one of them. If his claims are legit and he can show that he has been unfairly treated, more power to him.
Isn't 30 years the minimum number of years to retire (not considering age) at UAB. I know it can be 25 or 30.
If things get hot, he can retire and not get hurt too badly.
If his case has merit in federal court, good for him.
If not, too bad.
That's why there are courts. Where's the popcorn? I want to see how this shakes out. Maybe there is wrong on both sides.
I wonder if the guy who started the Caucasian American studies minor has gotten tenure yet.
I was a student of HH 30 years ago. I'm surprised he's still at UAB after 30+ years.
It would be interesting to know exactly what is required of someone to reach full professor status... that would answer the biggest question.
Schard Wrote:It would be interesting to know exactly what is required of someone to reach full professor status... that would answer the biggest question.
It is extremely vague but usually done by merit. There is a process where the faculty member asks for the status change. It is my understanding that the request for status change can only be made a few times during a professor's tenure.
GN should probably weigh in on this.
dfarr Wrote:I wonder if the guy who started the Caucasian American studies minor has gotten tenure yet.
As long as UAB can show that they did not promote a younger person or a person of a different color with less merit to the job, they should be OK.
This will be settled out of court most likely.
I would also expect that if he was not meeting expectations in those 30 years that the school would have asked him to leave.
The problem seems to be that African American Studies is not considered a true department and the caucasion studies is what everyone gets anyway. Who heard of Marcus Garvey in American history?
Quote:It would be interesting to know exactly what is required of someone to reach full professor status... that would answer the biggest question.
I can't speak for UAB but the grad school I attended was very strict on attaining full professor status and tenure. We had a highly rated accounting professor denied tenure this year because he did not do enough research. He won several teaching awards and was widely known as an expert.
I'm sure UAB has similar criteria, as do other universities, for how a professor earns that status so if he has earned it under that criteria then he most certainly has merit in his case.
vinebc Wrote:I would also expect that if he was not meeting expectations in those 30 years that the school would have asked him to leave.
The problem seems to be that African American Studies is not considered a true department and the caucasion studies is what everyone gets anyway. Who heard of Marcus Garvey in American history?
I did not hear of Marcus Garvey in "American History". Maybe it was because he was born in Jamaica, then lived in Costa Rica, Panama, then London.
He was pretty influential it appears, but since he wasn't ever in America, he probably won't be discussed in American History.
I don't know about all this, but I do know that this is the same professor who gave my wife a bad grade in one of her classes when she answered questions the same on tests as what other students did and she had already passed other AA classes with A's. This guy discriminates as much as he claims UAB does.
"This will be settled out of court most likely."
Wouldn't be the first time.
"He won several teaching awards"
Teaching awards are career killers if you don't have tenure.
Every university has its own rules for promotion and tenure, which are two separate items in most instances, though you can come up for both simultaneously. Here at MTSU, two different committees handle those items.
From the UAB Faculty Handbook, the definition of a full professor at UAB:
Quote:2.4.4 Professor
Professor is the highest academic rank granted at UAB except for a limited number of university
professors, distinguished professors, or endowed professorships. Individuals holding this rank may be tenured,
tenure-earning, or non-tenure-earning. The rank of Professor requires the demonstration of nationally
recognized excellence in the conduct of academic duties. The rank of Professor usually requires academic
service as an Associate Professor for at least three years at UAB or equivalent service elsewhere.
And, the requirements for promotion and tenure:
Quote:2.5 Specific Criteria for Appointment, Promotion, and Award of Tenure
The university policies in Section 2.4 and the departmental, school, and/or library policies referred to in
Section 2.6 shall be used in evaluating faculty members for appointment, promotion, and award of tenure.
However, the departmental, school, and/or library policies may not be less stringent than, or be inconsistent
with, the UAB-wide policies contained herein.
Faculty appointment, promotion, and award of tenure are based on a faculty member’s training,
experience, and activities, as well as the potential for continued growth, in the areas of (1) teaching; (2)
scholarly activities, including research and other creative activities; and (3) service, as described in Sections
2.5.1 through 2.5.4. In the case of non-tenure-earning faculty, the requirement for demonstrated proficiency in
one, two, or all three areas, as specified in the policies of the department, school, or library, shall apply to
appointment and promotion. Candidates shall prepare appointment, promotion, and tenure award support
materials as prescribed by the Provost.
An individual will be judged by the criteria outlined in Sections 2.5.1 through 2.5.4 in proportion to their
relative importance to each academic rank, to the type of appointment held by the faculty member, and to the
program priorities of the appointing unit. Each faculty member shall be evaluated in these areas by colleagues at
UAB, as well as by a minimum of three reviewers outside of the institution qualified to review the faculty
member’s qualifications. In the area of teaching, student evaluation also should be solicited.
2.5.1 Effectiveness as a Teacher
Effectiveness as a teacher can be demonstrated by a review of the following considerations: the
individual’s knowledge of a subject field, including current developments in that field, and the ability to
develop effective curriculum materials, to organize and effectively present course work, to motivate student
interest and participation, and to contribute significantly to the academic progress of students.
2.5.2 Effectiveness in Scholarly Activities
Although scholarly work takes many forms, including design, basic and applied research, and other
creative activities, a faculty member’s effectiveness can be demonstrated by such achievements as publications,
fine arts creations, personal presentations of formal papers, artistic performances, patents, and the like. The
quality of the individual’s scholarly approach, capacity for independent thought, originality, and products of
scholarship must be addressed.
2.5.3 Effectiveness in Service Activities
Service functions can be those performed for UAB, the Birmingham community, the state of Alabama,
and regional, national, or international groups. Service may include such activities as (1) participation in
committee work, (2) fulfillment of administrative assignments, (3) contributions to the improvement of student
and faculty life, (4) faculty consultation within or outside UAB, and (5) professional service.