Letter to the Editor: Do Institutions of Higher Ed Help or Hinder Faculty Public Scholarship?

• In Event: Public Scholarship and Social Networks

Abstract

Research 1 institutions of higher education are often viewed as closed, rational organizational systems. They are hierarchically structured, with faculty recognized and rewarded for research, teaching, and public service, in that order. Many institutions are responding to social pressures to engage more frequently and meaningfully with the public. One way that scholars do so is through writing opinion pieces (op-eds). Research 1 universities’ organizational structure and tenure-awarding systems do not strongly reward faculty for this work, which typically falls under service. This qualitative study examines how faculty socialization into the academy influences their desire to write opinion pieces for the general public and how higher educational organizations and systems facilitate or hinder faculty public scholarship.

Authors

• M. Yvonne Taylor, University of Texas at Austin

• Joshua Childs, The University of Texas at Austin

• Z W Taylor, Texas State University