Before beginning her presentation, Reagan thanked Professor Gray for her leadership and professionalism during the discussions on faculty tenure over the past year. The stability and continuity of the faculty has contributed to the stability of the University as an institution. The institution would not be what it is today without those individuals having made a long-term commitment. And during the most recent discussions on tenure, the faculty, fearing that detrimental changes in the tenure code would lead to a decline in the quality of the institution, came to the defense of their University. Having a stable core of faculty is important in research.
Research projects are often long term and keeping a research team together is important.
Faculty members like to work where exciting research and teaching is going on, where colleagues present pathbreaking ideas, and where they can mentor the next generation of leaders. Loyalty is reinforced by salary, tenure, and overall working conditions. For faculty to make a commitment to the institution, they need to feel that the institution is making a tangible commitment to them. Faculty at the University of Minnesota are discouraged by their dusty offices and dirty windows. They are discouraged by their lagging salaries.