Opinion ID: 4545719
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Tenure Denial and Termination

Text: The events leading to the University’s decision to deny Wigginton tenure are largely undisputed. Because this appeal follows a jury verdict, we recount the facts “in the light most favorable to the jury’s determination.” Waganfeald v. Gusman, 674 F.3d 475, 480 (5th Cir. 2012). When Wigginton was hired, Dr. David McElreath, the Chair of the Legal Studies Department during the 2008–2009 and 2009–2010 school years, told him that the “major emphasis in [the] [D]epartment was teaching.” Consistent with that priority, McElreath encouraged Wigginton to focus his scholarship efforts on publishing textbooks, rather than pursuing other forms of research and writing. McElreath gave Wigginton positive evaluations in his first two annual reviews, expressing the opinion that Wigginton had “outstanding” research skills and that he was “exceed[ing] all expectations for advance in rank.” During the 2010–2011 school year, Dr. Stephen Mallory took over as interim Chair of the Legal Studies Department. Mallory told Wigginton to “keep doing what [he had been]” doing under McElreath’s supervision. In Wigginton’s third, fourth, and fifth year evaluations, Mallory gave Wigginton high marks for his “cutting edge” research, and explained that it was his belief that Wigginton was “making excellent progress toward meeting the expectations for tenure-track faculty.” A month before Mallory submitted Wigginton’s fifth-year review, Wigginton was notified that he had been 4 Case: 19-60268 Document: 00515474748 Page: 5 Date Filed: 07/01/2020 No. 19-60268 nominated for the Thomas A. Crowe Outstanding Faculty Award—a Department prize that recognized “meritorious faculty engagement in scholarship, teaching, and service.” Though Wigginton was his Department’s nominee, he was not selected as the winner of the Award. In accordance with University policy, Wigginton formally applied for tenure in 2013, at the beginning of his sixth year at the University. At that time, he had co-authored five textbooks, published two peer-reviewed journal articles and had a third accepted for publication, and published one article in a professional, non-academic journal. Wigginton prepared his application and submitted a list of potential external reviewers with knowledge of his work. The Department Chair was responsible for selecting three reviewers from that list and, in consultation with the faculty, identifying two additional reviewers who could provide their assessment of Wigginton’s work. All five of Wigginton’s external reviewers provided a positive review of Wigginton’s skills, research record, and eligibility for tenure. Wigginton’s application was forwarded to the tenured faculty members in his Department, who voted 5 to 2 in favor of granting tenure and 4 to 2 in favor of promoting him from assistant to associate professor. 3 The faculty recommendation was then submitted to Dr. Eric Lambert, who had assumed the position of Chair of the Legal Studies Department a few months earlier, in August 2013. In a six-page letter, Lambert recommended that the University deny Wigginton tenure and promotion. He based his recommendation primarily on his conclusion that Wigginton’s “scholarly productivity and quality is very low.” Though he acknowledged that Wigginton had contributed 3 When Wigginton applied for tenure, he simultaneously applied for a promotion—a related but distinct University process. One of the tenured professors who voted to grant Wigginton tenure was an assistant professor, so he was unable to vote for or against Wigginton’s promotion. 5 Case: 19-60268 Document: 00515474748 Page: 6 Date Filed: 07/01/2020 No. 19-60268 to several textbooks, he found Wigginton’s peer-reviewed articles to be “both few and of low quality.” Lambert submitted his recommendation to the Dean’s Committee, which voted 3 to 2 in favor of granting tenure and promotion. Wigginton’s application and the Dean’s Advisory Committee recommendation were then sent to Velmer Burton, Jr., the Dean of the School of Applied Sciences. Burton echoed much of Lambert’s assessment and recommended rejecting Wigginton’s application for tenure and promotion. In addition to his reservations about Wigginton’s scholarship, Burton expressed “real concerns” that the five external reviewers who evaluated Wigginton’s work were biased in their assessment. Dean John Kiss, the Dean of the Graduate School, agreed with Lambert and Burton and recommended denying Wigginton tenure and promotion. Pursuant to University policy, Wigginton’s application was forwarded to the Tenure and Promotion Review Committee. The Committee expressed concern that the guidelines used to evaluate Wigginton were insufficiently clear. Nevertheless, the Committee “did not . . . find cause to consider the negative recommendations as arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise associated with improper grounds.” Wigginton’s application was sent to Provost Morris Stocks, who recommended denying tenure and promotion because Wigginton’s research “d[id] not rise to the level of outstanding.” Wigginton sought review of these recommendations by the Tenure and Promotion Appeals Committee, which held a hearing in April 2014. Though the Committee did not believe that university officials acted improperly by failing to consider evidence of Wigginton’s record, it did find flaws with Wigginton’s review process. The Committee was concerned that Wigginton had received inconsistent advice throughout his probationary period, and also expressed the opinion that Wigginton’s external reviews should have been 6 Case: 19-60268 Document: 00515474748 Page: 7 Date Filed: 07/01/2020 No. 19-60268 viewed with more deference. It ultimately recommended that the University grant Wigginton an extended probation period “so that he can demonstrate his ability to meet [the University’s tenure] expectations.” The Committee’s assessment was forwarded to Daniel Jones, Chancellor of the University. Jones agreed with the previous administrator recommendations and declined to nominate Wigginton for tenure or promotion. Jones declined the Committee’s recommendation to grant Wigginton an extended probationary period, and instead granted Wigginton a contract for a final year of employment. Wigginton’s employment at the University concluded on May 10, 2015.