Hungry for Justice at MIT

The following is an abstract of an article that appeared recently in the Chronicle of Higher Education (2/6/2007), Vol. 53 Issue 24, pA15-A15, 1/2p. Rest assured that I am not saying racism is alive and well. The reader can judge for themselves.

The article describes the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) examination of the hiring, advancement, and experience of its minority faculty members. MIT's chancellor, Phillip L. Clay said the decision to examine the representation and experiences of minority professors is part of the follow-up to a 2004 commitment to several resolutions promoting diversity by the faculty at large. A larger percentage of nontenured faculty than tenured faculty describe themselves as Black, Hispanic, or Native American, indicating an increase in minority hiring, according to MIT's director of institutional research. Clay denies that the timing of the university's review is in any way connected to James L. Sherley's planned hunger strike in response to his being denied tenure.

It was later reported that Mr. Sherley decided to end his hunger strike - reported by Science Now (2/16/2007) Vol. 2007 Issue 402, p1-1, 1p.