Hegseth freezes hiring of civilian tenured faculty at US military academies

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Defense Department will no longer appoint civilians as tenured college faculty at the United States' military service academies, according to a memo signed Tuesday by Secretary Pete Hegseth. Advocates say the job security is a crucial component of academic freedom. Hegseth's directive apparently would not remove the designation from faculty members who are currently tenured.The U.S.

Military Academy at West Point, the U.S. Air Force Academy all did not immediately respond to questions, and officials at the Pentagon did not offer further details on the plan when reached for comment.The percentage of faculty who are civilians varies by military academy. It is highest at the United States Naval Academy, where roughly half of the 600 faculty members are civilians.

The academies hire civilian faculty to offer expertise in topics and disciplines that military officers don't study as part of their careers, such as English and the humanities.Hegseth's decision follows broader conservative attacks on tenured faculty appointments in higher education. Those efforts to rein in tenure are often presented as bids to rein in academics with liberal views.In Hegseth's memo Tuesday, tenure was described as a factor that contributed to “academic stagnation, faculty complacency, and institutional inability to adapt to emerging needs. Additionally, it contributes to curriculum that drifts from the mission of educating our warfighters to the research priorities of the tenured academics.”Traditionally, tenured professors can be terminated only under extreme circumstances, such as professional misconduct or a financial emergency.

Advocates say it's especially important to maintain tenure as controversy grows over scholarly discussions about history, race, gender and sexuality.The decision Tuesday is part of a broader push from Hegseth to remake the military's education apparatus… The memo describes the decision to stop granting tenure to civilian faculty as part of an effort to refocus the military academies on warfighting. “To ensure our educational institutions remain firmly focused on this warfighting mission, we must address the structural mechanisms that have allowed civilian academic norms to dilute our focus on lethality,” the memo said.

The tenure designation generally comes with a career-long academic appointment at a college. The percentage of faculty who are civilians varies by military academy. Hegseth’s decision follows broader conservative attacks on tenured faculty appointments in higher education.

In Hegseth’s memo Tuesday, tenure was described as a factor that contributed to “academic stagnation, faculty complacency, and institutional inability to adapt to emerging needs. The decision Tuesday is part of a broader push from Hegseth to remake the military’s education … Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed departments on Tuesday to halt appointments of civilian staff to tenured positions at U.S.