Top scientists at TiU satirize policy

Top scientists at Tilburg University are not happy with the board’s policy. According to them, there is no clear mission, and no clear academic identity. Too much attention is put on maximizing profits, and because of that, the interests of scientists are compromised. On top of that, the strategic plan is full of ‘quasi-academic’ nonsense. Six authoritative scientists have started a petition with this message. Up until now, 117 people have signed it.

The petition is titled ‘Put researchers first, for a better Tilburg University’. Initiators are Eric van Damme (TiSEM), Cyrille Fijnaut (TLS), Marc Groenhuijsen (TLS), Arjen van Witteloostuijn (TiSEM), Siegwart Lindenberg (TSB) en Aart de Zeeuw (TiSEM). Van Damme also wrote a plan, called ‘Trying to make a difference’.

The directors have to consult the researchers more often, too much of the discussions are about money, the scientists say. In his plan, Van Damme writes: “The core is that the University operates more according to a business firm than according to a professional sports club, or a partnership. As a consequence of the mistaken identity, TiU says, does and publishes things which any serious researcher can only consider as being (very) embarrassing and not fitting a serious university. Personally, I go a bit further. I see many things which I consider to be an insult to academic values as I understand them to be.”

In the board, we have a lot of people with a non-scientific background, and this is part of the problem, according to the scientists. Koen Becking has no scientific background, Rector Magnificus Philip Eijlander does, but doesn’t  publish that much. “He also is not a member of the KNAW. Before becoming rector, he was dean of the Law School. His path to become rector was more an administrative one than a scientific one. Although the President and the Rector have ad hoc discussions with academics, they do not engage in strategic discussions with the key academics in the University on a structural basis. The avoidance of such discussions signals that academic values are not leading.”

The group has formulated 10 concrete action points:

1. Reorient Tilburg University by putting science and academics first and central
2. Identify the “will of the academics of TiU” and follow that will
3. Adopt clear goals and high ambition levels
4. Make explicit the academic values underlying the goals and activities
5. Act in accordance with the academic values
6. Manage Diversity
7. Have clear task descriptions, make everybody accountable for his/her tasks and assign all important tasks unambiguously
8. Science-based management, including evaluation
9. Improve the work climate
10. Change the governance structure and the composition of the Supervisory Board

The board says that it took note of the initiative, and the members want to talk to the initiators about its content.