Academic freedom and the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary experience, 1979-1989

As fundamentalist-conservatives pressed their agenda in Southern Baptist Convention life, and, in particular, as they assumed a majority on the board of trustees of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina, the academic freedom of the Southeastern faculty became an issue. Concerns enunciated by Robert M. MacIver (1955) provide reference points in responding to the inquiry: Was the academic freedom of the faculty violated at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary? While a prologue and epilogue are offered, the study parameters of the Southeastern Seminary experience are 1979 to 1989. The study concludes that academic freedom was compromised in this case. The following areas were identified: the ability of the faculty to investigate in their fields, draw conclusions, and share their knowledge and skills with freedom; the censorship of the faculty as a collect, as well as some individual members; indirect curbs to faculty mobility; the manipulation of tenure and status conditions of the faculty to insure conformity to religious principles; and, institutional policies and procedures which impinged on academic freedom