Un-intelligent decision

Hardly anyone will dispute the fact that University professors can be strongly opinionated. Guillermo Gonzalez, an assistant professor of physics and astronomy at Iowa State University, is among them. Gonzalez, who was recently denied tenure by a university review committee, has been one of intelligent design’s most vocal supporters. Although Iowa State claims that his outspoken support of this controversial theory played no role in the decision to deny him tenure, we’re not so sure we believe them.\nThe theory of intelligent design reasons that the universe and everything contained therein is so massively complex and staggeringly intricate that it could only have come into existence through the will of an intelligent creator, i.e. God. Though it does not necessarily deny that evolution is God’s chosen method of natural development, the more fervid proponents staunchly believe the two theories are mutually exclusive.\nAccording to an Iowa State press release, Gonzalez’s evaluation was “based on an assessment of the excellence of his teaching, service, scholarly research publications and research funding in astronomy, using standards and expectations set by the department faculty.” It seems unlikely, however, that the faculty at Iowa State would have been able to be entirely objective in their decision, as they have in the past opposed Gonzalez’s role as an advocate for intelligent design. In August 2005, 120 faculty members issued a statement denouncing intelligent design, a move that was in part triggered by Gonzalez’s visibility as a proponent of the theory. \nGonzalez has had an impressive career and seems a shoo-in for tenure. He has authored 68 peer-reviewed publications with names like “Correlations between lithium and technetium absorption lines in the spectra of galactic S Stars” and “Abundance analyses of field RV Tauri stars.” \nNot only do they sound impressive, but his publishers are also widely respected journals, and were not (as some have suggested) backed by right-wing interest groups or ID proponents; they were published through established, credentialed organizations like the Royal Astronomical Society. Gonzalez’s work seems to speak for itself, and few of his publications have anything to do with intelligent design. Because Iowa State’s publishing requirement for achieving tenure is substantially lower than the Gonzales’ 68 articles - a striking number by any standard - we are skeptical as to why his tenure was denied.\nThis is the 21st century, and although we by no means encourage outright zealotry on the part of university professors, we see no harm in them publicly advocating their own views, even ones that their institution may not agree with. Barring any huge teaching difficulties that Gonzalez might have – of which we are unaware – there seems to be no reason to deny him tenure. The review process should be fair and objective, not a witch hunt that filters out those with views that are distasteful to their university. \nThe issue under consideration is not the relative merits of ID over evolution, but whether Gonzalez is qualified and deserving of this prestigious promotion.