Missouri student files complaint against professor who called for 'muscle'

[tomm2thumbs]

Source: USA Today

The University of Missouri student who filmed assistant professor Melissa Click call for "muscle" to eject him from a protest site on campus says he has filed a complaint with police alleging simple assault. Mark Schierbecker said that he filed the complaint with campus police late Wednesday and was waiting to hear if they would press charges against Click, an assistant professor in the university's Department of Communication. <snip>

At the end of the video, Schierbecker approaches Click, who calls for "muscle" to remove him from the protest area. She then appears to grab at Schierbecker's camera. The campus has been embroiled in protests over administrators handling of a series of racially-charged incidents on campus. On Monday, the state's university system president Tim Wolfe and Mizzou chancellor R. Bowen Loftin announced their resignations. Under fire, Click resigned her courtesy appointment with the journalism school on Tuesday, but remains an assistant professor at the university. <snip>

Click expressed remorse when she met with journalism faculty on Tuesday night, and said that she not recall pushing Schiebecker as the video shows, said Esther Thorson, associate dean of graduate studies and research at the journalism school.

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/11/12/mizzou-student-files-simple-assault-complaint-against-assistant-professor-melissa-click/75640722/

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I thought Click had resigned outright, but she remains as an assistant professor at the university.

adding full video for context

(she is shouting at 1:00 re: student-journalist (Tim Tai) and at 7:00 re: student with camera (Mark Schierbecker), and at 9:00 then again at 11:30)

[Ex Lurker]

1. She resigned her courtesy appointment with the Journalism School

which the J-school was already in the process of revoking. She remains on the faculty-Communications Department or whatever.

[Buzz Clik]

5. Her courtesy appointment "resignation" was like paying a fine with Monopoly money.

Except that Monopoly is actually worth something.

[Heeeeers Johnny]

2. Students need to demand that she be terminated, released from any and all connections...

with the university.

Her actions (as well as the students whom prevented anyone from entering the area), are inexcusable and puts the
protest in a bad light.

[cab67]

3. she doesn't have tenure.

She's an assistant professor. I don't know when she goes up for tenure, but if I were her, I'd start looking for a new job yesterday.

Some of the students involved in the pushing owe the reporters an apology as well. It's possible they didn't understand the legalities involved, but I would imagine someone's discussed it with them by now.

[Laffy Kat]

27. Absolutely no chance of tenure for this faculty member.

Nowadays you have to be on a tenure track to begin with and I can assure you she wasn't, not at her level.

[Lionel Mandrake]

28. Are you sure?

At most schools the tenure track starts with the title "assistant professor", whereas non-tenure-track people have other titles, like "lecturer" or "adjunct".

[Laffy Kat]

29. For ten years I took the minutes at all faculty promotions committee meetings...

Tenure reviews, post-tenure reviews, etc., etc. At least in medical schools, faculty appointments begin at: instructor, then assistant professor, then associate professor, then professor. There are teaching tracks, clinical tracks, research tracks. Gone are the days when professor means tenure. Of course, liberal arts & sciences schools may be different, but it sure doesn't sound like she was in any way on her way to tenure to me.

[nsd]

30. Click is an assistant professor.

She's not a "research assistant professor" or a "lecturer" or anything like that. It sounds like she definitely had a tenure-track appointment.

But she's been at Missouri so long (five years as an instructor, seven as an assistant professor) that I can't help but wonder whether she's already been denied tenure. Some places (e.g., medical schools) drag things out, but liberals arts departments typically would have made a decision by now.

[cab67]

37. at nearly every US university,

"assistant professor" is the entry level for tenure-track faculty, at least in non-medical departments. With tenure, one becomes associate professor; eventually, one can be promoted to full professor.

I would be shocked to the point of speechlessness if Dr. Click wasn't tenure track.

[a la izquierda]

48. Medical schools are different.

I have a friend who is a teaching assistant professor. She will never have the chance for tenure. I, however, am an assistant professor at the same university...just in a different college.
It depends on the rank system in the particular college.

[alcibiades_mystery]

31. If her title is assistant professor she is on the tenure track

[Laffy Kat]

36. Not necessarily these days.

Besides, didn't she resign? Hopefully?

[cab67]

38. actually, nearly always these days.

Last edited Fri Nov 13, 2015, 09:53 AM - Edit history (1)

Non-tenure-track faculty get different titles - research scientist, lecturer, instructor, professor of practice, etc. Or the word "adjunct" is part of the title.

Maybe it works differently in medical schools?

[alcibiades_mystery]

40. Well

I'm a tenured professor, and I can at least report that in the vast majority of cases "assistant professor" with no further modification is a tenure track appointment.

Perhaps in medical schools it is different. I wouldn't know.

That said, the one odd thing about Click's CV is that she was appointed as assistant professor in 2008. That means she probably should have gone up for tenure during the 2013-214 academic year. Even if they stopped her clock for some reason and gave her another year, she should have gone up 2014-2015. It's very odd that she hasn't gone up for tenure yet, unless she has, and has already been denied, and is on her grace year. She doesn't have a book, which may be a deal-breaker at Mizzou.

[cab67]

41. I've seen cases where multiple clock stops were involved.

So it's possible she hasn't gone up yet, or is going up right now. But I agree - she would normally have gone up by now.

[snooper2]

4. What happens with SJW leave the confines of their desks posting junk in comment sections

and enter the real world LOL

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

8. SJW? for the acronym addled.

Social Justice Wanker?

[JoeyT]

15. Social Justice Warrior.

Originally it came from tumblr and was self-descriptive. They called themselves that. And you could get pretty far down the rabbit hole with them. People that insisted they were dracosexual and anyone that pointed out they didn't have wings and couldn't breathe fire was oppressing them.

Now thanks to 4chan and reddit, it's pretty much come be a derogatory term for anyone that thinks non-whites, women, or LGBT people are human.

Edit: If it gives you any idea what it usually means, the first time I ever heard it was from a mod of /r/greatapes (Stormfront recruiting sub), and when you google it Roosh V is in the first page of results. Roosh V being a dude that encourages rape because women deserve it.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

19. Thanks for that explanation. Makes total sense.

Why can't these people be forcibly admitted to mental institutions?

[CreekDog]

26. If you feel that way about liberal activists, why are you posting on DU?

I don't get it.

[ProfessorGAC]

42. I Think Elmer Meant the Stormfront Guy Quoted

Not the people being called SJW's

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

45. Yes, you missed it completely. WHOOSH! Right over your head apparently.

I wasn't talking about liberal activists.

[marble falls]

49. If its any cosolation SE's taken a pizza delivery. He won't be back.

[Gormy Cuss]

25. "it's pretty much ... a derogatory term for anyone that thinks non-whites, women, or LGBT people"

And apparently it's acceptable to DUers because that post survived a jury.

The more you know.

[snooper2]

43. Just because somebody posted that doesn't mean it is true, teabaggers can be SJW as well

Here is the correct definition-


Thanks to Urban Dictionary

social justice warrior
A pejorative term for an individual who repeatedly and vehemently engages in arguments on social justice on the Internet, often in a shallow or not well-thought-out way, for the purpose of raising their own personal reputation. A social justice warrior, or SJW, does not necessarily strongly believe all that they say, or even care about the groups they are fighting on behalf of. They typically repeat points from whoever is the most popular blogger or commenter of the moment, hoping that they will "get SJ points" and become popular in return. They are very sure to adopt stances that are "correct" in their social circle.

The SJW's favorite activity of all is to dogpile. Their favorite websites to frequent are Livejournal and Tumblr. They do not have relevant favorite real-world places, because SJWs are primarily civil rights activists only online.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=social+justice+warrior

[Gormy Cuss]

47. And the urban dictionary is a handy but not definitive reference. n/t

[Imajika]

6. This woman should be fired...

I am not sure what has happened to our universities, but political correctness is turning into something akin to totalitarianism.

I remember how illiberal I thought speech codes were when I was at school, now it seems we have descended into whining over micro-aggressions, trigger words, etc.

Once upon a time I thought the term SJW was obnoxious and offensive, now I wonder if some of these people have utterly lost their mind.

We are raising campuses full of crying brats who seem to think they have a right to never have their world view challenged. Heck, they don't even want to hear an opinion that might cause them to have to process a new idea.

[alp227]

23. you're conflating different issues.

A common right wing trick is to convince people that campus regulations against bigotry based harassment are akin to censoring valuable scholarship.

[loyalsister]

35. They have one thing in common

Both have been used by people outside of this movement to try to make it about them.

"It's PC to refuse to tolerate my intolerance!"

"Trying to protect people who have been getting death threats from being shoved around by reporters is a threat to MY freedom."

[Sunlei]

7. She did apologize even to the reporter and he accepted. But likely she needs to apologize more.

Heck of a stupid mistake, to "Forget" an American basic right- "Freedom of the Press"

[deutsey]

9. Tai accepted her apology and wants to move on

Schierbecker, apparently, is not ready to move on and, based on a quote of his I read, is making it his mission to have Click fired and maybe even Basler (the blonde administrator who got up in Tai's face):

Schierbecker said he thought Basler should resign, "and if not, she needs to be removed.

"Click should also go. Even more so," he said. "That's my number one priority at the moment, is making sure she never teaches ever again."


http://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/higher_education/update-mu-director-of-greek-life-put-on-leave-title/article_ba2220fa-88c0-11e5-b76d-773b01f64d04.html

I'm not sure what I think of Schierbecker's motives, but Click and Basler were way out of line in their behavior.

[Sunlei]

11. Once a genuine apology was given & accepted, wish we all moved back to the protests main issue.

[branford]

12. The apology was not accepted by the reporter who was threatened and actually filmed the incident.

There was more than one reporter during the protest.

We can also focus on more than one thing at a time. We can fight to ensure racial fairness on college campuses and simultaneously demand violent Ph.D communication and journalism professors who are either ignorant of or choose to ignore the First Amendment be promptly terminated.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

21. You get a +1 and a bunch of zeros from me!

[tabasco]

13. I thought one of the protest's main issues was removing incompetent university employees

The university president apologized but that didn't seem to satisfy the protesters.

[cab67]

16. The faculty member in question crossed a serious line.

That she apologized is great. She owed the student/reporters at least that much. But at the time, she tried to take things to a completely unacceptable level. "We need some muscle" can only be interpreted as a request that someone physically remove someone who had every right to be present. That would have constituted assault.

I'm a professor myself. Faculty activism is certainly tolerated by my administration, and can even be encouraged. But we're expected to be adults and comply with the law. If we break it, we're expected to accept whatever consequences may follow.

I'm a lot more forgiving of the students involved in the conflict than I am of someone with a PhD who absolutely should have known better.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

22. Just wondering which university.

Or at least, which state?

Possibly which country?

[cab67]

39. midwestern US

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

44. Hopefullly not the University of Wiscosin - Madison.

[beevul]

32. It seemed like a non-apology apology, IIRC.

I don't count those as 'genuine'.

[Imajika]

10. No, she should be fired..

Period.

Student protest has and should always be a part of campus life. Many of the best changes across the world have been sparked by young people at universities - but we are getting way beyond that now.

What began as political correctness has now morphed into some quasi totalitarian idea that people have a right to never have their worldview challenged, to never hear an opposing opinion, to believe their mob mentality is more important than freedom of the press.

I hate to say it but the radical left is mostly to blame for this nonsense. It is time actual liberals inform these crybaby students that campus life is not a "safe space" from competing, even objectionable ideas.

[romanic]

14. Amen.

Radicals ruin everything.

[Yupster]

34. Amen

She should already have been fired and she should be doing her apologizing to the jury during the sentencing phase of her assault trial.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

20. She should absolutely be "let go".

She certainly shouldn't be in charge of the Greek Societies (think Animal House and the Mayor's wife).

[Freddie Stubbs]

17. Perhaps she can a have a 'safe space' in a jail cell

[MisterP]

18. but how else will we learn about the meaning of EL James?!

[Munificence]

24. I's file a suit against the University

then I'd go after her.

And I wonder if she was involved in the original shit stirring that got us here....bet she was.

We've been trying to figure out where the racism and rights violation was coming from, looks like we may just have found it.

The proof is in the pudding.

Edit to add:

Sorry MisterP, I did not mean to respond to you but instead to the OP.

[alcibiades_mystery]

33. At her next formal or informal performance review, she should be evaluated based on her

research, teaching, and service record for the review period, according to the ordinary criteria used for other faculty in her department.

Whatever complaints are lodged against her should go through the usual, prescribed channels. If they rise to the level of dismissal for cause according to whatever policies are in place at her institution, she should be given due process.

See, that wasn't hard.