Should an Intelligent Design Creationist Be Denied Tenure?

 
The quick answer is, yes.

Guillermo Gonzalez was recently denied tenure in Iowa State's Dept. of Astronomy. It seems clear that part of the decision was based on Gonzalez's promotion of demonstably bad science; namely, Intelligent Design Creationism.

Mike Dunford spells it out on The Questionable Authority [The Discovery Institute and the Gonzalez Tenure Issue: Why Should Intelligent Design be Privileged?].

It is clear from the fragments of email that the Discovery Institute released that Gonzalez's colleagues believed - correctly - that Intelligent Design is not science, and that if Gonzalez believes otherwise it casts doubts on his understanding of science. They were not arguing that his belief in ID should be used against him just because he believes In ID. They were arguing that Gonzalez's belief in Intelligent Design is evidence that he has an incorrect understanding of science.

If a tenure candidate at an astronomy department were to argue that the moon is made of green cheese, it would not be unreasonable for the tenure committee to question the candidate's scientific credentials - and that candidate would be making a scientific argument that could be examined experimentally. Gonzalez doesn't even have that much going for him.

This is an important point. As Mike points out, the Discovery Institute is fond of promoting its work as "science" and it's proud to claim Guillermo Gonzalez as a bona fide scientist.

The Discovery Institute can't have it both ways. If it's science, then Gonzalez should be judged on the quality of his science, in which case he will be found wanting and denied tenure. If it's religion, then Gonzalez should not be making claims that his work is scientific and he should not put his creationist work on his CV.

In an effort to win an appeal, Gonzalez and his backers obtained email messages fro Professors in the Astronomy Department via the freedom of information act. Here's one email comment by Eli Rosenberg, the Chair of the Astronomy Department [see More on Gonzalez tenure denial].

... on numerous occasions, Dr. Gonzalez has stated that Intelligent Design is a scientific theory and someday would be taught in science classrooms. This is confirmed by his numerous postings on the Discovery Institute Web site. The problem here is that Intelligent Design is not a scientific theory. Its premise is beyond the realm of science. … But it is incumbent on a science educator to clearly understand and be able to articulate what science is and what it is not. The fact that Dr. Gonzalez does not understand what constitutes both science and a scientific theory disqualifies him from serving as a scienceeducator.

I see nothing wrong here. I looks to me like this is grounds for tenure denial.

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