The University of St. Andrews has decided to terminate the contract of Dr. Alison Duncan Kerr, director of its Institute for Gender Studies. Dr. Andrews was hired to establish the St. Andrews Institute for Gender Studies. But her contract position has come to an end, and the University has informed Dr. Kerr that her position will not be renewed, intending to redistribute her duties to other staff members, none of whom seem to have a particular expertise in gender studies.
St. Andrews’ treatment of Dr. Kerr has been noticed by the international press, but the university seems to be unmoved. See coverage here: Scotland (The Herald), the UK (The Times), the United States (The New York Times), Italy, France, and Switzerland.
There is an open letter/petition asking the University to live up to its previously stated commitment to “fair treatment of fixed-term staff which allows for career progression, especially standard contracts,” among other things.
If you’d like to add you name, please do so here. Supporters are using the social media tag #IStandwithAlison.
