Boğaziçi's senior academics slam dean appointments from outside university

Duvar English

Upon the recent appointment of three deans who are not affiliated with Boğaziçi University, 46 academics of the university on March 6 issued a statement slamming the decision.

In January, Prof. Dr. Naci İnci, the appointed rector of the prestigious university, dismissed the elected deans of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, and the Faculty of Education, citing "disciplinary" investigations launched against them.

On March 5, the university administration announced that three deans had been appointed from outside the university in place of the dismissed deans. 

In the face of this move, 46 Boğaziçi University academics, who have taken an active role in the senior management of the university since 1988, demanded a merit-based process and said in a statement that they do not accept the new appointments. 

“We regret the appointment of three faculty members, who do not know the institution and who are not recognized by the institution, as deans, without consulting the relevant faculty members. We do not consent to the deterioration of the institutional structure of our university, which operates within the framework of merit and democratic principles and is the basis of its success,” the statement said, according to reporting by online news outlet Diken reported.

“We have held positions in the senior management of our university that have an active role in the functioning. We carried out all our duties within the framework of the principles of scientific freedom, academic autonomy, merit-based, participatory, transparent and accountable governance, which are also included in the Fundamental Principles Document of our Senate dated 2012. We will continue to work with all our strength to maintain these principles,” the statement further read.

After the appointment of Prof. Dr. Melih Bulu as the rector by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in January 2021, the university's students and academics launched a protest demanding his resignation.

Following months-long protest, Bulu was eventually dismissed from his duty by Erdoğan in July 2021. A month later in August, again via a presidential decree, it was İnci who assumed duty as the rector of the prestigious institution despite the high disapproval rates he received on polls held among the community.

Academics and students are continuing with their protest against İnci's appointment. In this process, some students were detained and stayed behind bars for months.

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