On April 16, 2026, Tennessee governor Bill Lee signed into law a bill amending the faculty disciplinary policies at the state’s public higher education institutions to concentrate disciplinary authority in a single official, eroding procedural due process protections and shared governance.

The enacted Tennessee House Bill 2194/Senate Bill 2259 allows an institution’s chief executive officer or chief academic officer on their own authority to suspend or terminate a non-tenured or tenured faculty member based on an allegation of misconduct (not defined in the bill), eliminating a role that university chancellors, faculty senate leaders, and other administrative officers previously played in the disciplinary process. The law requires only that the faculty member be given a written notice of the grounds for termination or suspension and an opportunity to be heard by the deciding officer. The law does not appear to provide any further opportunity for appeal, stating only: “Prior to termination or suspension based on an allegation of misconduct, a tenured or non-tenured faculty member is only entitled to a written notice of the grounds for termination or suspension and an opportunity to be heard by the institution’s chief academic officer or chief executive officer.”

Scholars at Risk is concerned about state legislative action that undermines procedural due process protections and shared governance. While higher education institutions have a responsibility to investigate allegations of faculty misconduct, and to take necessary disciplinary actions for proven misconduct, a state-imposed policy that centralizes disciplinary authority in a single individual and removes faculty peers from the review process increases the risk of bias and external or partisan interference in administrative decisions, undermining academic freedom and institutional autonomy.

Sources:
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-takes/2026/04/21/tennessee-bill-faculty-disciplinary-procedures-now-law
https://utdailybeacon.com/209317/news/tennessee-legislature-reviews-bill-to-streamline-university-termination-procedures/
https://utdailybeacon.com/210582/news/tennessee-legislature-passes-bill-to-streamline-university-termination-process/
https://www.wbir.com/article/news/local/knoxville/tennessee-bill-altering-tenure-protections-governors-desk/51-0b2f6a31-2222-45f7-a0f1-ee2c762679b9
https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/Default?BillNumber=HB2194