April 16, 2018
Dear MPSA Leadership and Council Members,
We are writing to you on behalf of the executive board of the Midwest Women’s Caucus for Political Science regarding the letter published by MPSA’s President, Past President,and President-Elect on April, 13 2018. This letter outlined recent developments regarding allegations of misconduct against AJPS Editor William Jacoby.
We are sympathetic to many of the concerns expressed by others in the discipline. In particular, we are deeply worried about the lack of transparency around the council’s decision-making process vis-à-vis the AJPS. The leadership team has publicly acknowledged that the MPSA hired an attorney to investigate the allegations and that this investigation has been concluded. Yet, the council has not released a summary of the findings of the investigation. Similarly, the leadership stated that council members “engaged in an extremely robust and thoughtful discussion” about this matter, but has not released a final statement either in support of, or censuring, Professor Jacoby.
We appreciate that this is a complex situation involving sensitive information, and that there may be divergent opinions among council members. At the same time, we are reliant on the council’s leadership surrounding this difficult matter, and the equivocal response has led to confusion among MPSA members. The lack of transparency has placed many scholars, particularly women, in a difficult position. The MPSA has neither taken a definitive stance on the matter nor provided its individual members with the necessary information to draw an informed conclusion. Given the absence of a resolution, several of our members report feeling obligated to take a stance in favor of, or in opposition to, Professor Jacoby’s editorship based on very little publicly available information. Professor Jacoby’s decision to resign as AJPS editor does not absolve the MPSA council and its leadership of its responsibility to weigh in on this matter. Consequently, we are making the following requests of the council:
1. The MPSA officers and council members must take a definitive stance regarding Professor Jacoby’s position as AJPS editor. Having reviewed the findings of the investigation, the council must state whether it found a preponderance of evidence supporting Professor Jacoby’s removal from this post or make clear that there was insufficient evidence to do so.
2. In making a public statement, the MPSA must release a summary of the outcome of the investigation. The cost of this inquiry was borne by the MPSA membership who deserve to know the general findings.
3. The MPSA must release a public statement describing the future of the AJPS. MPSA members should be made aware of the procedures that are in place for selecting a new editor (or editorial team). We also request transparency concerning the AJPS’s new conflict of interest (COI) policy, including an explanation of how, when, and by whom it will be drafted and implemented, as well as how AJPS will ensure the anonymity of those who make use of the COI policy and protect them from possible retaliation or differential treatment.
Finally, we understand that the council was caught off guard by the allegations against Professor Jacoby. At the same time, we find it problematic that there were no clear procedures in place for dealing with these allegations, nor any public discussion of contingency plans for the AJPS were the investigation to reveal a pattern of wrongdoing. We would like the MPSA to ensure that it never again finds itself so unprepared to deal with allegations of harassment against a journal editor, officer, council member, or section head. To this end, we ask that:
4. The MPSA develop and publicize a full set of procedures for dealing with allegations of harassment against executive council officers and members, section heads, and journal editors.
As stated in our mission, the Midwest Women’s Caucus promotes the professional equity of women in part by “working with the MPSA to promote the interests of women political scientists.” We have a vested interest in ensuring that the MPSA and the AJPS continue to be organizations where all scholars can thrive, and ask the council to adhere to these requests in order to meet this goal. We thank you for your consideration and look forward to your public response.
Yours sincerely,
Tiffany D. Barnes
President
Diana Z. O’Brien
President-Elect
Dear MPSA Leadership and Council Members,
We are writing to you on behalf of the executive board of the Midwest Women’s Caucus for Political Science regarding the letter published by MPSA’s President, Past President,and President-Elect on April, 13 2018. This letter outlined recent developments regarding allegations of misconduct against AJPS Editor William Jacoby.
We are sympathetic to many of the concerns expressed by others in the discipline. In particular, we are deeply worried about the lack of transparency around the council’s decision-making process vis-à-vis the AJPS. The leadership team has publicly acknowledged that the MPSA hired an attorney to investigate the allegations and that this investigation has been concluded. Yet, the council has not released a summary of the findings of the investigation. Similarly, the leadership stated that council members “engaged in an extremely robust and thoughtful discussion” about this matter, but has not released a final statement either in support of, or censuring, Professor Jacoby.
We appreciate that this is a complex situation involving sensitive information, and that there may be divergent opinions among council members. At the same time, we are reliant on the council’s leadership surrounding this difficult matter, and the equivocal response has led to confusion among MPSA members. The lack of transparency has placed many scholars, particularly women, in a difficult position. The MPSA has neither taken a definitive stance on the matter nor provided its individual members with the necessary information to draw an informed conclusion. Given the absence of a resolution, several of our members report feeling obligated to take a stance in favor of, or in opposition to, Professor Jacoby’s editorship based on very little publicly available information. Professor Jacoby’s decision to resign as AJPS editor does not absolve the MPSA council and its leadership of its responsibility to weigh in on this matter. Consequently, we are making the following requests of the council:
1. The MPSA officers and council members must take a definitive stance regarding Professor Jacoby’s position as AJPS editor. Having reviewed the findings of the investigation, the council must state whether it found a preponderance of evidence supporting Professor Jacoby’s removal from this post or make clear that there was insufficient evidence to do so.
2. In making a public statement, the MPSA must release a summary of the outcome of the investigation. The cost of this inquiry was borne by the MPSA membership who deserve to know the general findings.
3. The MPSA must release a public statement describing the future of the AJPS. MPSA members should be made aware of the procedures that are in place for selecting a new editor (or editorial team). We also request transparency concerning the AJPS’s new conflict of interest (COI) policy, including an explanation of how, when, and by whom it will be drafted and implemented, as well as how AJPS will ensure the anonymity of those who make use of the COI policy and protect them from possible retaliation or differential treatment.
Finally, we understand that the council was caught off guard by the allegations against Professor Jacoby. At the same time, we find it problematic that there were no clear procedures in place for dealing with these allegations, nor any public discussion of contingency plans for the AJPS were the investigation to reveal a pattern of wrongdoing. We would like the MPSA to ensure that it never again finds itself so unprepared to deal with allegations of harassment against a journal editor, officer, council member, or section head. To this end, we ask that:
4. The MPSA develop and publicize a full set of procedures for dealing with allegations of harassment against executive council officers and members, section heads, and journal editors.
As stated in our mission, the Midwest Women’s Caucus promotes the professional equity of women in part by “working with the MPSA to promote the interests of women political scientists.” We have a vested interest in ensuring that the MPSA and the AJPS continue to be organizations where all scholars can thrive, and ask the council to adhere to these requests in order to meet this goal. We thank you for your consideration and look forward to your public response.
Yours sincerely,
Tiffany D. Barnes
President
Diana Z. O’Brien
President-Elect