American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is a left-leaning association of college professors that lobbies for pro-labor-union and left-of-center educational and economic policies and collectively bargains on behalf of college instructors. The group was formed in 1915 and is known for its advocacy for tenure protections for professors. It also lobbies on issues including opposing legislation limiting the instruction of critical race theory-inspired curricula, taxpayer-funded college paid for with a tax on financial institutions, and student loan forgiveness. The group created a joint campaign with the American Federation of Teachers called A New Deal for Higher Education that supports many of the left-of-center policy proposals included in the Biden administration’s Build Back Better proposals. ^{1 2}

In 2022, AAUP announced it had reached an agreement to formally affiliate with the AFT and through the AFT the AFL-CIO, in a deal under which all the union bargaining for both organizations would be conducted by the AFT while AAUP would maintain separate non-union lobbying efforts. ³

History

American Association of University Professors was founded in January 1915, and the union’s first organization meeting was held at the Chemists’ Club in New York City. The union was founded by Johns Hopkins University philosopher Arthur O. Lovejoy and Columbia University economist E.R.A. Seligman. Seligman had previously led a committee on academic freedom that led to the group’s establishment. The AAUP’s first notable act was forming its 1915 “Declaration of Principles on Academic Freedom and Academic Tenure.” ^{2 4}

AAUP advocated on behalf of university professors who it felt were wrongfully dismissed, including opposing professor firings at the University of Utah shortly after the organization’s founding in 1915. The union retreated from some of its pro-academic freedom stances during World War I and during the height of the McCarthy investigations. ^{2 4}

In 2013, the union founded the AAUP Foundation, a separate grant making institution that funds projects that it claims promote academic freedom and the union’s policy priorities. Also in 2013, the union founded the AAUP Collective Bargaining Congress, a separate arm organized as a labor union that conducted union negotiations that was folded back into the AAUP in 2020. ^{2 4}

Policy Stances and Lobbying

The American Association of University Professors lobbies for many left-of-center public policy priorities including taxpayer-funded college, student loan forgiveness, and many state-level issues affecting school funding and curricula. ¹

AAUP’s 2022 legislative agenda includes support for doubling federal Pell Grants, increased Title IV funding for minority institutions, more federal research funding, and a bill to provide free college tuition to all U.S. students via a tax on financial institutions. The AAUP also supports allowing adjunct faculty to participate in the federal public service loan forgiveness program regardless of how many hours they work and has endorsed the PRO Act, a union-backed bill that includes dozens of left-of-center policy priorities. ¹

The union has also endorsed full-scale student loan cancellation and opposes efforts to limit critical race theory-inspired public school curricula. ¹

The union also partnered with the American Federation of Teachers to launch a campaign called A New Deal for Higher Education that called for enactment of many left-of-center proposals of the Biden administration, including the Build Back Better Act. ⁵

In May 2024, the AAUP’s Center for the Defense of Academic Freedom released a white paper report titled “Manufacturing Backlash: Right-Wing Think Tanks and Legislative Attacks on Higher Education, 2021–2023.” The report claimed that during legislative sessions between 2021 and 2023, several right-wing donor groups were responsible for funding efforts to pass “academic gag orders” on the teaching of left-wing concepts in schools including critical race theory (CRT), diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI); and “viewpoint diversity.” ⁶ According to Phil Magnees of the Independent Institue, the report was written with the help of several left-wing activists including Ralph Wilson of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization and Nancy MacLean. ⁷

AFT Merger

In 2022, the American Association of University Professors and the American Federation of Teachers announced an affiliation agreement that amounted to a merger between the organizations. While AAUP will retain its name, its union organizing activities will be conducted under the AFT umbrella and all AAUP chapters and affiliates will become affiliates of the AFT and the AFL-CIO. The AFT also announced plans to assist the AAUP in its lobbying efforts. ³

1. “2022 Legislative Agenda.” American Association of University Professors. Accessed March 11, 2022. https://www.aaup.org/our-programs/government-relations/2022-legislative-agenda
2. “History.” American Association of University Professors. Accessed March 11, 2022. https://www.aaup.org/about/history-aaup
3. Flaherty, Colleen. “‘A Voice That Needs to Be Heard.’” Inside Higher Ed. March 8 2022. Accessed March 11, 2022. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2022/03/08/aft-aaup-announce-new-affiliation-boost-faculty-voice
4. “Timeline.” American Association of University Professors. Accessed March 11, 2022. https://www.aaup.org/about/history/timeline-first-100-years
5. “Home.” New Deal for Higher Ed. Accessed March 11, 2022. https://newdealforhighered.org/
6. Kamola, Issac. “Manufacturing Backlash: Right-Wing Think Tanks and Legislative Attacks on Higher Education, 2021–2023.” American Association of University Professors, Accessed June 5, 2024. https://www.aaup.org/article/manufacturing-backlash
7. Phil Magnees (@PhilWMagnees). “This “report” was written with the assistance of professional conspiracy theorist Nancy MacLean and an assortment of far-left oddballs like Ralph Wilson, a Maoist “activist” with ties to the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.” May 30, 2024. https://x.com/PhilWMagness/status/1796209629317222609