Jennifer Brooks, a history professor at Auburn University, had barely unpacked from a trip out of town earlier this month when the messages started blowing up her phone.
Texts from colleagues and rumors on social media delivered the unsettling news: The Auburn Board of Trustees had voted to dissolve the school’s faculty senate and give itself ultimate authority over academic decisions, including curriculum.
“What was really surprising … is the lack of knowledge that most of our faculty leaders had about the decision,” said Brooks, who’s been teaching at Auburn since 2006…