The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) is a national professional organization comparable to discipline-specific professional societies such as the American Psychological Association (APA), but with a broader scope. The AAUP focuses on the articulation, discussion, and defense of values common to university professors, and centrally the distinctive role of higher education in contributing to the common good.  It was founded in 1915 by John Dewey and Arthur O. Lovejoy in part as a response to a wealthy heiress’ successful efforts to have a professor of economics fired from Stanford University after he criticized the labor practices of her family’s business. The AAUP has worked to establish shared understanding  between faculty and other stakeholders in higher education (such as the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AACU), the American Council on Education (ACE), the and the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB)), in the form of statements on Academic Freedom and Tenure and on Shared Governance that have formed the basis for university bylaws and shared governance documents across the country, including at GVSU. AAUP has local chapters at universities across the United States, and has been at GVSU since fall of 2020. 

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