Editor’s note: This is the third of a three-part series. The first part was about BYU-Idaho’s faculty’s focus on learning. The second part was about BYU-I’s faculty’s focus on teaching instead of research.

In universities and colleges in the United States, professors are generally put into four different ranks: instructor, assistant professor, associate professor and full professor.

Each step up the academic ladder brings an added measure of security and prestige, and usually a higher salary. The higher rank also brings additional powers and responsibilities within the university.

The issue of rank is known to drive university politics, resulting in contention and division among even the most accomplished professional scholars.

Faculty at BYU-I are not ranked at all, and thus don’t have to worry about climbing the academic ladder and the associated difficulties. All faculty members are considered equal, referred to as either instructors or professors.

“I enjoy working at a university where everyone’s ideas are evaluated on merit rather than seniority,” said Anne Papworth, a professor in the English Department. “I also appreciate how the lack of rank allows me to focus on teaching and research to improve my teaching, rather than worrying about achieving rank.”

Lack of academic ranking helps professors focus on teaching, rather than being drawn to perform other scholarly activities as tasks for advancement.

“The significant research requirements and demands at other schools that come with achieving faculty rank can make it more difficult to focus on the students,” said Brian Felt, who taught at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga., for three years before coming to BYU-I last semester.

Not everybody sees the lack of rank as entirely beneficial to professors and students, including many professors at BYU-I, who think that a rank system could further the university’s goals while avoiding the pitfalls so common elsewhere.

Neil Anderson, a full professor at BYU, sees the rank advancement process as a benefit both for the professor and the university.

While he admits to seeing negative effects of faculty ranking — contention, infighting and institutional politics — during his eight years teaching at Ohio University, Anderson has noticed a difference at BYU.

“I think that the negative aspects [of academic ranking] can be overcome in a gospel context, and the positive things can enhance teaching in a gospel context,” he said.

Despite the elevating influence of the gospel, Max Checketts, academic vice president of BYU-I, doesn’t see a ranking system as beneficial to the university. “Our model is to try to create a Zion university,” he said. “I have a hard time imagining that we’d ever find a reason or a way to do ranking that would make us better. I think, frankly, it would make us worse.”

Gospel values and influence

“Education is a part of our religion,” said President Gordon B. Hinckley, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the inauguration ceremony for President Clark in October 2005. “Knowledge, understanding, education — these are all eternal things.”

BYU-I has drawn its mission from this idea. The faculty’s commitment to this mission once again sets them apart from most of the academic world.

President Clark believes the consecration by the faculty contributes to that cohesion and unity.

“It’s more than just a commitment to live the gospel; there’s a consecration of time and energy and effort to the teaching,” President Clark said. “It has a big impact on the school; it shows up in thousands of different ways, in small things the faculty do that bless the students.”