Tenure is a category of academic appointment existing in some countries. A tenured post is an indefinite academic appointment that can be terminated only for cause or under extraordinary circumstances, such as financial exigency or program discontinuation. Tenure is a means of defending the principle of academic freedom, which holds that it is beneficial for society in the long run if scholars are free to hold and examine a variety of views.
History
Tenure was introduced into American universities in the early 1900s in part to prevent the arbitrary dismissal of faculty members who expressed unpopular views.[1]
One notable instance was the case of the resignation of Brown University president Elisha Andrews, who advocated silver coinage to reduce the impact on Americans and farmers who owed larger and larger loans due to deflation. The board of Brown University, many of whom were creditors and landowners (positions that benefited from deflation), told Andrews to cease his public advocacy. The Dean of Yale Law School, Francis Wayland, argued that Andrew's free expression threatened donations to Brown, and that money was the life blood of universities. In 1897 Andrews was forced to offer his resignation, but there was a backlash by faculty and students who advocated that he should be protected under the principles of free speech. The board reversed its decision and refused Andrews' resignation. A year later, Andrews resigned anyway.[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_tenure
下面論點頂多是贊成者的支持論調，與事實與歷史緣由有落差。
我本來以為這是為了讓大學教授能夠作自己喜歡的研究，避免各種外在權力的干擾，維持所謂的「學術自由」。不過林老師說，根據1987或1988年一位經濟學家的研究，這是學校為了避免資深教授故意不聘比他更優秀的新人進來而做的誘因設計。