After nearly nine years at Trinity, Sajida Jalalzai, assistant professor of religion, is leaving Trinity University this May. Hired on the tenure track in 2017, Provost Megan Mustain and President Vanessa Beasley denied Jalalzai tenure in February 2025, despite unanimous recommendations from the religion department and the Promotion and Tenure (P&T) Commission. 

Though Beasley cited issues with scholarship in her denial letter, Jalalzai and other faculty claim that the rationale was unfounded. Instead, Jalalzai and her lawyer, University of Houston Law Center Professor Lonny Hoffman, argue the denial was a pretext for unlawful discrimination and retaliation — in part for her statements on Israel-Palestine both at on-campus events and on social media. 

Shortly after the initial denial, P&T reaffirmed its original recommendation for tenure in March 2025, and Jalalzai appealed the president and provost’s decision. Neither Jalalzai’s appeal nor the P&T’s recommendation resulted in a reversal of the president’s decision, and without that, Jalalzai said, she has no other option but to file a lawsuit. 

Jalalzai submitted her final tenure application to be considered on Sept. 3, 2024. Jalalzai, Hoffman and Judith Norman, professor of philosophy and colleague of Jalalzai, all expressed that this is the first they have seen a provost and president reverse unanimous recommendations for a tenure applicant. 

“If someone had serious concerns, don’t you think it would have shown up in at least one of those two recommendations by at least one dissent? Not a single dissent in two votes,” Hoffman said. 

Jalalzai also passed her second and fourth- year reviews — formal evaluations used to assess a professor’s progress on the tenure track — with no concerns about her teaching, service or research, she said. These reviews are meant to provide clear guidance well before a final tenure decision, according to several faculty members familiar with the process.

 “Why didn’t they tell her that in the fourth year review? Why instead did they say, ‘Not only does her work count, but fantastic job?’” Hoffman said. 

THE CITED ISSUES 

The definition of “peer-reviewed” is at the center of Jalalzai’s tenure denial. To earn tenure, professors must demonstrate strength in teaching, service and scholarship, according to the Faculty Handbook. Though the requirements are different in each department, candidates in the religion department must publish a book or three peer-reviewed articles or book chapters to fulfill proof of scholarship. 

Beasley and Mustain declined the Trinitonian’s request for comment. However, the Trinitonian obtained Beasley’s denial letter from Feb. 28, 2025. She did not contest Jalalzai’s teaching and service, but wrote that her scholarship did not meet the religion department’s stated criteria. 

Two of Jalalzai’s submitted works were chapters in edited volumes, which Beasley argued did not qualify as peer-reviewed, as they were not double-blind, she stated. In the letter, she wrote that “the same individual who issued the invitation served as the sole reviewer of the work,” concluding that “simply stated, there is no peer review.” 

One of Jalalzai’s articles was published in The Routledge Handbook of Islam and Gender and edited by Justine Howe, assistant professor of religious studies at Case Western Reserve University. Beasley’s letter states that, in private correspondence with Sarah Pinnock, professor and chair of the religion department, Howe said Jalalzai’s article did not undergo peer review. Howe later signed a letter in support of Jalalzai, but declined to comment. Jalalzai, however, expressed she believes Howe was referring to the classification of the peer review. 

“My guess would be that she admitted that it wasn’t double-blind peer reviewed,” Jalalzai said. “I think that the biggest issue is that there’s been a conflation between peer review and double- blind peer review.”

 Jalalzai and her attorney argued that the religion department’s criteria do not specifically require double-blind review, and invited chapters in edited volumes are commonly reviewed and accepted within the field. They also pointed to departments like mathematics that require specific types of peer review, arguing that if the religion department had required double-blind peer review, it would be clear. In addition, the religion department’s criteria states that substantive essays in anthologies and edited volumes should be listed as primary evidence of scholarship. 

“What’s awesome about this case is how utterly and obviously not believable the [administration’s] reasoning is,” Hoffman said. “Why can’t she rely on the department’s written standards that recognize the very thing she did as counting toward tenure?” 

Aside from Jalalzai’s published work, she received a book contract from Bloomsbury Publishing and Routledge Press in 2022. She accepted Routledge Press’ offer.** Though the scholarship criteria typically requires a published book, a 2020 memorandum from Deneese Jones, Trinity’s vice president of academic affairs from 2016 to 2021, altered tenure scholarship expectations in response to COVID-19. The memorandum, which remains in effect through the 2025-26 academic year, states that books under contract and manuscripts in progress should be considered “concrete evidence of tangible progress in scholarship.”

 While Beasley acknowledged that the pandemic disrupted Jalalzai’s fieldwork, she wrote that it was “not clear” that Jalalzai’s record met departmental criteria for tenure due to the “insufficient amount of peer review” to assess the quality of scholarship. 

Clinton Colmenares, senior director of news and media strategy, provided a statement explaining that the administration does not comment on specific personnel cases, but “will continue to adhere to its shared governance decision-making processes.” 

“In all tenure decisions, the University has a responsibility to apply standards consistently, fairly, and in alignment with the expectations Trinity sets for all tenure-track and tenured faculty members,” Colmenares wrote. “To do otherwise would be unfair to colleagues who have achieved these expectations and would compromise the credibility of Trinity’s process and standards.” 

JALALZAI’S CASE 

Hoffman filed a charge with the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on Aug. 8, 2025.

Filing a claim with the EEOC is legally required prior to launching an employment discrimination lawsuit. Jalalzai’s filing with the EEOC alleged discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, national origin and protected activity.

On Nov. 1, 2023, the Muslim Student Association held a panel following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza. The panel featured Jalalzai and Norman, as well as Rosa Aloisi, chair of the political science department, and Habiba Noor, education lecturer.

The event itself and other advocacy for Palestine through her social media are the root of the discrimination, according to Jalalzai and Hoffman.

“The only time when Sajida’s name has come up as a source of controversy was post-Oct. 7 teach-in,” Hoffman said. “So, to use the language of law, that creates an inference of discrimination.” 

On Dec. 6, 2023, a faculty assembly convened. During the meeting, Chad Spigel, Jennie Farris Railey King, professor of religion and former chair of the Faculty Senate, delivered remarks related to the teach-in. The Trinitonian obtained a document of those remarks, and Spigel confirmed that the document reflects the notes he made in preparation for the speech, but it is not verbatim what he said.

“My concern was that the event was being sponsored by academic departments, which signals to students and the community that the event has been vetted,” Spigel’s notes read. “And yet despite being advertised as being about the historical context, there weren’t any experts on the history of Palestine or Israel on the panel.”

According to faculty present at this assembly, some panelists felt upset about the statement that they were not experts in their fields.

“To be able to have a discussion, or dialogue or conversation before bringing concerns to the entire university seems like a more civil thing to do, given that we believe in conversations and civil discourse,” Noor said.

TRINITY’S APPEAL PROCESS

On June 2, 2025, Jalalzai filed a grievance with the Faculty Senate for inadequate consideration of her tenure application. This initiated the university’s internal appeals process, including an investigating committee review and petition to the full senate. Neither resulted in further consideration.

The investigating committee denied Jalalzai’s appeal on Nov. 4, 2025. Though the full report is confidential under the guidelines put forth in the faculty handbook, the joint petition Jalalzai submitted following the denial includes a summary of the committee’s findings and additional context for her appeal.

According to the petition, the investigating committee found that it lacked authority to review the president’s stated reason for denying Jalalzai’s tenure, as the president makes the final decision. Hoffman, however, argued that this indicates the appeal process failed to function as intended.

“On paper, in theory, it looks like there’s an actual appeal process. In reality, in Sajida’s case, she has had no appeal whatsoever,” Hoffman said. “If no one actually looks at the merits of why you were denied tenure or at the standards that are used to decide that question, well, then there’s no appeal.”

BROADER IMPLICATIONS AND CONCERNS

Jalalzai’s tenure denial reflected two wider worries for multiple professors: the decline of shared governance and the rise in Islamophobia.

The faculty handbook defines faculty’s role in tenure decisions as the primary center of review. However, Jalalzai’s petition stated that the investigating committee’s report found that the term “primary” may be misleading, as faculty recommendations should not be given greater weight than administrative judgment. 

The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) provided an advisory letter to the Trinity AAUP chapter upon their request that contended the opposite, warning that diminishing the faculty’s authority in tenure decisions would be a “grave mistake.”

“What’s left then of faculty governance, and why aren’t more faculty afraid that this could happen to them?”  Hoffman said. “You’ve given all of your power away to an administration that doesn’t even have to justify its reasons.”

Jalalzai’s case also unfolds amid a national climate in which faculty who speak or teach about Palestine have faced heightened scrutiny, with examples like a Texas State University professor filing a lawsuit alleging he was terminated for discussing Israel and Palestine in the classroom.

Multiple religion professors — from Trinity and beyond — raised concerns about islamophobia and shared governance. The Trinitonian obtained a letter addressed to Beasley from dozens of scholars who are members of the American Academy of Religion. Signatories wrote that denying tenure despite unanimous faculty support raises “serious concerns about due process and equity, as well as discrimination and academic freedom.”

For some faculty at Trinity, that context shapes how Jalalzai’s case is understood. Noor said that for those familiar with Islamophobia and political pressure around Palestine, the situation feels familiar.

At Trinity, faculty say the implications extend beyond a single tenure decision. Norman said Jalalzai had an “immeasurable impact” on campus, mentoring not only Muslim students but others working to build a more inclusive community. She warned that the decision could have lasting consequences for faculty morale and trust in the tenure system.

“Early career faculty need to know that there is a rational path to tenure,” Norman wrote in an email. “Dr. Jalalzai’s case proves that this is not true.”

All relevant documents can be found here.

*Editor-in-chief Samara Gerstle and News Editor Adom Richards are contributing reporters on this piece.

**Edits made on 04/13/2026 and 4/14/2026. A previous version of this article indicated that Jalalzai accepted a book contract from Bloomsbury, but she signed her book contract with Routledge Press. To clarify, both Routledge and Bloomsbury offered her contracts, but she accepted Routledge’s offer.  A google folder with all relevant documents was added to the end of the article. In addition, the interactive timeline was updated to include more information.