CHICAGO — The American Association of University Professors held its biennial meeting at the Hyatt Centric Chicago. The conference, which lasted five days, took place from Wednesday through Sunday.

Conference speakers addressed topics including political interference in higher education, tenure policies, and shared governance structures. The association unanimously approved seven resolutions during the business portion of the meeting, with each of the seven plenary sessions at the conference focusing on one of these resolutions. Todd Wolfson, President of the association, stated, "The two years since the last biennial meeting have been a decade for higher ed workers." He added, "We can play a role in transforming democracy in this country."

Event screenings featured videos of former instructors and professors, including Melissa McCoul, a former instructor at Texas A&M University; Tom Alter, a former professor at Texas State University; and Sang Hea Kil, a former professor at San José State University. Texas Senate Bill 37, which took effect in September, removed shared governance requirements at public institutions in the state. Speaking about the situation in Texas, Brian Evans, former president of the Texas chapter of the association, said, "Let me be very clear: It's really bad in Texas." He also stated that the Texas conference established 30 new chapters over a 30-month period.

Vitalis Temu, an agricultural researcher, spoke at a roundtable about his termination from Virginia State University. Six faculty members at Virginia State University were terminated in December without formal notice or due process, and attendees at the conference wore pins advocating for their reinstatement. Belle Boggs, president of the North Carolina chapter of the association, outlined plans to support Kiran Asher, a professor of women's, gender and sexuality studies who was denied a tenured appointment by the University of North Carolina Board of Trustees. Pamela Kennebrew, psychology professor and chair of the human services department at Lincoln University, said, "When we talk about diversity, we're not just talking about compositional diversity." Conference sessions also provided training on organizing strategies, campaign management, union administration, and press response protocols.