(KXNET) — Two North Dakota colleges were under closer scrutiny as the state senate considered a plan to change up their tenure process on Friday.

House Bill 1446 was seeking to give the presidents at Bismarck State College and Dickinson State University more authority when reviewing tenured teachers and professors at the school.

Senators ultimately rejected the plan by just two votes.

The bill would’ve given presidents the ability to fire a faculty member they felt wasn’t fulfilling his or her duties without seeking input from anyone else on campus.

Opponents argue the policy would make it more difficult for the schools to hire.

“You know, we keep saying we need to change things, but if we keep doing business as usual, nothing seems to change,” Sen. Donald Schaible said.

“They will be turning out workers for our industries. I think we have higher dreams for western North Dakota than creating another technical school,” Sen. Tim Mathern said.

Under current state policy, a tenured professor can’t be fired unless they’re found to be incompetent or dishonest.