FW: Academic freedom

Tue Feb 1 04:38:44 CET 2005

And the poll that shows that 1 in 3 US students think the First
Amendement goes too far. What are they going to think in 20 years?
That free speech is too liberal a concept?
ivo

On 31 Jan 2005 at 14:43, Jasmina Sinanovic wrote:

So I can tell you, I'd be fired really fast :)
Jasmina

From the bill:
(C) Faculty and instructors shall not infringe the academic freedom
and quality of education of their students by persistently
introducing
controversial matter into the classroom or coursework that has no
relation to their subject of study and that serves no legitimate
pedagogical purpose.

-----Original Message-----
From: Kevin Byrne
To: Doctoral Theater Students' Association Mailing List
Sent: 1/31/2005 1:57 PM
Subject: [dtsa-l] Ohio's "Academic Bill of Rights"

Dear all,
I know this seems like a joke, but it's not.
Cheers,
Kevin

According to a recent Columbus Dispatch, State Senator Larry A.
Mumper
(R-Marion) has introduced a bill (Senate Bill 24) to restrict what
professors would be allowed to teach or discuss in college classrooms
in

Ohio (both public and private). Mumper calls his bill the "Academic
Bill of Rights for Higher Education" and he says (according to the
Dispatch) it would prohibit instructors "from 'persistently'
discussing controversial

issues in class or from using their classes to push political,
ideological,
religious, or anti-religious views." The reason for this? The
Dispatch
quotes Mumper as saying "80 percent or so of them (professors) are
Democrats, liberals or socialists or card-carrying Communists."
According to the Dispatch, the wording of the bill comes from a 2003
booklet written by conservative commentator David Horowitz.

Here is a link to the actual bill:
http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=126_SB_24

"franke at montana.edu" <franke at MONTANA.EDU> wrote:
as goes Ohio so goes the country? did any of these people ever see
the
studies done that show that the more education one has, the more
likely one is to become more liberal (and some of the social
scientists doing the studies are clever enough to know how to control
for professors´political views....)

Franke Wilmer

Bill could limit open debate at colleges
Lawmaker says profs are pushing agendas
Thursday, January 27, 2005
Kathy Lynn Gray
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Legislation that would restrict what university professors could say
in their classrooms was introduced yesterday in Ohio.

Judging from reactions in other states where similar bills have been
considered, controversy won't be far behind.

Marion Sen. Larry A. Mumper's "academic bill of rights for higher
education" would prohibit instructors at public or private
universities from "persistently" discussing controversial issues in
class or from using their classes to push political, ideological,
religious or anti-religious views.

Senate Bill 24 also would prohibit professors from discriminating
against students based on their beliefs and keep universities from
hiring, firing, promoting or giving tenure to instructors based on
their beliefs.

Mumper, a Republican, said many professors undermine the values of
their students because "80 percent or so of them (professors) are
Democrats, liberals or socialists or card-carrying Communists" who
attempt to indoctrinate students.

"These are young minds that haven't had a chance to form their own
opinions," Mumper said. "Our colleges and universities are still
filled with some of the '60s and '70s profs that were the
anti-American group. They've gotten control of how to give people
tenure and so the colleges continue to move in this direction."

Joan McLean, a political-science professor at Ohio Wesleyan
University, said Mumper's legislation is misguided and would have a
chilling effect on the free-flowing debate that is a hallmark of
democracy.

"This is not the kind of democracy we think we're spreading when we
hear President Bush's words. What we're celebrating is our ability to
not control information."

Besides, McLean said, who would define what issues could not be
discussed?

The language of Mumper's bill comes from a 2003 booklet by
conservative commentator David Horowitz that lays out how students
can
persuade universities to adopt the "bill of rights." The booklet says
it is "dedicated to restoring academic freedom and educational values
to America's institutions of higher learning."

The issue has gone national.

Horowitz created Students for Academic Freedom, a group based in
Washington that has chapters on 135 campuses, to promote his views.

On the other side, the American Association of University Professors,
which has thousands of members at hundreds of campuses, argues that
eliminating controversial issues from courses waters down academic
freedoms.

Mumper said he's been investigating the issue for months and has
heard
of an Ohio student who said she was discriminated against because she
supported Bush for president.

"I think the bill asks that colleges and universities be fair in
their
approach to their education of students," Mumper said. "They need to
have their rights defended and need to be respected by faculty and
administrators."

In a Kenyon College publication, President S. Georgia Nugent called
Horowitz's thinking "a severe threat" to academic freedom.

"I see this so-called bill of rights, the platform that he has
constructed, as one that would explicitly introduce into college and
university appointments a kind of political litmus test," she said.

Mumper said he will "push this all the way" so that it's approved by
either the legislature or by individual universities.

When a similar proposal was considered in the Colorado legislature
last year, it was withdrawn after state universities agreed to some
of
its principles. The issue also has been debated in Indiana and
considered in Congress.

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