Press Releases

By Sara Dogan–SAF–03/24/06

A radical coalition sponsored by the teacher unions and other left-wing groups and calling itself “Free Exchange on Campus” has launched a campaign of lies and distortions to oppose the Academic Bill of Rights and the Academic Freedom Movement. These are the same special interest organizations who have been attacking the Academic Bill of Rights for the past three years using the same misrepresentations and blatant falsehoods that we have exposed countless times.

The FAQ on their website merely repeats the same tired and previously refuted accusations. We are therefore answering this latest version of the same by referring interested parties to our previous responses.

For explanations of why the Academic Bill of Rights is not a partisan campaign, why it does not restrict free speech, and how it is actually designed to promote the free exchange of ideas, see David Horowitz’s Response to the AAUP: here

For explanations of why David Horowitz wrote the Academic Bill of Rights and why it was not originally intended as legislation, as well as an account of the AAUP’s campaign of deception, please see David Horowitz’s article “The Strange Dishonest Campaign Against Academic Freedom”: here

For rebuttals to the claim that we “manufacture complaints” please see our file on the University of Northern Colorado case: here

For rebuttals to the claim that the ABOR is designed to “shut down ‘controversial’ materials and classes please see David Horowitz’s article “The Strange Dishonest Campaign Against Academic Freedom”: here

For a rebuttal of the claim that the ABOR would require the teaching of creationism please see numerous letters in our Replies to Critics section: here

For examples of university policies that don’t adequately protect students’ academic freedom see Existing Academic Freedom Regulations: here

For a rebuttal to the claim that the ABOR would prevent students from being challenged, please see letters in the Replies to Critics section of our website: here

For a rebuttal to the claim that abuses of academic freedom are rare see our online academic freedom forum: http://www.studentsforacademicfreedom.org/comp/default.asp

And David Horowitz’s testimony before the Pennsylvania Select Committee: here

For a rebuttal to the claim that the ABOR requires a “balance” of viewpoints or faculty see David Horowitz’s response to the AAUP: here

For a rebuttal to the claim that the ABOR requires professors to “represent all views in their teaching” please see numerous letters in our Replies to Critics section: here

For a rebuttal to the claim that David Horowitz’s book The Professors constitutes an “enemies list” see our press release responding to these falsehoods: here

And David Horowitz’s Article, “Willful Misunderstanding”: here

See also the website http://www.dangerousprofessors.com/

For the real agendas of the Free Exchange on Campus Coalition see our recent press release: here

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July 27, 2006

Contact: Sara Dogan
888-527-3321
[email protected]

Students for Academic Freedom Exposes Florida Report as a Smokescreen

Policies protecting students’ academic freedom are non-existent on state campuses

A recent report from Florida’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability requested by the Florida state legislature purports to illustrate the extent of current academic freedom policies for both students and faculty at public colleges and universities in the state. But an examination by Students for Academic Freedom of the specific policies and procedures in place in Florida state colleges and universities reveals that the report is a typical bureaucratic smokescreen and no such protections even exist.

The report claims that “All Florida public postsecondary institutions have language and policies addressing academic freedom.” Despite this assertion, the report omits any reference to specific policies providing students with clearly-defined academic freedom rights or specific links to where they might be found on official websites.

SAF’s examination of the student academic freedom policies at several public universities in the state reveals exactly why this is: The policies do not exist. While Florida’s colleges and universities typically have policies addressing academic freedom, these statements are almost universally dedicated to faculty and their responsibilities and do not offer any clear definitions of students’ rights.

The report in fact concedes this, with statements like, “academic freedom statements generally do not extensively address student rights” and “faculty grievance policies are more specific to academic freedom than are student grievance policies.” In other words, student grievance policies do not cover students’ academic freedom rights.

Despite the report’s failure to cite a single comprehensive policy on students’ academic freedom, media sources and opponents of the Academic Bill of Rights took the report’s assertions that current academic freedom protections for students are in place at face value, prompting SAF to undertake this further evaluation of the report.

The full report from Students for Academic Freedom can be found here .

Students for Academic Freedom is a national movement to promote intellectual diversity and to restore educational values to America’s institutions of higher learning. The organization recommends that colleges and universities adopt an Academic Bill of Rights to ensure that these principles are respected. The Academic Bill of Rights is available on the organization’s website at www.studentsforacademicfreedom.org.

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