Gottfredson hasn’t signed Academic Freedom policy because of rape allegations

5/8/2014: That’s the latest rumor. The Senate’s Academic Freedom policy would allow all UO employees to criticize UO policies. There are plenty of UO employees – apparently including some in the athletic department – who are outraged by how UO has handled the rape allegations. But their bosses have told them they can’t talk to the press. If Gottfredson signs this policy,  they can. So he won’t.

4/9/2014: From the Senate website, for debate and vote today. Great policy. The sticking point will be “c. POLICY AND SHARED GOVERNANCE. Members of the university community have freedom… ” The administration wants to restrict this freedom only to faculty. Why?

Suppose, say, that President Gottfredson had a rogue General Counsel who was firing off random email threats to faculty and writing amicus curiae briefs for his lawyer friends on the side. Would the President be able to fire him, or could the GC claim that he was merely enjoying his freedom?

Why do they also want to exclude students? I have no idea.

Policy on Academic Freedom

The University of Oregon encourages and supports open, vigorous, and challenging debate across the full spectrum of human issues as they present themselves to the university community. The University of Oregon protects free speech through Policy No. 01.00.16. This policy on Academic Freedom builds on these existing commitments by recognizing the special contexts of scholarship, teaching, governance, and public service.

SECTION 1

a. SCHOLARSHIP. The University’s research mission requires that members of the UO community have autonomous freedom to conduct research and produce creative work, and to publish and disseminate that work, limited only by the standards and methods of accountability established by their profession and their individual disciplines.

b. TEACHING. The University’s responsibility to help students to think critically and independently requires that members of the university community have the right to investigate and discuss matters, including those that are controversial, inside and outside of class, without fear of institutional restraint. Matters brought up in class should be related to the subject of courses or otherwise be educationally relevant, as determined primarily by the faculty member in charge of the class.

c. POLICY AND SHARED GOVERNANCE. Members of the university community have freedom to address, question, or criticize any matter of institutional policy or practice, whether acting as individuals or as members of an agency of institutional governance. The freedom of non-faculty employees to address matters under this paragraph may be limited with adequate notice by policies appropriately adopted by the University.

d. PUBLIC SERVICE. Public service requires that members of the university community have freedom to participate in public debate, both within and beyond their areas of expertise, and to address both the university community and the larger society with regard to any matter of social, political, economic, cultural, or other interest. In their exercise of this freedom, university community members have the right to identify their association or title, but should not claim to be acting or speaking on behalf of the University unless authorized to do so.

SECTION 2

These freedoms derive immediately from the university’s basic commitment to advancing knowledge and understanding. The academic freedoms enumerated in this policy shall be exercised without fear of institutional reprisal. Only serious violations of this policy – ones that rise to the level of professional misbehavior or professional incompetence – should lead to adverse consequences. Any such determinations shall be made in accordance with established, formal procedures involving judgment by relevant peers.

4/8/2014: Sorry, I don’t have one. The Senate ad hoc committee is meeting with President Gottfredson and his administration right now, but Randy Geller has banned me from the academic freedom meeting because of my over-enthusiastic use of academic freedom. So I’m sitting in the Johnson Hall lobby, waiting to hear what happens. The Senate will vote on a new policy on Wednesday, I hope.