Featured Resources
These resources—which members of the Council have found helpful in guiding discussions and ideas related to promoting academic freedom and freedom of expression—are provided as a public service to the Columbia University community and the general public.
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“The University and its leaders should refrain from taking political positions in their institutional capacity, either as explicit statements or as the basis of policy, except in the rare case when the University has a compelling institutional interest, such as a legal obligation, that requires it to do so.”
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“First Amendment principles protecting and interpreting (as well as limiting) the rights of speech, assembly, and protest that govern the public sphere and public universities also apply, presumptively, in this University to similar activities.”
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Rules of University Conduct § 440
“The University, as a forum for the pursuit and attainment of knowledge in every field of human endeavor, has a special role in fostering free inquiry. A principal reason why universities have endured and flourished over centuries is that they provide a place for ideas to be tested, for values to be questioned, and for minds to be changed with as few constraints as possible. Like society at large, but even more so, the University has a vital interest in fostering a climate in which nothing is immune from scrutiny. And Columbia, in particular, has a long tradition of valuing dissent and controversy and in welcoming the clash of opinions onto the campus.”
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“Our commitment to academic freedom means that we do not support so-called "trigger warnings," we do not cancel invited speakers because their topics might prove controversial, and we do not condone the creation of intellectual "safe spaces" where individuals can retreat from ideas and perspectives at odds with their own.”
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“Columbia University is dedicated to the free expression of ideas and open debate as well as the respect for diversity of opinions and beliefs; […] at this time of national crisis the University Senate calls on all members of the Columbia community to preserve an environment conducive to the free exchange of ideas and the civil discussion of diverse opinions.”
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Columbia University Statutes § 70
“Academic freedom implies that all officers of instruction are entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects; that they are entitled to freedom in research and in the publication of its results; and that they may not be penalized by the University for expressions of opinion or associations in their private or civic capacity; but they should bear in mind the special obligations arising from their position in the academic community.”
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“Academic freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research. Freedom in research is fundamental to the advancement of truth. Academic freedom in its teaching aspect is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the teacher in teaching and of the student to freedom in learning. It carries with it duties correlative with rights.”