Table of Contents
First Amendment Lessons for College Administrators
Research & Learn
Free speech plays a critical role in higher education.
Free expression and academic freedom are at the core of a public university’s truth-seeking mission, which, in turn, plays a vital part in preserving free thought within our free society. But far too often, college administrators lack the tools to educate themselves about these First Amendment rights in order to avoid violating them.
That’s where FIREcomes in. This course provides baseline knowledge for college administrators — and anyone interested — about student and faculty free speech and academic freedom rights through engaging videos created by an organization that has been defending those rights on campus for over 20 years.
Lesson 1: Legal Landscape and Landmark Cases
Video 1: Introduction to the First Amendment
Why is it important to protect free speech on campus? This video will explore legal and philosophical answers to that question.
Video 2: Administrators’ Roles in Free Inquiry and Debate
Don’t just take ֭’s word on the importance of free speech to higher education. This video shows that college administrators and faculty alike believe freedom of speech is a human right, a fundamental American freedom, and essential for democracy, scientific progress, artistic expression, social justice, peace, and each individual’s ability to live authentically.
Video 3: How the First Amendment Limits Government
The First Amendment constrains the government from infringing free speech and academic freedom. This video provides background on the limitations the constitution places on public institutions of higher education.
Video 4: First Amendment on Campus: Faculty
Faculty enjoy academic freedom, the First Amendment-protected freedom of faculty to teach, conduct research, and express ideas without interference from administrators, donors, politicians, or other outside authorities. This video explores the legal basis for that right as well as its limitations.
Video 5: First Amendment on Campus: ֭
College students are famous for exercising their First Amendment rights, from the free speech movement at UC Berkeley in the 1960s to present-day students demonstrating nationwide in reaction to the Israel-Hamas War. This video dives into that history and the freed speech rights students enjoy on campus.
Video 6: Speech Codes on Campus
Speech codes are policies that regulate expression on campus. This video explains how overly inclusive or just poorly drafted university policies can stifle free speech on campus.
Lesson 2: Unprotected Speech
Video 1: Overview of limited categories
Not all speech is protected by the First Amendment. This video highlights the limited categories of expression the Supreme Court of the United States has determined fall outside the bounds of that protection and are thus punishable.
Video 2: “But what about hate speech?”
Most hateful, offensive, and even repugnant speech is protected under the First Amendment, unless it falls into one of the limited categories like harassment or threats. This video discusses this often misunderstood concept.
Lesson 3: Public Forums and Your Campus
Video 1: Overview
Where speech happens changes the way in which it may be regulated. This video discusses how the First Amendment applies when someone is protesting on a public sidewalk versus indoors or in the comments section of a college’s official social media.
Video 2: Public Forums: Reasonable Time, Place & Manner Restrictions
What kind of restrictions can administrators impose on when, where, and how people engage in protected expression on a public college campus? This video explores what types of regulations the Supreme Court has said are permissible “reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions.”
Video 3: Content-based and Viewpoint-based discrimination
The First Amendment makes sure the government cannot censor unpopular viewpoints by heavily restricting the power to regulate speech based on the message expressed. This video breaks down the difference between content-based and viewpoint-based speech restrictions, and explains how that may impact your college's regulations.
Video 4: Legislative Considerations
Public parks, sidewalks, and the outdoor areas of public university campuses have traditionally been areas available for free expression, but sometimes colleges exile expression to tiny, out of the way areas dubbed “free speech zones.” This video describes ֭’s history of combatting this unconstitutional practice, including via campus free speech legislation.
Video 5: Policy Application Tips
Universities must adopt and apply policies that protect all forms of student expression — even offensive or controversial speech — while training staff and educating students on the value of free expression. This video explains how institutions can uphold constitutional principles and create a vibrant, engaging learning environment by resisting censorship, discouraging heckler’s vetoes, and fostering open debate.
Lesson 4: Harassment Policies on Campus
Video 1: Title IX Overview
Title IX prohibits sex-based discrimination in federally funded educational programs, which accounts for nearly all colleges and universities both public and private. This video explains the difference between constitutionally regulating sexual harassment, a form of Title IX discrimination colleges must prevents, and enforcing policies that go too far and endanger protected expressive activity of students and faculty.
Video 2: Legal Landscape for Harassment in Higher Education
In this video, you’ll learn more about the enforcement of anti-discrimination law on campus and review some practical steps your institution can take to comply with the law.
Video 3: Cyberbullying and Bias Response Teams
Policies regulating bias and bullying routinely implicate student expressive rights because they are often drafted so broadly that they include speech protected under the First Amendment. This video covers the First Amendment considerations for colleges surrounding these topics.
Video 4: Why "Davis"?
In this video, learn more about the Supreme Court’s standard for peer harassment, as articulated in Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education which strikes the careful balance between prohibiting hostile environment harassment and upholding the First Amendment.
Lesson 5: Conclusion
Key Takeaways for Administrators
This video reviews some final takeaways from this First Amendment basics course.
