Table of Contents
Video Lesson: First Amendment on Campus for Faculty
First Amendment for College Administrators
Lesson 1: Public Colleges: Legal Landscape and Landmark Cases
Video 4: First Amendment on Campus for Faculty
Video Transcript
Colleges and universities exist to educate students and expand the boundaries of human knowledge. Academic freedom is essential to this mission.
Academic freedom is the First Amendment-protected freedom of faculty to teach, conduct research, and express ideas without interference from administrators, donors, politicians, or other outside authorities. It ensures faculty are able to speak and think freely without fear of being punished because their speech is controversial or unpopular. Only then can a campus function as a true marketplace of ideas, where scholars can freely pursue and transmit knowledge.
Nevertheless, since the year 2000, FIREhas tracked over 1,300 cases of colleges and universities attempting to sanction educators for their protected speech. As of 2022, nearly two thirds of those attempts resulted in a sanction, including 225 terminations. The rate at which institutions of higher education attempt to sanction teachers for their speech has also dramatically increased in recent years, from 4 in 2000 to 145 in 2022. Administrators who investigate or punish faculty for engaging in protected expression violate the Constitution.
At public colleges and universities, the First Amendment protects faculty members’ academic freedom and their right to speak on matters of public interest. Over fifty years ago, the Supreme Court called academic freedom “a special concern of the First Amendment” and a value that “our Nation is deeply committed to safeguarding.”
In the classroom, academic freedom gives faculty wide latitude to decide how to approach their subject matter and communicate ideas relevant to the course. Importantly, academic freedom protects an instructor’s relevant speech and course materials even if some students find them offensive or disagreeable.
Academic freedom also entails freedom of inquiry. Faculty are free to investigate and research issues in their academic fields, and to publish their findings without facing censorship or punishment.
The First Amendment also prohibits colleges and universities from compelling faculty to express agreement with certain views against their will. For example, in 1967, the Supreme Court held it unconstitutional for a public university to require faculty to certify they were not communists or report whether they had ever been one. Nor can a college or university condition employment or advancement on faculty submitting a statement showing their commitment to any political ideology or viewpoint.
Academic freedom does not, however, protect a professor who persistently discusses topics that have no relation to the course. Nor does it prevent academic departments from making judgments about faculty members’ professional competence. So, for example, while a biology department can’t punish one of its professors for personally believing in intelligent design, the department may take action if that professor contradicts the department’s curriculum by teaching that evolution isn’t real. Academic freedom also doesn’t allow a professor to harass or discriminate against students, but the legal bar for harassment is very high. It involves much more than the mere expression of views or ideas that offend — you’ll learn more about this in later videos.
What about when faculty speak in their capacity as private citizens?
The First Amendment generally protects that too. Faculty employed at public colleges and universities — like all government employees — have a First Amendment right to speak as private citizens on matters of public concern. That means a college generally can’t discipline a faculty member for, say, expressing a controversial political opinion on social media. The same goes for other remarks a faculty member might make in their personal capacity on any matter of public interest, whether during a speaking appearance, in a blog post, or as an expert witness in court. As with in-class speech, a faculty member’s off-campus expression retains First Amendment protection even when it causes controversy or offense.
The standard for what qualifies as a matter of public concern is very broad. The Supreme Court has explained that it includes any speech that “can be fairly considered as relating to any matter of political, social, or other concern to the community.”
Of course, not everything a faculty member says is protected. An institution may punish a faculty member for speech that falls into a First Amendment exception, like true threats of violence. A professor falsely purporting to speak on behalf of the college or university may be subject to discipline as well. But that requires something more than a professor simply mentioning his or her affiliation with the school.
Keep in mind that even investigations of protected speech can have a chilling effect on faculty and violate the First Amendment. Colleges and universities may not launch investigations into complaints about clearly protected speech.
Strong protection for faculty expression is critical to any college’s or university’s educational and research missions. Learning and discovery flourish where faculty have the broadest possible latitude to speak, write, and inquire.