Last week in the Library East Reading Room, the Provost’s office hosted “Academic Freedom Decoded.” Faculty reviewed MTU’s policies on academic freedom and discussed the application of policies through the use of hypothetical situations. In small groups, they discussed situations that brought up issues such as determining which actions are protected under the university’s academic freedom policies, how teaching materials and methods are protected, and the relationship between research and academic freedom.
At the event, they discussed how academic freedom policies impact and protect students. Michigan Tech Professor Todd Arney commented:
“Academic freedom is closely related to freedom of speech, and Michigan Tech adheres to the ‘Chicago Principles’ which basically states that while we enjoy the freedom in the classroom to teach and learn, faculty (who are considered subject matter experts and representatives of the university), need to keep classroom discussions unbiased and related to the course material. It is important to me that I keep my personal opinions on unrelated or uncomfortable subjects (like politics) out of the classroom. This protects students by attempting to distinguish a classroom content expert and an authority figure who pushes their own personal ideologies and agendas.”
He explained how Michigan Tech’s academic freedom policies protect students by keeping classroom discussions related to course content, while giving professors the freedom to explore topics within those bounds, even if they may be uncomfortable. This way, students are exposed to new ideas that relate to their education. Professor Arney stated, “As long as the topics are related to the course, discussing difficult topics in the classroom is how we learn.”
