Is Science the Problem? My Two Encounters with Fat Studies.
In this week’s dispatch from the academic fringe at Williams, basic questions about evidence are treated as acts of aggression and “Science” itself lands on the list of institutional problems. Luana, a board member at both Williams and Cornell’s AFSA organizations, digs in. Read More
Justice Department Launches Title VI Investigation into DEI Programs at Arizona State University
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division announced that it launched an investigation into diversity, equity, and inclusion practices at Arizona State University (ASU). This comes on the heels of disturbing reporting as of late that has seemingly shown the university-otherwise renowned for its commitment to free speech and meritocracy-engaging in DEI practices that could violate […]
What Yale Understood — And What Washington and Lee Refuses to Confront
The Generals Redoubt’s founding began in 2017 to address W&L’s descent into erasing 275+ years of history and institutional memory. Its then freshly minted president led the charge. He has resigned after 9 years of service to take a new position. The enclosed article provides a thorough and critical analysis of the university’s management of […]
What Free-Speech Warriors Get Wrong
A representative of a college invites someone to campus to speak. The prospective speaker accepts the invitation, whereupon the arrangement is announced. Dissidents object and demand that the invitation be rescinded. At that point, have the dissidents failed to respect norms of open discourse, healthy pluralism, or freedom of expression? Some observers believe that in […]
The Partnership of Speech
Most of us agree, at least in principle, that a stronger commitment to free speech on our campuses and in public life would be a welcome improvement over the tense and constrained environment we have endured for too many years. Yet conditions seem only to be worsening. The murder of Charlie Kirk on an American […]
Diversifying the Academy
I have been a member of the law faculty at Vanderbilt University for nearly twenty years. Even though my faculty has grown over that time, there are fewer conservatives now than when I joined. We are down to four—a mere ten percent or so of the tenure-track faculty—and two of the four are nearly 80. […]
Americans Overwhelmingly Agree On What Universities Should Focus On
From congressional hearings to donor revolts to headlines about campus protests, American universities are being told—loudly—that they’ve lost the public’s trust. But beneath the noise, there’s a quieter question that rarely gets asked: when Americans criticize universities, what do they actually want them to do instead? A new study published in Science Advances by economists […]
Virginia’s New Governor Moves Swiftly to Overhaul State University Boards
Gov. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia lost no time on Saturday in altering the tenor of the board that controls the University of Virginia, appointing 10 new members to the 17-member body within hours of being inaugurated. She also acted to revamp the boards of two other state schools. The day before, she had asked five […]
UNC Alumni Free Speech Alliance reflects broader trend of campus alumni engagement
The UNC Alumni Free Speech Alliance is an independent, nonpartisan organization founded in 2021 to combat campus “unrest” related to free speech, according to its website. The alumni-led organization is known for hosting events on campus featuring guest speakers discussing free speech issues and partnering with similar groups, including the Student Free Speech Alliance at […]
UVA’s President Was Right to Resign
The University of Virginia drew national headlines last summer when its then-president, Jim Ryan, resigned in the face of a Department of Justice investigation into a potential pattern of civil-rights violations by the university. More recently, Ryan and others have accused the UVA board of conspiring to push him out. It’s amusing that Ryan would […]
