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Academic Freedom / 1993
93.133
Leonard Jeffries, African-American studies, and academic freedom, 121
93.135
Bulletin: Defining the limits of academic freedom, 124
93.137
Mother Jones on women's studies, 129
93.146
Defining the scope of a "scholar's privilege," 139
93.152
Challenging the curriculum [state freedom of information act applies to
community college course materials; Court will not order giving greater
weight to the contributions of Africa and African-Americans, 149
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Academic Freedom / 1994
94.1 California colleges can be liable for sexual harassment, 164
94.9 Enrollment-based compensation does not violate Title VII, 178
94.24 Artistic criticism as defamation, 202
94.43 Defining the scope of academic freedom, 231
94.45 "Artistic criticism as defamation" use reversed, 233
94.56 Self-censorship on campus, 251
94.59 PC on the left of us . . . and PC on the right, 257
94.62 Reparations and classifications [multi-racial category suggested], 261
94.63 Dismissed professor awarded $500,000 [wrongful dismissal for alleged sexual assault;
inadequate due process], 262
94.67 Professor reinstated in sexual harassment case [Silva v. University of New Hampshire; William
Kaplin on academic freedom and "hostile environment" sexual harassment; sexual innuendo and
professional competency; Nadine Strossen on feminism and the First Amendment], 271
94.69 Silva v. University of New Hampshire [case excerpt; AAUP statement on academic freedom;
Silva case compared with isolated incident of bad judgment], 275
94.80 Ban on sexually oriented magazines unconstitutional [Excerpt: Captain Steven W. Johnson v.
County of Los Angeles Fire Department; Title VII does not call for punishment of bad thoughts;
danger of group stereotypes], 293
94.85 Supreme Court vacates Jeffries ruling, 300
94.92 Silva case settled, 311
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Academic Freedom / 1995
95.7 Cynicism about "sensitivity" [controversial speech by President Lawrence at Rutgers; using the
"N" word at George Mason; federal investigation of law professor's grading policy], 323.
95.11 Public access to e-mail [e-mail and open-meetings laws; limits on erasing e-mail; e-mail
frequently sought in discovery; "academic freedom" not a defense to disclosure], 330.
95.13 Stanford speech code unconstitutional [interpretation of the "fighting words" doctrine; hurt
feelings are not enough; "selected" insults may not be prohibited; distinguishing speech from
conduct; alternatives to censorship, including penalty enhancement; application of First
Amendment standards to private institutions; expansive academic freedom argument rejected;
admission of "undesired members" will not limit Stanford's freedom of expression], 332.
95.20 Jeffries case reversed, 349.
95.33 Written jibes aren't sexual harassment [Title VII not a remedy for every tasteless joke;
alternatives to censorship or punishment suggested], 367.
95.41 Sexual harassment and freedom of expression [sexual harassment and the tort of intentional
infliction of emotional distress; little First Amendment protection to false or needlessly
provocative statements about private individuals], 378.
95.48 The harassment policy is invalid, but the coach stays fired [overbroad and vague discriminatory
harassment policy; invalid "fighting words" prohibition; use of racial epithet by coach not a matter
of public concern, and not protected by academic freedom; holding in Silva case called into
question], 385.
95.49 The freedom to limit free speech [striking down Stanford's speech code said to be an intrusion on
Stanford's academic freedom; related decision by U.S. Supreme Court in Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Group of Boston: parade organizers may exclude marchers
with different message], 387.
95.50 Limiting student religious expression [setting reasonable limits on student expression in the
classroom; rejecting a paper based on religious content alone may violate freedom of
expression; faculty member may not be ordered to award a grade, although final authority over
grades rests with the institution], 388.
95.52 Three recent sexual harassment cases [breach of contract for a college to discharge a tenured
professor pursuant to a sexual harassment policy, rather than a procedure established for
dismissal of tenured faculty; teacher at a public college can be required to review his teaching
methods, attend a sexual harassment seminar, and be formally evaluated, if it is determined that
his "confrontational" and sexually provocative teaching style created a hostile learning
environment for some of his students], 391.
95.63 Freedom of expression in cyberspace [Washington Post
critical of Virginia Tech decision to
punish stub-dent for using a university computer server to send an
offensive message off-campus; university computer servers compared to
telephone systems; risk of liability for
assuming editorial responsibility], 416.
95.68 Truth or consequences [lawyers and lies; William Kunstler "adheres to a truth that is deeper than
a factual one;" Foucault and poststructuralist perspectives; a renewed interest in truth-seeking;
the relationship between academic freedom and the pursuit of truth], 425.
95.72 A consensus on religion in the schools [joint statement by national religious and civil liberties
organizations on issues such as student prayer, teaching about religion, distribution of religious
literature, and religious harassment; anti-intellectualism of religious right and academic left;
William James on the need for moderation in expressing religious views; Ernest Boyer on
teaching about religion], 432.
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Academic Freedom / 1996
96.24 Postmodernism deconstructed
[physicist Alan Sokal published a nonsensical article designed to
reveal widespread ignorance about science in the humanities, and to
debunk the view that the
laws of physics--or efforts to follow objective standards in any
field--are "mere social
conventions;" defense of postmodernism by professor Stanley Fish
asserts the primacy of truth-seeking; Blaise Pascal on the hint of a
greater truth], 488.
96.34 Sexual harassment by teachers and peers [in Cohen v. San Bernardino Valley College, the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that a tenured professor who used a sexually
provocative teaching style was subject to an unlawful "legalistic ambush" when the college
sought to discipline him for sexual harassment; a federal district court in Rubin v. Ikenberry, et.
al. upheld a decision at the University of Illinois to discipline a tenured professor for repeated
sexual comments, inquiries, and jokes, in and out of class; the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of
the U.S. Department of Education issued a "Dear Colleague" letter, stating that schools and
colleges may be liable under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for peer harassment
that creates a hostile environment; Economist on dangers of over-regulation], p. 517.
96.40 Three cases on freedom of expression [public employee speech rights; "incitement to imminent
lawless action"; restrictions on "harmful" adult materials; original Lovell case decision withdrawn
by the Ninth Circuit], 535.
96.45 Freedom of expression and religious liberty [ban on expression of all religious views in the
workplace likely to be unconstitutional. Example of a case where a court upheld an employer's
decision to restrict employee free speech rights is Burnham v. Ianni (court determined that
University of Minnesota at Duluth Chancellor lawfully removed photographs of two professors
from a campus exhibit)], 544.
96.49 Freedom of expression and the arts, [government funding does not invariably justify government
control of the content of speech; "decency and respect" requirement in the National Endowment
for the Arts' governing statute struck down by the Ninth Circuit in Karen Finley, et. al. v. National
Endowment for the Arts; student "academic freedom" suggested in Rosenberger v. Rector and
Visitors of the University of Virginia], 554.
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Academic Freedom / 1997
97.4 Defining freedom of expression in cyberspace [Oklahoma federal court in Loving v. Boren held
that the University of Oklahoma did not violate the First Amendment rights of a professor when it
adopted a revised policy limiting full Internet access to adults who affirm they will use the
university's computer server only for "academic and research purposes; U.S. Court of Appeals for
the 6th Circuit held in U.S. v. Abraham Alkhabaz (a/k/a/ Jake Baker) that a (then) University of
Michigan student did not violate a federal statute prohibiting interstate or foreign transmission of a
threat to kidnap or injure another person when he posted a sadistic Usenet newsgroup story
containing the name of an identifiable victim], 569.
97.16 Defining the scope of religious freedom, [employees or students serving on campus governance
committees may be dismissed from committee assignments for making statements contradicting
the mission of the committee, even if those statements are based on sincerely held religious
beliefs], 595.
97.39 The Boston University case: reading past the headlines part I [excerpts from Gluckenberger et. al v.
Boston University], 646.
97.40 Reading past the headlines in the Boston University case, part II [the essence of federal disability
law is individualized assessment; verification and assessment are essential; students should have
the opportunity to fail; college curricula need assessment too; the danger of portraying students
with learning disabilities as wards of big government], 649.
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Academic Freedom / 1998
98.9 The decline of academic freedom [U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit held in Boring v.
Buncombe County Board of Education that a teacher's selection and production of a play as part
of the school's curriculum was not protected speech under the First Amendment], 707.
98.35 Who determines what should be taught? [Third Circuit ruling in Edwards v. California University of
Pennsylvania calls into question the very concept of "academic freedom," at least in the sense
that professors have any legally protected right to determine will be taught in the classroom.
Related holdings in DiBona v. Matthews and Bishop v. Aronov], 761.
98.36 Weighing "emotional intelligence" in tenure and promotion decisions, part I [Maryland Court of Special
Appeals held in University of Baltimore v. Peri Iz held that collegiality may be considered when
faculty members are considered for promotion and tenure, even if a specific reference to
collegiality is not made in pertinent contracts or policies], 764.
98.37 Weighing "emotional intelligence" in tenure and promotion decisions, Part II [Estelle Fishbein
interview; recent Harvard Magazine article on emotional intelligence; Boyer Commission:
expanding faculty role as mentors; Terry Roach on "Does Beethoven Get Tenure?"], 768.
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Academic Freedom / 1999
99.5 The unpredictable fortunes of academic freedom [in Urofsky v. Gilmore
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld a Virginia law
restricting state employees from using state computers to access
sexually explicit material; in Hoover v. Morales the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the rights of faculty members
at public institutions to serve as expert witnesses in litigation
against the state. Analysis by Diana Krejsa], 818.
99.33 A case study on academic freedom
[selection of curriculum materials; final authority over grades;
student academic freedom; faculty classroom conduct; student
evaluations], 887.
99.34 Racial harassment and freedom of expression [In Aguilar v. Avis Rental Car Systems,
the California Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment does not
prohibit courts from enjoining the continued use of racial epithets in
the workplace, if there has been a judicial determination "that the use
of such epithets will contribute to the continuation of a hostile or
abusive work environment and therefore will constitute employment
discrimination"], 890.
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Academic Freedom / 2000
00.21 Judicial hostility to hostile environment theory, part I [Recent cases highlighting judicial reluctance to give an expansive interpretation to "hostile environment" theory], 986.
00.22 Judicial hostility to hostile environment theory, part II [Eleventh Circuit decision in Gupta v. Board of Regents
narrowly defining a "hostile environment in the college and university
setting; review of George Washington University law professor Jeffrey
Rosen's proposed alternative to hostile environment theory, grounded in
the right to privacy], 989.
00.24 Universities-not professors-have "academic freedom" [Fourth Circuit decision in Urofsky v. Gilmore], 996.
00.28 Students and professors behaving badly, online
[Pennsylvania court upholds expulsion of student who used a website to
convey threatening content; Indiana court barred a university professor
from creating websites designed to give the appearance of belonging to
university officials; limited impact of website disclaimers], 1008.
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Academic Freedom / 2001
01.5 The disconnection between professors and judges. In Wozniak v. Conry
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit rejected the
complaint of a tenured University of Illinois professor, who claimed he
was improperly reassigned to non-teaching duties, without appropriate
due process, and later retaliated against for his opposition to
university grading policies,1069.
01.6 No "harassment" exception to the First Amendment. February 14, 2001 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Saxe v. State College School District (No. 99-4081), striking down a school sexual harassment policy in Pennsylvania, 1072.
01.7 Defending freedom of expression. Interview with Yale University historian C. Vann Woodward on campus freedom of expression, 1075.
01.15 Expanding the duty of care: Faculty academic malfeasance. [Johnson v. Schmitz,
119 F. Supp. 2d 90 (D. Conn. 2000): Relationship between student and
university is contractual; courts may entertain a cause of action for
institutional breach of a contract for educational services; court
allows plaintiff to pursue the claim that "Yale [University] failed to
deliver on its express and implied contractual duties to safeguard
students from academic misconduct"; commercialization of higher
education is likely to produce many more disputes between graduate
students and faculty members about intellectual property], 1094.
01.18 Profanity has its limits. [Sixth Circuit decision in Bonnell v. Lorenzo
indicates that the law "may be shifting in ways that allow greater
regulation of profanity, especially where a captive audience may be
involved." The court held that "[p]laintiff may have a constitutional
right to use words such as "pussy," "cunt," and "fuck," but he does not
have a constitutional right to use them in a classroom setting where
they are not germane to the subject matter, in contravention of the
College's sexual harassment policy"], 2002.
01.23 Who determines student grades? [Analysis of the Third Circuit decision in Brown v. Armenti,
holding that a public university professor had no "First Amendment
right to expression via the school grade assignment procedures" ],
2015.
01.28 Distinguishing vulgarity from sexual harassment. [Two recent cases highlight ongoing tension between sexual harassment "hostile environment" theory and freedom of expression: Clark County School District v. Shirley A. Breeden (U.S. Supreme Court) and Russell v. Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, CA7 ], 2029.
01.39 Accommodating controversial religious views in the workplace. [In Phillips v. Collings
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit held that the
plaintiff had been subject to religious discrimination in the
workplace], 2041.
01.52 Defining teachers First Amendment rights in the classroom [In Hardy v. Jefferson Community College
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that a community
college teacher was improperly dismissed for using "socially
controversial words"], 2066.
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Academic Freedom / 2002
02.23 Collegiality and academic freedom [The topic is
explored in a Synthesis interview with Philip R. Moots,
a respected authority on higher education law, and a
principal in the law firm Moots, Cope & Carter, in
Columbus, Ohio], 3021.
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Academic Freedom / 2003
03.7 Off-campus expression and professional
misconduct [Seventh Circuit opinion in Trejo v.
Shoben: "Casual chit-chat between two persons or
otherwise confined to a small group . . . is not
protected" under the First Amendment], 3111.
03.38 The freedom to learn, part II [Pertinent Supreme Court
holdings; AAUP Statement of Professional Ethics;
Whitehead on The Aims of Education], 3187.
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Academic Freedom / 2004
04.9 Are professors employees? [Graciela Chichilnisky v. Trustees of Columbia University
(County of New York Supreme Court decision; "[f]undamental to the
master-servant relationship is the proposition that an employee is to
be loyal to his employer"], 3233.
04.23 Sexual harassment in the classroom, Part I [Hayut v. State Univ. of New York
(2nd Cir, 2003): "pattern of humiliating and derogatory comments
directed" to female student by professor may have created a hostile
educational environment], 3258.
04.24 Sexual harassment in the classroom, Part II [Hayut v. State Univ. of New York
(2nd Cir, 2003): "pattern of humiliating and derogatory comments
directed" to female student by professor may have created a hostile
educational environment; AAUP statement of professional ethics], 3261.
04.28 Freedom of expression or classroom disruption? [Key case review: Salehpour v. University of Tennessee (1998). Disruptive classroom behavior not protected by student academic freedom], 3273.
04.33 Scholarly debate or religious indoctrination? [Yacovelli v. Moeser:
federal district court dismissed claims contending that the plaintiffs'
right to the free exercise of religion was violated when the university
designated a book about the Quran as assigned reading for incoming freshmen], 3285.
04.40 Classroom "hate speech" codes, Part I [U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights (OCR) letter ruling issued to the University of North Carolina], 3303.
04.41 Classroom "hate speech" codes, Part II
[encouraging open discussion in the classroom; AAUP Statement on
Professional Ethics; liberalism is a disciplined way of thinking, not a
dogma], 3306.
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