Academic Freedom: Questions and Action Steps for Boards

Trustees should understand that the principle of academic freedom is the underlying foundation of higher education. And while challenges to academic freedom have been met successfully in decades past, academic freedom is under threat once again. This is a critical moment for trustees to understand why academic freedom matters and what boards can do to support it.

Boards of trustees may come across many different challenges, but today, there seems to be a greater focus on academic freedom at U.S. higher education institutions. Whether it is at an event, in the media, or a publication in a specific academic discipline, academic freedom across campuses has become a hot-button issue. Many trustees come from the business world or other professional fields and may not have the knowledge about the tenets of academic freedom and its importance in upholding an institution’s mission to advance knowledge and viewpoint diversity; however, there is no better time to learn about academic freedom than now.