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"Some college administrators seem so distracted with fund raising, academic infighting, and community initiatives that they set up their emergency communications departments very poorly. Training is poor to nonexistent, secretaries are pressed into service with tremendous responsibilities for running 'notification systems' 24/7 and on weekends because no one else knows how to do it and the administration won’t pay for additional staff. Procedures are seat-of-the-pants and dependent on HIPPO (highest paid person’s opinion), except when something like Virginia Tech happens and there is some sort of scramble to do something different." --Donna
Most Colleges Avoid Risk Management, Report Says
Jill Biden Shines a Global Spotlight on American Community Colleges
Speaking at a Unesco conference in Paris, the vice president’s wife stressed the importance of two-year institutions to the nation’s educational goals.
Connecticut Public Colleges Lose 200 Professors to Early Retirement
Administrators are scrambling to plug holes in their course schedules for fall, with most expecting to do so by hiring more adjuncts or increasing class sizes.
U. of Georgia Paid 2 Fraternities $2.4-Million to Relocate, Contracts Show
The two were among five with houses on property where the university plans to build new academic facilities.
New Allegations in Admissions Controversy at U. of Illinois Suggest Ex-Provost Played a Role
Linda P.B. Katehi, the incoming chancellor of the University of California at Davis, has insisted she knew nothing of the admission of politically connected applicants at Illinois.
Sonoma State U. Foundation May Lose $350,000 on Loan to Former Board Member
The foundation will be forced to issue fewer scholarships in the 2010-11 academic year because of a diminished endowment, a university official said.
College Suspends Student for Working in Gay Pornography | 58
President Obama's Visit to Notre Dame Carries Barely a Hint of Controversy That Preceded It | 58
Drug Sting Nabs 21 Students at U. of Illinois | 57
Faculty Members and Union Protest Staff Layoffs at Temple U. as 'Cruel' | 57
North Dakota Board's Vote Puts 'Fighting Sioux' Mascot on Thinner Ice | 57
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October 6, 2008
State Law on Political Activities Doesn't Trample Basic Freedoms, U. of Illinois Leader Says
Graduate students and professors at the University of Illinois no longer need worry that a bumper sticker supporting John McCain — or Barack Obama or Ralph Nader or anyone else, for that matter — puts them in violation of the state’s ethics law, the university system’s president, B. Joseph White, said in an e-mail message to faculty and staff members this afternoon. The university will “preserve, protect, and defend” the constitutional freedoms of speech and assembly of every employee, as well as academic freedom, he wrote.
The e-mail message followed recent statements by university and state officials that had raised concerns about whether professors — and maybe even students — could legally attend a political rally or wear a campaign button on a university campus. Mr. White clarified today that employees could attend rallies as long as they did so on their own time, and could wear partisan gear while neither on duty nor “in the workplace.” He added that previous statements by university officials were not setting out official policies of the university, but just familiarizing employees with the state law. —Charles Huckabee
Posted on Monday October 6, 2008 | Permalink |Comments
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Good grief. This was even a question? Well, always glad to know my freedom is safe for another day…
— American Student Oct 7, 08:26 AM #
It is curious to find that a university thinks it can ban the wearing of buttons “in the workplace.” Exactly what legal interpretation of the First Amendment allows for such repression of free speech?
— John K. Wilson Oct 7, 08:35 AM #
It’s important to note that the Illinois legislature wrote the ethics law. The University should be applauded for its interpretation of the law, suggesting it could be unconstitutional.
— James C. Kline Oct 7, 09:22 AM #
What do you suppose “in the workplace” means here? In classrooms? Hallways? Offices? Faculty Senate? Parking lots? Hmmmnnn?
— Mervyn Emrys Oct 7, 10:02 AM #
re. #2:
We do not have free speech in the workplace. The receptionist in your doctor’s office and the clerk at your grocery storee do not have the freedom to advocate for political candidates while on the job if their employer forbids it. (They are of course free to do so on their own time.)
Pennsylvania recently has had a publicized scandal when it was discovered that state legislators and their staffs engaged in partisan political activity from state offices during the work day.
Employees (faculty and staff) at a state-run university are no different. We face similar limitations when we represent the university on campus and during the workday. The AAUP statement on academic freedom explicitly notes the obligation of faculty to avoid the impression that they are representing the university in the exercise of their speech. One way we do that is by saving some of our speech for outside of the work place and work day.
— drj50 Oct 7, 10:53 AM #