Straws in the Wind - Part 276

From the LA Times: The University of Texas System’s Board of Regents has unanimously approved a rule requiring its universities to ensure students can graduate without studying “unnecessary controversial subjects,” despite warnings it could leave them less prepared for the real world. The rule also requires faculty to disclose in their syllabi the topics they plan to cover and adhere to the plan, and says that when courses include controversial issues, instructors must ensure a “broad and balanced approach” to the discussion.

The policy... does not define what qualifies as “controversial” or what constitutes a “broad and balanced approach.” Opponents warned that leaving those terms undefined would force administrators to interpret them case by case, pressuring professors to avoid difficult material rather than risk complaints.

...Board Chair Kevin Eltife said the lack of specificity came as the system tried to craft a policy that could work in today’s politically charged environment. “We are in difficult times,” he said. “Vagueness can be our friend.” ...

Full story at https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2026-03-03/university-of-texas-regents-approve-limits-on-teaching-unnecessarily-controversial-subjects.

===

From the Yale Daily News: A newly established Committee on the Principles of Academic Freedom — comprising nine faculty members — will review the “historical, legal, and ethical foundations of academic freedom” over the coming months, a... statement on Yale provost’s office website said. The office of University Provost Scott Strobel announced the new committee on its website without an email to the broader Yale community, saying that the committee will release a statement on “the principles that guide the academic freedom of Yale faculty” by the end of the 2026 calendar year, alongside a summary report.

“Despite the phrase ‘academic freedom’ being invoked frequently, we have not as a community of faculty had a chance to dive deeply into how this phrase is understood and to what end,” incoming committee chair Gregory Huber, a political science professor, wrote in [an] email to the News...

Full story at https://yaledailynews.com/articles/provost-forms-faculty-committee-to-write-academic-freedom-statement.