Academic Freedom Survey Open Text Comments

Note: Comments have been separated from corresponding survey respondents to enhance anonymity.

I feel like many of your questions are misusing the term "academic freedom." Academic freedom is related to freedom to teach or collect materials based upon my expertise. It does not refer to institutional policy, social media, or informal conversations. It is a protection to prevent firing based upon teaching content that non-experts may deem objectionable for "moral" rather than intellectual reasons. Many of your questions were hard to answer because you seem to have another conception of what academic freedom means. 

I am fortunate to work at an institution that actively encourages academic freedom. It's alarming that many public institutions are more of a target of academic freedom critics and I worry that the political climate will contribute to retribution, threats, and even violence toward those in higher education.

It was hard to do this survey because I feel fairly sure of my academic freedom at my current institution.  My previous place of employment I felt stifled. 

It's vital to do the work of librarianship.

It was difficult to separate out answers about my "academic" and "non-academic" activities/beliefs when categorizing a complaint placed with my dean because of my identity (indicated through pronouns in my e-mail signature, as instructed by the dean) and assumptions about other aspects of my identity (made from same)--the e-mail was sent in the course of a work activity, but I don't really consider my identity an "academic activity" or a "non-academic activity."

I feel that academic freedom is threatened by increasing commercialization of education. Professors have to treat students as customers. I wonder where we came to this idea? because they pay tuition? Education was never free, and in the 19th century corporal punishment was used in the most prestige schools. While I do not support corporal punishment, nor I support the idea that students are customers. Librarians, even with a faculty status are still treated as professionals at my institution. We have 12 months contracts while faculty has 9 months. On one hand we're encouraged to do research, but on the other hand I fel like we're being watched. And we always have to justify what we're doing. In my opinion, assessment is killing the higher ed, but I don't have enough courage to stand up and say it aloud. Social media, in my opinion, are not good for the education. There are articles published lately, for ex. profile on Mark Zuckerberg in the New Yorker from september 17. 

I believe administrators celebrate academic freedom when it comes primary work (protecting banned books, programming "controversial" topics, etc.) but do not encourage free discourse about library policy or university administration.

I think that there are varying understandings of what the definition of academic freedom is among faculty.

Colleges and universities have become toxic and free expression is met with verbal and sometimes violent protests.  In that type of climate I do not feel safe to discuss issues not directly related to my job with co-workers, faculty, or students.

I have a lot of support and academic freedom at my current institution, but I'm afraid of how speaking out about inequity in our field or public disclosure of disability or sexual identity will affect my ability to get another job should I leave my current position. 

As a tenured associate professor, I was denied a research sabbatical because the dean didn't like my proposed research topic. So I had to come up with something I don't really care about but that he does care about, and now my sabbatical request is approved. I believe that requiring me to research something he really likes is a violation of my academic freedom, but I'm tired of fighting him and just need a break.

I think the overall profession has started to stifle engagement with differing viewpoints. I've seen people threaten to "take names" in online professional groups, in order to "out" people to employers, simply because a person has a viewpoint that doesn't conform to theirs. While my workplace is somewhat hostile towards certain types of people, I feel like many are at more risk from colleagues within the field as a whole.

I now have three bosses who to varying degrees stifle my opportunities for professional development and academic freedom. UCOP doesn't think academic freedom is a good fit for librarians, but I think it is vital to protect especially early career librarians like myself.

Academic Freedom is not a panacea - but I recognize that my background and identity offer me significant benefits that exceed people of other backgrounds/identities and must be formally acknowledged

In the current situation that I find myself in, my fellow library faculty use "academic freedom" as a way to get out of doing work as a team and/or learning new information, technology, or devices. In my experience, "academic freedom" is a negative one. I understand the reasoning for it, and I do agree with it, in most instances. I just find it sad that the current group of professionals I work with seem to have such a skewed definition of academic freedom.

A previous institution was very unhappy with my blogging and social media presence, which made me feel silenced, which is a shitty feeling when people talk a good game about academic freedom, but then turn around and criticize you for exercising it. 

I perceive that I have these rights, but they've never been explicitly addressed with me by my supervisor. 


I'm more concerned by threat of infringement outside my institution - by state government and watchdog groups.

At our institution, there is no clear policy for academic staff (such as librarians).

Librarians don't have faculty status at my institution but, being librarians, we believe in freedom of expression.  Previous high-level library administrators did cast a pall over our ability to speak freely.  That is no longer the case.  A colleague and I were confronted and harassed by an older, very conservative man (probably a student) about our political beliefs.  He believed we were "infecting" young minds with liberalism and encouraging them to question authority. 

My institution is just now implementing tenure and with it, an academic freedom policy. 

I think that like much else, academic freedom is a privilege that accompanies being in a position in an academic library with more financial resources. The more financial resources, typically the more academic freedom you have, regardless of your role (staff, faculty, student, etc.).

My institution's administration is currently on record to the press that "its" librarians do not possess academic freedom.

Academic freedom is only granted to faculty at my institution. Librarians are all staff, not faculty, so I have no academic freedom protections.

This survey is biased and poorly done.  It PRESUMES a liberal bias and that the "conservative" elements in the academic community are bad.  As a conservative, I have been berated, and terminated, for conservative viewpoints and for having a MAGA bumper sticker on my truck.  You need to change the bias in the survey.  "Academic freedom" only applies to liberals.  To paraphrase the bible, "it is easier for a rich man to get into heaven than for a conservative to attain tenure."

It's a wonderful idea, and the library officially supports it, but our Dean has made more than one person dissapear for reasons which do include academic freedom.  As with anything, you need to protect yourself if you want to survive.

One of the things that is is a challenge on my campus is that librarians are "faculty" status, but we don't have tenure, and our promotion process is similar to, but different from faculty tenure review. There is also little documentation on what "faculty" status means and I think this might cause people to be cautious in their activity. 

At my institution we have had faculty members fired for expressing negative opinions about students on their private social media accounts.  This precedent makes the rest of us faculty feel unsafe expressing our opinions freely even in non-academic settings.
I believe that in general freedom of speech and expression are seriously in decline, including in terms of academic freedom

Just want to say I am very glad you are doing this survey and look forward to your report.

I am not always sure I can express what role libraries should have in teaching about academic freedom because I don't know that I will or will not be supported by my institution.
At my institution there is a vast divide between faculty (librarians) and staff (library information specialists, etc) that is not strictly based on educational degrees. Decision-making, governance, research policies, accountability for hours & leave, interpersonal relations, and of course salary are all manifestly different. In recent years, staff have absorbed many duties formerly performed by faculty, who are now too busy working on tenure and university governance. Exasperating.

Identity politics has made it difficult to have open honest discussions for fear of being labeled. I remember when issues were discussed, not identities. I'm not saying that identities don't matter, it's just not all that matters. Connected to this, the ability to claim someone has committed a microaggression is a dangerous precedent, as words can be interpreted subjectively. In effect, it has created a culture of victimization in which speaking freely requires walking on egg shells for fear of offending someone. Yes, we should be careful with our words. Yes, we should be respectful of others who claim different identities. What is missing is the openness to listen to thoughts and ideas that we don't understand or agree with, but consider nonetheless. That should be the ideal we strive for in academia.

I think that the greatest constraint on academic freedom is self-censorship - having thoughts and opinions but not expressing them.

Academic freedom at my institution is generally considered to involve research and service, and not non-teaching job responsibilities.  So as I understand it, this concept does not apply to my job at my institution, since "non-teaching" duties are not covered in our policy.  Also, I have been formally penalized without being given an adequate explanation, so that's why I stated that I was unsure whether this was due to appearing to disagree with something my superivisor might have said.  I will never know whether this is the case.

Based on informal conversations with acquaintances, academic freedom doesn't seem to be clearly defined or well understood among the general public. Turns out I'm no exception and was actually surprised by some of the categories included in this survey.

I know I am in a privileged position and I hope I use it to benefit other more precariously situated.

Due to the type of position I have, it is challenging to push boundaries. Although we are "faculty like" we have 1 year contracts and no tenure options. While it's unlikely they would let professional staff go, it could happen. We are required a years notice, but given the job market for academic librarians that is not a lot of time. If something falls into "research" I think it is more accepted but if something is in direct opposition to upper administration (or  other leaders) it might cause issues. 

Academic freedom is a privilege very much tied to other social privileges such as race, gender identity, sexual orientation, nationality, religious identity, and ability. I am not convinced by the efficacy of insisting on academic freedom for librarians, or others, when it would create even more privileged classes of people. I feel there must be a better approach, but that better approach likely includes significant societal changes that just aren't on the horizon yet.
I myself am pretty liberal, but I believe strongly that academic freedom should -- indeed must -- include conservative points of view.  In certain cases or situatios, it may even need to include points of view that may be disagreeable or offensive to some.  Freedom isn't freedom if it's only the "freedom" to say things we approve of or agree with.

As a tenured faculty librarian, I feel a sense of obligation to speak up for those who feel they cannot. At the same time, it feels as if librarians, whether faculty or not, are taught to be nice and congenial. Thus, the culture of the profession does not lend itself to speaking up without being labeled. I happen to work on the medical center side of my campus, and it's even more apparent there, and not just for librarian faculty, but for all. 

I want to clarify that I am a left-wing Christian from a mainline denomination, NOT a conservative evangelical. Freedom of expression is overtly encouraged at work, but subtly or not so subtly discouraged.   but 

I'm interested in the ways tenure/faculty status get conflated with academic freedom when, IME, race, gender, class, comfort in the academic milieu, and educational background all play seriously massive roles in whether one is, in practice, able to take stances

Even when we don't have strict protections of academic freedom, by virtue of having gained tenure, given the liberal nature of our libraries and academic institutions, we generally are given intellectual freedom to do our work as we see fit without fear of retribution or punishment.

My institution's policy on academic freedom is that it does not apply to librarians, only faculty and students. My union is actively fighting for librarian academic freedom in our current contract negotiations.

This survey never defined academic freedom, so I am not sure what you meant. I am tenured faculty. I answered the I did because I keep my opinions about anything non-work related to myself because I do not want to be mobbed or called a Nazi. I am actually a very progressive person, but find all of the far left's (alt-left) stances ludicrous. Academic freedom does not mean you can pop-off a bunch of nonsens on Twitter with no repercussions or just be an asshole to everyone you work with. I see a lot of fretting over academic freedom and no legitimate threats.

There is a strong link between academic freedom and being on tenure track.  As an Assistant Professor, I feel that what I say, research or publish is constantly being evaluated by my Dean, who is known for being less than supportive of intelligent women.  If I am granted tenure, I expect to have more freedom -- at least I will probably express myself with more confidence.
For all their talk about inclusivity, my liberal/progressive colleagues are some of the least tolerant people I know when it comes to differing viewpoints, political or otherwise. Academic freedom seems rather one-sided these days. There is very little room for more conservative viewpoints. I have remained silent in many cases due to fear of retaliation or marginalization in my profession. 

Thinking academic freedom, for me hovers around a context of inquiry.  In other words,  there seems to me a difference between "personal" and socio-cultural opinions/beliefs/perspectives and the freedom of questioning and challenging all such ideas, activities, concepts, etc, for possibilities of learning as humans
Upper administration has chilled the environment on social media, indicating that representatives of the university espousing political beliefs could put the u's 501(c)3 in jeopardy.

I am very lucky in that I work in an institution that shares many of the same values as me, and where I feel appreciated. I don't take any of that for granted, and I know I would feel much more restricted if our values were different or if I didn't have such a great administration.

Certain faculty members in particular are sometimes quite vocal about expressing their political views, on list-servs in particular. As a staff member, I don't feel "safe" (as the kids like to say) expressing my political views, particularly since they are sometimes at odds with the dominant views held at my institution (and in academia in general). I am disappointed that the profession which I chose (I do have an MLS, and have held the title of "librarian" in previous positions) partly because I appreciated the value it placed on free speech now embraces deplatforming of various sorts, including the various assaults on free speech which are occurring on monopolistic social media platforms. Apparently, Trump's winning the 2016 election now means that we must support allowing the ADL, SPLC, the Atlantic Council, and even the Israeli government, to determine what is acceptable speech on social meet, and what is Russian-bot driven promotion of "fake news."

The academic freedom policy at my institution applies only to faculty - staff protection is unclear.

I feel my institution supports and stands by academic freedom when it comes to research. What is more of a gray area is questioning of policies and office politics. Reprimands are usually not direct, but I feel there are sometimes unspoken or behind the scenes consequences (such as not being assigned particular committees or opportunities)

Students want to explore topics in depth, but seem unsure as to how to start and approach it without bias

While our union is actively fighting to include academic freedom into our contract (because we're academics but not Senate Faculty or covered by their academic freedom policy), my biggest fear is Campusreform.org and other "gotcha" organizations or trolls. My AUL recently told me that her email was FOIA'd by one of the student newspapers recently! 

I am a conservative and a Christian and libraries are a difficult place today for people like me.  It wasn't this way when I became a librarian, however. 

I think it might have been worthwhile giving a definition at the start of the survey. People think of it in different ways. For me, it goes beyond what I can say in a classroom. It goes to methods of instruction, methods of evaluation, methods of discussing [hard topics] [with anyone on campus]. I thought it was interesting that you had questions about colleagues and policies. I'd like to know more about how these fit into the idea of academic freedom. I have colleagues who are very domineering in many ways.

It's important for research but sometimes unfairly applied to working conditions

I think one of the main arguments for librarians having faculty status is academic freedom and the ability to run the library as an academic unit, not an administrative unit. I haven't been directly threatened for my academic/scholarly pursuits in my current position, but I was in a previous institution (also as a staff librarian).

Academic freedom should be protected by collective agreements. In many ways, organized labor appears to be the most sustainable approach to protecting academic freedom, for librarians and all academic staff.

I'm in California and don't feel threatened by the public or my very liberal leaning school. That said, there's an extremely major campus change that's coming up which I feel negatively about (and many others do as well) which I don't think enough input was solicited for. But I wouldn't say that expressing misgivings about it in any way threatens my career.

I feel that as a librarian I have somewhat more academic freedom than I might have in, say, an English department, to pursue my research interests. 

It hurts that my employer doesn't recognize that librarians need academic freedom. 
When does lack of library resources, i.e. materials budget, become an Academic Freedom issue.  As an Aquisitions Librarian, I have to make decisions about what to keep and what to cut based on available resources.  Yet I am often accused of attacking Academic Freedom because I can't get everyone what they want.


the university's academic freedom is for teachers/faculty and does not include staff
As a librarian without faculty status, my academic freedom is in question.  Although I am an academic employee of my university, and one would think I am guaranteed academic freedom, our university has said that is not so.

It sometimes feels as if we have to swallow the kool ade and sell particular ideas or services even if we don't agree with them.

Whereas academic freedom is important to facilitate the highest learning, so is respect. We must respectfully communicate our ideas, crafting them for inquiry not artillery.

Administrators can be cowardly self-serving chickenshits.

My institution has academic freedom for faculty but not academic staff (e.g. librarians).
My institution is run like a corporation, so questioning is only accepted in theory, not in practice. Among faculty, it is impossible to have a belief outside the majority belief here - religious views are not only scorned, but viewed as almost heretical. Any opinion about race/ethnicity stated by a non-African-American, is deemed racist, solely based on the speaker's skin color.Students are taught not to question ideologies & theories of faculty, but just to change their beliefs to fit their faculty members' beliefs. No room for honest debate at any level - much distrust.

I was not sure when you asked about an academic freedom policy if you meant in general or one that for sure applied to me or to libraries/library staff. I am not sure I am using your same definition of academic freedom as you or others. 
I'm staff.  Librarians do not have tenure.  One person, the Library Dean, determines the pay raises of all staff.  I'm very aware of her political beliefs and views.  I don't have complete academic freedom. 

I think academic freedom is important and necessary for faculty and librarians or anyone who works at an academic institution.
True academic freedom does not exist - as long as P&T pressures faculty to publish in certain high tiered journals.

I am a fairly non-confrontational person and I realize I may not rock the boat, thus I don't have any experience with possible outcomes of "rocking the boat" or expressing non-conforming ideas in a public setting.
Until I started to publish and become more active in research and teaching, I was not as concerned about Academic Freedom.  With the current political climate, I have also become more concerned with having Academic Freedom.

I have had tenure 3 times, & faculty status 3 times, and have usually been in unionized environments, but am currently in an organization where librarians do not have faculty status and there are no unions. 
we are overworked on 12 month appointments yet our performance review system focuses on our year to year activities such that the pressure to publish or present from year to year generally "trumps” support for a slower but surer research agenda 

Academic freedom is not a privilege that is extended to library staff at my institution. 

Unfortunately, academic freedom only exists for liberal faculty members.  There is no academic freedom for conservative faculty.  Accusations of hate speech are directed at conservative faculty for speaking truth.

I feel a little restrained by working a t a faith-based university.  I made a conscious decision to work here.
Social media has made it difficult to even think about expressing yourself especially if you work at a old-fashioned univeristy like I do.

I feel okay about my publishing/work-related speech, but one of my colleagues has recently gotten death threats and publicly called out by our Chancellor for a (admittedly ill-considered but ultimately harmless) remark on his personal twitter.

I think it can be hard to be aware of the less obvious inhibitors of academic freedom. There are many structural layers of policy and management within academic institutions that limit what library staff can do that really just feel part of our every day work. This, sometimes, makes it hard for me to say what is and what is not a restriction on academic freedom. -- Libraries are institutions for which we should feel that academic freedom is inherent to their identity. However, this goes against the hierarchical management approach of academic institutions that are grounded in centuries old academic cultures. -- I am definitely at a place where keeping my head down in situations that might bring the attention of campus leadership is the survival method that I, and others here, have adopted.

I never thought about it before I was told that my institution refuses to recognize it. Once they said that, I realized how important it was to me.

Your survey made me realize even more that there are institutional and social infringements on academic freedom, even in a position and institution that supports it.

I feel supported by my institution when it comes to academic freedom. When I am in the classroom, however, I do restrict myself a) to avoid having to deal with coddled students who are not able to handle different opinions, but also b) to make sure I don't alienate anyone. An alienated student is one who now is not able to learn. I am lucky enough to be able to help students learn without making them feel uncomfortable about the content. (Changing their perspective about information does create some discomfort, as does all learning, of course!)
Thank you for doing this research.
Academic freedom for librarians is under attack at my institution: the University of California.  Sign the petition at: https://www.gopetition.com/petitions/petition-in-support-of-uc-librarians-and-academic-freedom.html

Academic freedom and tenure are under pressure due to the "corporatization" of higher education and continual shrinking of state financial support. Administrators and regents seem more comfortable with business models instead of learning models. 

I feel my institution as a whole is committed to academic freedom, but that middle-managers and deans often engage in suppression of voices that they think might cast negative aspersion on them. I'm not talking about bad-mouthing the boss; more like questioning policy and procedure and trying to initiate reform, and the various ways that gets shut down at lower levels

Academic freedom is increasingly important and it's difficult to carry on some necessary work because of public/institutional perceptions. I don't usually research conventionally controversial things but I do see what happens in public when some do. I am new to my position, so I don't really question a whole lot, but I'm learning it's best to keep my mouth in line about a few things. 

The world is not ready to accept some of my views, so I keep quiet.
there is programatic pressure to favor specific racial groups over others, non-race related attributes that impact equity almost disregarded

My school has policies that apply to faculty but not academic staff. We're at Will employees, so job security is tenuous. 

I have found that with my institution they appear to be concerned more with how they are perceived, both externally and internally. Minor issues can be inflamed because people are worried that an issue will be taken out of context. I think in theory they defend academic freedom, but in practice they are scared of anything that they perceive will damage their image.

It goes both ways - I recently challenged the use of the Heritage Foundation as a credible source and I don't think I was taken seriously.
I think that staff positions in a state with "at will" employment laws provides minimum academic freedom protections

At my former place of work, my colleagues and I decided not to publish a book chapter on our department's instruction department in the wake of the resignation and non-replacement of an influential leader, due to the pushback we had received from our provost after sending an email to campus about the impact such a loss of a colleague would have on our department, and therefore on the feasibility of providing quality info lit workshops. We felt we would face repercussions that infringed on our academic freedom. 

Faculty policy doesn't really apply to staff, including librarians. 

At my institution, faculty have academic freedom.  The librarians do not have faculty status, so this freedom is not extended to us.

While I have generally felt confident in expressing my views or conducting research about underserved communities I feel that campuses overall are changing.  There is building distrust of higher education and I think recent incidents with controversial speakers on campus and related issues are making for a more fraught environment on campus.  

After the 2016 election, I was so upset that Trump won, I noticed many of examples of how to evaluate information or lack there of came from Trump!  And it was somewhat disparaging. I try very hard not to give example that show a bias or suggest critical comment. That was hard to cure myself of-- no one called me on it, but they might have if I kept it up. 

Academic freedom is protected not by university policy but by our faculty union contract aka our collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Censorship of library materials is also prohibited by the CBA. 

We need to recognize academic freedom as part of being a librarian.

The importance of academic freedom is undervalued at best, both inside academia and out.  I think academic administrators see it as a hindrance to their performance.  I think the public and politicians don't understand the value of basic scientific research (see Jeff Flake's Wastebook).  Further, the public doesn't like to have their views and opinions challenged.  It's a battle we need to fight better.

It's hard to have fiath in academic freedom out of the gate. I gained confidence serving on University-wide committees that gave me exposure to high level administrators. Unrelateded, academic freedom should not be used as an excuse to attach marginalized populations. 

Academic freedom popped up related to my research last fall. I was part of a team pitching a grant. I needed my Dean's signature. Told them the topic and their response was NOT positive but they acknowledged it was research I had a right to do. It was almost entertaining. 

I would have liked to see more questions related to time spent in the field. Since I have only been in the field for < 5 years and at my institution for < 3 years, I feel that there is increased risk with being honest about my interests as they relate to my work.

We have an academic freedom policy, but it doesn't mention staff at all (we are not faculty). I was warned that the previous attempts to unionize staff resulted in firings, and I also work in subject areas that are subjected to institutional silencing.


My experience with compromised academic freedom has involved tone policing. As a white heterosexual woman, I am not as vulnerable as many people, so I don't want to over emphasize my experience. However, my white male colleagues routinely complain about the "threatening” tone of their female colleagues, primarily when their opinions do not represent the majority. Tone policing routinely manifests in periodic performance reviews during the tenure, promotion, or post-tenure review process. It's a very clear pattern and I strongly suspect that this is a widespread problem for librarians who are not white men.

My judgment was question on  selection of items donated to be accepted 
Often the chastisement is silent, carried out over several months, and you don't realize right away that it is connected to your incident. Also, some supervisors like adherence to their way of doing things (but don't make that clear until later). Other employees on your level may learn to stay away from you, while a few become trusted allies. It's all frustrating and I wish my supervisory people were more clear from the start.

Jeffrey Beall's (alleged) forced ouster is the most salient instance of academic freedom being threatened I can think of.

ALA and its various subunits, as well as many college/university campuses, tend to be very much left-of-center politically.  This has a chilling effect on those holding more conservative political opinions.  There is a lot of talk about diversity but this does not seem to, in practice, extend to a real embrace of political or religious diversity.

I don't know if it's based in reality, but I feel like my sense of academic freedom is influenced by the fact that I live in a very conservative state and work on projects that would probably be regarded as left-leaning by most. I am often aware of the disconnect between the supposed average political views in my state and my work.

I feel like as our administration has grown in size both inside and outside the library that I increasingly feel like there will be subtle punishments for expressing beliefs that are odd with the administration (e.g. shut out of decision making, not given opportunities, etc.) rather than explicitly punished. 

I support the reasonable limits documented by my institution; namely, "they [instructors and investigators] should be careful not to introduce into their teaching [and/or work] controversial matter which has no relation to their subject."  That's to say, with the right comes responsibility for germane application.

So many more thoughts. I've found that fear is endemic in library work. 

It seems your definition of academic freedom encompasses aspects that I don't necessarily relate to academics. This survey seems to be about diversity and it's impact on security of employment. I don't necessarily equate elements of diversity with academic freedom. I guess I take a narrower definition of academic freedom that you seem to be employing with this survey.

At my institution, we're working on librarians gaining faculty status for academic freedom. But it is difficult and awkward in this intermediate period.

I had a particularly difficult situation with a display and infringing on academic freedom. I believe I had it and it extended to a display. Administration was not as understanding. 

I have tenure. I've known pre-tenure librarians to have some anxiety. I think staff who are not faculty and don't have jobs involving the title "librarian” might answer some of these questions differently, which makes me sad.

All should be able to have a safe place in academia to share and express their beliefs and thoughts in a respectful manner while listening and considering those of others.
https://www.colgate.edu/offices-and-services/deanoffacultyoffice/currentfaculty/intellectual-property/academic-freedom-and-freedom-of-expression

As a librarian, I am always careful to keep my personal philosophy/ideas to myself. I don't want to be seen as unapproachable by students with opposing views. To this end, I try to stay politically and religiously neutral in my statements. However, I am a member of the Social Justice Council and do take a stand on racial, gender, and sexual issues. It is a difficult tightrope to walk. The one time I did open up about policies was about active shooter training. In order not to publicly embarrass the campus chief of police I mentioned in a survey that the strategy they had advocated for the library was not in line with what the FBI recommended for large open buildings like libraries, cafeterias, and auditoriums. The chief of police complained to the president and I got an informal counseling session about not following recommended procedures -- even though it was stressed that they were just recommendations and not directives.

I work at a really terrible institution, for a really terrible supervisor; i hope my answers are outliers for that reason alone.

As someone who worked on an AAUP academic freedom subcommittee, I am perplexed at how some of the described behaviors count as infringements of academic freedom.

1: Our institution's Academic Freedom Committee within the governance structure tends to consider AF in only in the classroom context. And based on our relationships with some of them, I'm sure they would not consider issues such as collection development policies to be AF matters. 2: Many of the concerns about AF relate to our administrator who is particularly focused on the "optics" of actions, social media posts, etc. Threats tend to be unspoken, implied, and forgotten by her if we later question her about them. 

My library is considering no longer requiring that faculty librarians engage in research. This is in response to a promotion cycle in which I and another colleague were (apparently) dinged for having done too much research identified as "nontraditional" (i.e. not limited to LIS only). There were inappropriate personal vendettas brought into the review process. In our current promotion process, faculty librarians have the option of choosing a track which suits their strengths/interests: Research or Service. No longer requiring any research will have a chilling effect on academic freedom by reducing support for research, period (including time available) and apparently eliminating the option to seek promotion on a Research track. I am looking for a position elsewhere but worry that discussing any of this publicly (esp. the resistance to supporting ANY research) will hurt me on the job market. We also have no formal social media policy but at least 2 colleagues are being monitored. 

Most recently I have learned that the Dean received complaints when the newspaper revealed I (with other colleagues) had signed a letter against the confirmation of Kavanaugh. The Dean however fielded all such complaints.

I feel supported in my academic freedmon at work at in general by the institution which employs me, but I do not necessarily feel that same freedmon in interactions I have outside of work. I find that I censor myself in my socail media content posting and public interactions with people as a way to avoid being targeted for harrassment and/or violence, but feel empowered to express thoughts about and in relation to academic freedom to friends and family. 

There's academic freedom, and then there is workplace politics (and supervisor/supervisee relationships). It's complicated.

I'd like to publish a new research guide on women in science (I'm the science librarian and identify as female, and am interested in supporting women in STEM). But we need to get every guide approved and I'm worried I would get raised eyebrows in response to this.

Answering these questions makes. me realize how much I take this freedom for granted

My university displays a wild mismatch between its stated policies and their application--academic freedom is not supported in general, especially at the library level.

My experience is that Universities mouth support for academic freedom and freedom of speech, but in reality, they are like every other employer in our society. They often do not follow their own policies and frequently gag faculty and other employees or ask that something not be stated, shared or published.  In this regard Universities are as phony as the nation itself. They are too concerned with being embarrased in the press or being diminished in the eyes of peer institutions to follow their own policies and procedures.  
As an adjunct, I don't have many responsibilities that place me in the line of fire for academic freedom issues.

My institution claims to uphold academic freedom, but there is a silent understanding that said freedom really only means "Freedom to uphold the 'party' line."
While I have been in libraries for a while, this is my first tenure-track position where I am starting to see the benefits of academic freedom.

I'm not sure "freedom" is the issue as much as "civility" and the ability to really listen to and respect the ideas, opinions, and positions of others.  In the 20+ years of academic librarianship I have seen this deteriorate.  I don't know if it is fear that drives the "us versus them" attitude, but we all lose when we close our ears to diverse ideas.  Perhaps this is a societal issue.  I don't see it as an age issue - I see this in people of all ages in our organization.  We may have "Academic Freedom," but we have learned to silence ourselves or else suffer at the hands of the bullies.

In the first set of questions about how I feel about my academic freedom I was answering with my current (much better) position and institution in mind.  The next set of questions that asked regarding current or previous positions I was answering with my previous (much worse) position in mind.

I don't believe that my academic and intellectual freedom is circumscribed by my institution as much as I police myself. I am in a relatively very privileged position, but having seen media coverage of activists and advocates who became targets on their campuses and online, I am afraid to step very far outside my assigned role.

Fear of speaking up about certain issues is not specific to academic freedom: non-academic employees may also be reluctant to be a whistleblower.

I do not feel unsafe in regards to academic freedom. However I am very aware those feelings are likely bolstered by the fact that I have never experienced an academic freedom conflict and most of my identities are highly privileged. I'm not sure I would feed so secure if I didn't have access to this privilege.

while there is a policy for academic feedom at my institution, it does not extend to librarians as we are not senete faculty. I am extremly concerned that we do not have AF protections given we are required to contribute to the teaching and research in the same ways as faculty. 

I am on the Faculty Senate Academic Freedom Committee, but I do not have faculty status/

It is under attack by the current administration and its disdian for truth and facts.

Was upset at the news in California.

The degree of academic freedom is directly related to the concept of faculty governance on any campus.


While my institution has a policy on academic freedom, it only applies to faculty. Librarians are considered "academic professionals" and our handbook does not provide any mention of academic freedom. I recently brought this up as an issue and it was not addressed. This is why I do not feel comfortable most of the time challenging institutional policy or speaking up or promoting library values as they are promoted at other institutions. Librarians still participate in faculty senate and have a tenure-like process, so I'm not sure why we don't have the same academic freedom policies.

Working in an academic setting people tend to assume that your political views lean towards the left. That is not always the case and sometimes it can be uncomfortable, and I sometimes hide my political views because of this. 

At my institution, my concerns about academic freedom are not specifically related to the library.  Instead, they are closely tied to my perceptions of the limitations on the academic freedom of faculty at my institution in general.

union protection affords  me a lot of protection, but even that feels like somethiing I can't totally rely on. I am aware of the power university administration has over me, and it is primarily their threats that have affected my well-being. When the president of the university tells people "I don't like [name redacted]," that can be really scary. Because i am aware that people in power can break the law and get away with it.

I find students do not have a clear understanding of academic freedom.

As a staff member in an at-will employment state at an academic institution, academic freedom means something different. However, I think it is as important to grant that freedom and encourage dialogue among all members of the university in this area as much as is expected by the university in all other areas (fundraising, promotion, sports support, etc.)

I consciously and deliberately self-censor a great deal. There are wide ranges of topics I avoid talking about. I even refrained from voting in my first year on the job.

As an academic appointment, who is not considered faculty, my organization believes "academic freedom is not a good fit” for librarians. 

To flourish one always has to be tactful and think first, before speaking.
I think it would have been useful at the outset for you to define academic freedom. I find that some of my colleagues misconstrue academic freedom as simply allowing them to do whatever they want to do, and that's not the definition of academic freedom that I have learned.

My academic freedom has not felt theeatened in my current position, but that has been entirely dependent on the values and trust of leadership. It would certainly be nice to have more formalized protections.


My biggest concern is that who I am, what I believe, and my goals as a citizen open me up for attack, retribution, etc. because I live in a very conservative area and work at a very conservative institution.

We should push the boundary more often. 

My colleagues and I created a resarch guide in conjunction with a midterm election literacy panel on our campus and were told that the guide was "unbalanced".  We were then given the option to make specific changes or take down the entire guide.  We did not agree with the specific changes being asked of us and decided to take the whole guide down.  

Most of the unfreedoms I experience are internal to the library. It is very conservative in comparison to the university. I don't mean politically, I mean in risk taking and allowing a wide range of debate and speech. I have faced repercussions for things that are exceedingly trivial.
I have been in the profession a long time and even though I have the protection of faculty status, I still feel unable to freely express myself. I keep this job because I love parts of what I do and for the pay and benefits, but the climate where I work is not for the faint of heart. I have been harassed by my admins and found that there are no resources to turn to so I sm on my own. I keep records of their actions but there is no one to complain to. One higher up called me in a couple of years ago after I formally commented on questionable activities by by admins and when I told him what is happening said, "That is unethical!" But that was all I ever heard about it and I still work every day with it still not good there. My husband's job is good so I am here with him. We make good money finally so I am sticking it out in my job despite the lack of academic freedom.

A necessity for librarians to fulfill their responsibilities/mission
I feel that sometimes academic freedom can be used to allow faculty to teach outside the curriculum in ways that are not helpful to students. For example, if certain skills or knowledge has been laddered through other courses, some concepts and skills need to be taught for the student to be able to move forward through each course. Sometimes these skills or concepts are not taught because the faculty member didn't think they were important. In my experience, this happens quite often with information literacy skills and there can even be push-back from faculty on including it in the curriculum.

I feel academic freedom is at risk.

The previous library that I work at definitely had issues with academic freedom; they had a policy where all presentations needed to be vetted by administration before being presented. But generally, I find academic freedom complaints are vehicles for fascists and conspiracy theorists to spread their propaganda; e.g. anti-vaxxers, HIV/AIDS conspiracy theorists, "white nationalists," "teaching the controversy." Their intentions are not a free, fair, and scholarly debate about the topic, but to spread their message as much as possible regardless of the facts. It is unfortunate so many of us are unable to distinguish between academic freedom and propaganda.

While I have not experienced direct formal reprimands or prohibitions, I definitely feel pressure within my institution to conform and not be too proactive - that's reserved for faculty.

Most of the limits on academic freedom that I've encountered have been in relation to workplace labor and employment policies. As a temporary employee, I am afraid to advocate for better pay and/or longer term contracts because I am afraid to lose my current position, and I am afraid to get on someone's shit list when it comes time to hire for my position permanently (as we haven't been hiring the internal candidate lately). 

The demographic questions might be more useful with more info about the home institution or other factors related to place? I have a lot of strong indications of privilege, and many of those align very closely to the historic and current demographics of my institution. That has to be giving me even more perceived and real protections.

I think a lot of people are confused about academic freedom. My problems have been when other people claim it as a reason not to follow things like LubGuides templates. Being a noncollaborative jerk is not covered. 

my sense of my own academic freedom is also affected by how my peers are treated; their stories about negative experiences they've had at work have had a huge effect on my own sense of safety/security/liberty.

As public employees in my state (a right-to-work state), we are made deeply and repeatedly aware of scrutiny by the public and legislature of every action.  Every effort is made by me and my colleagues not to offend in our official actions, and to be very clearly not at work if we're making politically sensitive statements or engaging in any action that can be interpreted as political.

As a librarian without faculty status, I don't feel academic freedom extends to me.

not about academic freedom, but you were so conscientious about using the term "not listed, self-identify" on one of the categories, but then you used the term "other" for the rest of the questions. "other" implies otherness or being different, so you may want to consider sticking with "not listed, self-ifentify" instead of using a term that could imply a sense of being the other or otherness

At my university librarians are in a weird gray area quasi-faculty quasi-staff role. Academic freedom has actually been a big issue that's come up in our union's bargaining recently as it's not clearly defined. On the one hand, I wouldn't really mind being in a regular staff position with no expectation of academic freedom or academic participation. But it feels like our library leadership wants it both ways: librarians that will be active in high-profile research, publishing, professional and community orgs, etc., but also never say anything leadership doesn't like. And what gets considered "controversial" at my library often seems pretty unpredictable. It's not necessarily based on politics or what would be considered controversial in the world at large, but more on personal feelings by library leadership.

My institution embraces social justice, but the library does not. I have been here for just under a year and a half, and in that time I have contributed a great deal to the community, but it is lost in the micromanaging by the dean. The document we sign with our responsibilities and goals is out of line with the union contract, but the union has no idea how to handle librarians, since we are not instructors of record.