The Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate passed a resolution on Sunday that called for students to have the ability to conduct coursework without fear of ideological discrimination.
The resolution was introduced by the Tufts Academic Freedom Project (TAFP), a sub-group of the Tufts Republicans.
According to the resolution and its amendments, students should be able to conduct coursework without fear of ideological discrimination by their superiors and faculty should be committed to providing a forum for multiple viewpoints regarding unsettled issues. The amendment also said that hiring and firing process for faculty should be free from ideological discrimination.
"Although instructors are allowed to express their own personal views, they are serving as educators in the classroom, not as advocators of their personal ideology," TCU Senator freshman Diler Erdengiz said. "Therefore, it is important to communicate to the students that there is an alternative view and that the professor has no problem with discussing these alternative view[s]."
The resolution passed with near unanimity.
Not all senators were content with TAFP's presentation, however.
"The failure of [Balkind] and anyone else in his group to present even one case where a liberal student was allegedly discriminated against by a conservative professor caused me to wonder whether or not there was a larger political motivation at play here than [Balkind] and others let on," TCU Parliamentarian sophomore Brody Hale said.
The majority of the Senate was supportive.
"Academic freedom is the life blood, the heart, of the University," TCU Senator senior Matt Pohl said.
"This resolution upholds and highlights the values sought after by Tufts faculty, administration, and students," TCU Senator sophomore Andrew Caplan said. "[It includes] values that uphold equality in the classroom regarding ideas, ideologies and opinions."
Pohl explained the reasoning behind the controversy of such a resolution.
"It is very inappropriate for a professor to deliberately grandstand or to personally attack those who think differently," he said. "An opinion that may cause debate in the classroom can be very beneficial so long as the classroom can serve as an open forum for all opinions."
"Providing a forum for the students to discuss multiple viewpoints regarding unsettled issues is very important in that it gives students the comfort and safe environment in which to express their opinions even if their opinions do not necessarily coincide with those of the instructor," Erdengiz said.
Balkind said that the resolution's passage was a significant victory for the TAFP in creating awareness about the condition of academic freedom on campus, which he perceives to be in jeopardy.
The TAFP had requested a similar appeal during a Senate meeting last year but the Executive Board of the Senate, chose not to vote on TAFP's appeal because it was too closely tied to national legislation. According to Baumwoll, recent TCU presidents have been wary of involvement in issues closely tied to national discussion.
"We were elected solely on our feelings and our stances on issues here at Tufts, not about national issues," Baumwoll said. "We don't have the authority to make decisions about such national issues,"
Baumwoll said that because TAFP changed its resolution to be in accordance with the Tufts Policy on Academic Freedom since its Spring 2004 attempt, it was deemed appropriate for Senate review.
The Senate's vote on the resolution, however, merely represented a show of student support and affirms the Senate's position on an issue.
"While our resolutions do enable students on campus the leverage power of having the TCU Senate's stamp of approval on an issue, they do not enact actual legislation," Caplan said.
Balkind said that members of the TAFP are actively working with professors to discuss teaching practices, their effects on students, and the implications of reform on the faculty's own academic freedom.
"The resolution's passage will be a means of starting conversations about this issue across campus," he said.
According to Balklind, TAFP's objectives extend beyond the passed resolution. "A lot of [professors] are interested and would like to talk to us about it," he said.
Balkind said he envisions there to be a forum for faculty held sometime after spring break.
