A MOVE TOWARD FREE SPEECH AND NEUTRALITY: UNC Chapel Hill Board of Trustees pass free speech and student fees resolutions.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Board of Trustees (BOT) unanimously passed two resolutions at its July 27 meeting.

The Freedom of Speech resolution was introduced and read by BOT member Dr. Perrin Jones.

“The Board of Trustees reaffirms its commitment to academic freedom as embodied in the Chicago principles and the Kalven Committee Report on the University’s Role in Political and Social Action, which is attached hereto as Attachment A,” the Resolution on the Affirmation of Academic Freedom and Freedom of Speech reads in part.

The University of Chicago Kalven Committee Report on the University’s Role in Political and Social Action outlines how colleges and universities should stay neutral and abstain from political or social commentary in their official capacities.

In an interview with North State Journal, Jones said the Kalven Report was added because “we felt like institutional neutrality was of paramount importance for academic freedom to exist on campus.”

“The reason we passed the resolution is we felt it was important for the board to show that the principles of academic freedom are of paramount importance to us and to the university,” Jones told NSJ.

During the meeting, Jones remarked that the people who entrusted them to lead the university feel that “Carolina has lost her way” and that “It is no longer centered on the pursuit of knowledge and exposure to the greatest ideas and discoveries of the human mind and an environment that nurtures open debate and inquiry.”

“They are concerned our students are learning what to think rather than how to think,” Jones said.

After brief remarks, the resolution passed unanimously.

The student fees resolution was brought forward and read by BOT member Teresa Artis Neal.

The resolution on “Viewpoint-Neutral Access to Mandatory Student Fees” states that “the Chancellor shall direct appropriate University personnel to develop and issue policy requiring that the Senates of the Undergraduate Student Government and the Graduate and Professional Students Government must appropriate all student fees in a viewpoint-neutral manner, including any necessary procedures required to ensure compliance with this requirement.”

Neal said her resolution was also aligned with promoting academic freedom and expression.

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