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Free Speech in Higher Education

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Author: Cheve Tolbert

Andrew Kloster Gives Good Advice: First Amendment Rights

Andrew Kloster, a legal colleague at the Heritage Foundation, gives good advice to students about their First Amendment rights. Speaking to students on a university in Oklahoma Kloster addresses many issues with colleges restricting Free Speech.

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Posted on April 18, 2013April 21, 2013 by Cheve TolbertPosted in Legal

Kentucky On the Fence for Free Speech

Kentucky has recently been consider a risk for free speech on campus. It has gotten a “yellow” raiting which is one away from a bad rating. The student organizations decided to organize and build a free speecch wall on campus.

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Posted on April 18, 2013 by Cheve TolbertPosted in Uncategorized

Fraternity / Sorority sign ban in Radford

City ordinances specifically ban the display of 'Greek' signs on houses in Radford's university district.
The Problem is that any government unit’s regulation of the specific content of speech is subject to strict scrutiny review by the courts. Under this review, government must prove that a regulation is:
1) necessary to achieve a “compelling state interest“ 
2) “narrowly tailored” to achieve this compelling interest; a
3) uses the “least restrictive means” to achieve the purpose.   
 Ordinances 120.1-64 and 120.1- 239 fail this test. 

Academic Freedom

Teddy Roosevelt picture from Duke University.
Teddy Roosevelt speaks at Duke University, 1903: “You stand for Academic Freedom, for the right of private judgment, for a duty more incumbent upon the scholar than upon any other man, to tell the truth as he sees it, to claim for himself and to give to others the largest liberty in seeking after the truth.” - US President Teddy Roosevelt, 1903

Current events

  • UTRGV faculty raise concerns over academic freedom due to new Texas law - MyRGV.com
    October 16, 2026
    UTRGV faculty raise concerns over academic freedom due to new Texas law  MyRGV.com
  • WashU Expert: ICC sanctions threaten academic freedom, legal education - WashU
    October 15, 2026
    WashU Expert: ICC sanctions threaten academic freedom, legal education  WashU
  • Academic freedom in danger, scholar cautions - NB Media Co-op
    October 15, 2026
    Academic freedom in danger, scholar cautions  NB Media Co-op
  • Progressive solons file bill, resolutions on academic freedom - Bulatlat
    October 15, 2026
    Progressive solons file bill, resolutions on academic freedom  Bulatlat
  • Academic freedom: The freedom to teach, discover, and serve - Virginia Tech News
    October 14, 2026
    Academic freedom: The freedom to teach, discover, and serve  Virginia Tech News
  • SU faculty panel warns academic freedom is under pressure - The NewsHouse
    October 8, 2026
    SU faculty panel warns academic freedom is under pressure  The NewsHouse
  • God, Man, and Academic Freedom – Robert P. George - Law & Liberty
    October 1, 2026
    God, Man, and Academic Freedom – Robert P. George  Law & Liberty
  • Think Higher Education Has Clear Standards for Academic Freedom? Think Again. - Education Next
    October 1, 2026
    Think Higher Education Has Clear Standards for Academic Freedom? Think Again.  Education Next
  • UT professor, others speak on academic freedom concerns - The Daily Texan
    September 28, 2026
    UT professor, others speak on academic freedom concerns  The Daily Texan
  • University workers from across Texas rally over academic freedom, curriculum changes - KVUE
    September 25, 2026
    University workers from across Texas rally over academic freedom, curriculum changes  KVUE

More current events

From shuttered print editions to firings, student journalists clash with universities March 21, 2026 https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Education/2026/0321/student-journalism-first-amendment

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