Retired Presidents Join Campaign To Fight Political Interference With College Campuses

More than 100 retired college and university presidents have joined a national campaign called “Champions of Higher Education” to fight against political interference and various forms of government overreach into American campuses, a trend that has intensified in several states over the past few years.

First reported in USA Today, the effort is being led by PEN America with collaboration from Campus Compact and underwriting provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Lumina Foundation, and the Henry R. Luce Foundation. So far, 120 former presidents have signed on, representing 36 states (in the interest of full disclosure, I am one of them), and efforts are continuing to recruit more signatures.

The Champions of Higher Education Statement of Purpose and the full list of signatories can be found here. Stimulated by concerns about the wave of recent state legislative efforts to restrict classroom teaching about topics including race and gender and to defund diversity, inclusion and equity (DEI) programs, the group has issued the statement as a first step in speaking out and opposing the censorship that has crept into American classrooms at an alarming rate.

According to the group’s statement, laws restricting what can be taught in classrooms have already taken effect in seven states and more than 100 additional bills in 30 states have either been proposed or are currently pending. These initiatives mirror the attacks that many state legislatures have mounted on the K-12 curricula and the books that can be available in public libraries.

By enlisting the support of retired presidents, the initiative is intended to raise public awareness and concerns about the gag orders, censorship, and other political intrusions into college classrooms that might be difficult for sitting presidents – particularly at public institutions – to voice. It’s an opportunity for the former campus leaders to defend the importance of free expression and the independence of colleges from political meddling, using the relationships they’ve formed with funders, legislators, policy makers, and community leaders over the years.

According to its statement of purpose, the new group will extend its efforts to “educate the public about these threats to higher education, amplifying the free expression framework developed by PEN America via op-eds and speaking engagements, both nationally and in the local and campus communities where we have the most influence.”

Commenting on the launch of the new initiative, PEN’s Senior Manager for Free Expression and Education, Jeremy Young, said “Today’s announcement of the Champions of Higher Education demonstrates that higher education is ready and willing to defend itself against state government censorship. This is not just a statement, but a working initiative: former leaders of colleges and universities large and small, private and public, in red states and blue states, are committing to speak out about higher education’s critical role in a robust democracy and the vital importance of an environment of intellectual freedom on campus, free from political interference, in maintaining that role.”