Institutions of higher education are charged to both investigate truth as well as communicate truth to its constituents and communities. To do this, researchers and teachers rely upon the existence of academic freedom and free expression. Multiple external events and policies have produced a good deal of stress upon these two primary principles, particularly free expression. In this workshop, we describe how three senior leaders at a Christian liberal arts institution worked collaboratively with students, faculty, staff, and board members to produce the college’s first Freedom of Expression statement. Presenters will detail how they captured concerns and priorities from constituents, utilized an AI platform to analyze comments, reflected on this analysis, and captured feedback on drafts to create a document that details freedom of expression in the context of the institution’s mission, virtues, and aspirations. This work also created a series of workshops where community members could understand how the institution would use the freedom of expression statement via case-scenario discussions. The session will include an interactive component incorporating sample scenarios from the workshops.
Rebekah Starkenburg, Vice President of Student Formation and Dean of Students, Hope College (MI)
Sonja Trent-Brown, Vice President for Culture and Inclusive Excellence, Hope College (MI)
Chair: Gerald Griffin, Provost, Hope College (MI)