Last week my Open Campus peers and I were seated in a chapel in downtown Austin for a panel discussion about post-secondary education in Texas.

The event began with a pre-recorded video from Glen Powell, Austin-native and Hollywood heartthrob of the moment reminding the audience we’d be hearing people and perspectives we might not agree with, and we should “be civil.” This was amusing, given we were all there to listen to administrators discuss how higher education in Texas could “get its mojo back.”

This video played ahead of all TribFest panels, but in this one, it became part of the conversation.

“20 years ago, that would not have been necessary,” said Tedd Mitchell, chancellor of the Texas Tech University System.

Northwest Vista College President Amy Bosley agreed. Today it’s “very risky to be wrong” because smartphones are recording everything. College used to be “This kind of bubble of a place where you can explore ideas and talk about them and be wrong and grow. That's really gone now,” she said. 

Her school recently had a speaker from the University of Chicago talk with faculty about free expression and how to create a classroom where inquiry is prioritized.

Faculty were tasked with examining their curriculum — are students being asked to examine multiple viewpoints before picking a side? 

“Our curriculum is very much set up the other way, which is, pick an idea, go find the research to support that idea, get up and defend that idea,” she said.

The issue of free speech on college campuses — who has a right to it, how administrators police it — is not new. But it’s certainly news: our partners and outlets across the country have written countless stories about this year’s student protests, activism and the fallout that comes with it. Last month, Kate McGee wrote about University of Texas at Austin student who is suing his school for violating his First Amendment rights when he was arrested during a pro-Palestinian demonstration on campus this spring. He faces disciplinary actions from the school outside of this lawsuit.

Stories like this aren’t going away. Are there angles or ideas our network should be focusing on? Let me know at [email protected].

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Elsewhere on Open Campus

In North Carolina: Brianna Atkinson detailed the latest impacts of the UNC system’s DEI ban. So far 59 positions related to diversity, equity and inclusion have been eliminated, though it’s not clear if all those positions were filled.

In Texas: Shomial Ahmad wrote about some interesting enrollment trends at Texas Christian University. Since 2018, the percentage of out-of-state students going to TCU eclipsed the percentage of in-state students, and enrollment hasn’t looked back since.

In Indianapolis: Earlier this year, Claire Rafford wrote about Martin University’s child care center, which offered its services free to student parents. Now, the school is launching a new preschool on campus free and open to any 3 and 4-year-olds.

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