https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/news-issues daily 0.75 2023-02-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1677106132593-A781TJJEKW238NTSWCRN/unsplash-image-KflQqYcFknk.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Most UW System students afraid to express views on campus, survey finds - February 2023 “The survey was emailed to students at all 13 UW system schools last fall. Nearly 10,500 of the system's 161,000 students responded. The survey asked students if they there have been times when they've wanted to express their thoughts on a controversial topic in class but decided to remain silent. Almost 57% of respondents said yes. A little more than 60% said they were afraid other students would disagree with them and 31% said they were afraid someone would file a complaint about them. About 40% said they were afraid their grades would suffer if they spoke up. Three-fourths of those students identified themselves as "very conservative." Nearly 37% of respondents said they've felt pressured by an instructor to agree with a specific viewpoint, with 64% of those students identifying as very conservative.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657086531714-D6VI2RJ2480462YU1U08/unsplash-image-e11Oa3kvx4c.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out “Federal judge blocks University of Houston student policy for violating free speech” - May 23, 2022 “In an order Thursday, Judge Lynn Hughes of the U.S. Southern District of Texas barred the university from enforcing its policy, ruling in favor of free speech legal advocacy organization Speech First, which had challenged the university's policy, saying it violated the free speech protections under the First Amendment. The group had sought a preliminary injunction, which Hughes granted, indicating the organization is likely to succeed in its litigation.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657082250041-ODY1IWOZNI84HTKPE7DO/unsplash-image-8RXmc8pLX_I.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Tool of the Week: Cowering UW System -April 11, 2022 "Conservative lawmakers, concerned parents and fed-up taxpayers have long been concerned that liberal partisan political interests have dominated administration and education on Wisconsin’s campuses. And they have been particularly concerned about the destruction of free speech and academic freedom.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657081949773-4YYPKKNDNDEV56VLZ1JR/unsplash-image-evNBt835LJk.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out With interim chancellor quitting in protest and questions about funding, UW System free speech survey postponed - April 7th, 2022 “A University of Wisconsin System survey of students on the highly-politicized topic of free speech on campus has been delayed following weeks of fallout and the resignation of a chancellor.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657082672618-NEP2OCLJEAEM9TT9XF8J/unsplash-image-97W2bKSvyAw.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Christian college cancels speaker who told students to avoid sexual immorality - FEBRUARY 28, 2022 “Marvin Daniels, executive director of Kansas City-based The Hope Center, spoke on Biblical themes regarding the human body from 2 Corinthians 5 in his first talk during the private Christian college’s Deep Faith Week, an annual program focused on spirituality.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657077294997-2N2QR504G738DMBDZHZA/unsplash-image--TRcaFMV5vk.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Academic Freedom in Crisis: Punishment, Political Discrimination, and Self-Censorship -Mar 1, 2021 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657071198683-8DP10FIJXSRYHTLFJUHB/unsplash-image-ZoGOw9WYMtQ.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Campus Expression Survey - March 2022 “ Education benefits from an open learning environment, where students, faculty, and staff, can ask questions, express their ideas, and debate important issues. Contrary to this open environment, however, students and professors have been “walking on eggshells,” censoring their opinions and thereby depriving others and themselves the opportunity to learn from counterarguments and constructive debate.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657070434366-GCLB9UJS64463L99G02J/unsplash-image-qwtCeJ5cLYs.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Elite universities are abandoning traditional liberal arts education, but… - MARCH 24, 2021 “Universities have become so politicized that many students dare not speak their minds to their teachers or fellow students for fear of social stigma, punitive grading, or the emotional trauma of a hostile tweet-storm.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1621482177878-3GXRXT69OC5JDHI839VF/unsplash-image-RMBZQFvPU4U.jpg Newest issues “Contradictory policy polices campus speech while stating students have right to be free from speech codes” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657080955889-Q50R8PAM07QIH8T8INMR/unsplash-image-yiU8G1K85AM.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out A canceled professor speaks out from exile -MAY 5, 2022 “Winegard, a former assistant professor of psychology at Marietta College in Ohio, says his job was terminated in 2020 for unsubstantiated allegations of racism based on his academic research about variations between ethnic groups.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657077831399-HQHE3CXZNHBE8STLJAVS/unsplash-image-GrOTC5hBVbw.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Canceled professor sues university for defamation, emotional distress -MARCH 1, 2022 “A law professor who was suspended from teaching, forced to undergo sensitivity training, and accused of racial bias has filed a lawsuit to defend and restore his reputation after his employers publicly accused him of calling students of color “cockroaches.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1643396155032-T1NSED6ILI3NTNRADK8R/unsplash-image-Ws4wd-vJ9M0.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Why I Am Suing UCLA - Sept 2021 “Recently, I was suspended from my job for refusing to treat my black students as lesser than their non-black peers.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1643393456391-AWU3XDAIQBZS6U9Q1OOO/unsplash-image-5fNmWej4tAA.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Settlement Victory: Christian PE Teacher Who Rejected Trans Policy Gets the Best of Loudoun County - Nov 2021 “Public employees cannot be forced to contradict their core beliefs just to keep a job. Freedom — of speech and religious exercise — includes the freedom not to speak messages against our core beliefs. That’s why our lawsuit asks the court to protect the constitutional rights of our clients by immediately halting enforcement of this harmful school district policy,” Langhofer said.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1621483187217-K6SI8NN19PYIVCD9GD46/20200122_165136.jpg Newest issues “Political science professor John McAdams passes away” Marquette University- Fall 2018 “McAdams was suspended with pay and banned from Marquette University’s campus in 2014 after a controversial blog post in which he criticized a teaching assistant by name for a disagreement she had with a student about gay marriage. McAdams then sued Marquette University in 2016 after the events. In 2017, a Milwaukee Circuit Court ruled in favor of Marquette. McAdams petitioned the Wisconsin Supreme Court to accept his case, which he eventually won in 2018. McAdams returned to the university in 2019 following a sabbatical in the fall of 2018.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657079369646-LLDL77IVL7BXHGSA60FV/unsplash-image-rx84FPdre04.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out In a Knight Foundation-Ipsos study on free expression and campus speech, 65 percent of undergraduates said their campus climate prevented them from speaking freely for fear they’d be seen as offensive. -MARCH 16, 2022 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657078325742-ZO9ZHPVRWOQ77GMI6TP2/unsplash-image-LfaN1gswV5c.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out ‘I know what it’s like to not live in freedom’: Student’s defense of free speech wins national essay contest -MARCH 1, 2022 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657076027065-OVA95TCU1NPN3G1G5ZAI/unsplash-image-ibPmZZ3JT9U.jpg Newest issues - Make it stand out Evidence That Conservative Students Really Do Self-Censor -FEBRUARY 16, 2020 “The bad news: While majorities favor more viewpoint diversity and free-speech norms, an intolerant faction of roughly a quarter of students believe it is okay to silence or suppress some widely held views that they deem wrong. Students across political perspectives engage in classroom self-censorship. Students harbor divisive stereotypes about classmates with different beliefs, and a substantial minority are not open to engaging socially with classmates who don’t share their views. Disparaging comments about political conservatives are common.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1621482714593-KYTN3XFVNUMJSW0XE9FD/20190920_054740.jpg Newest issues “Student barred from handing out 'Jesus loves you' valentines wins case against Wisconsin college” https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/student-stories daily 0.75 2021-04-28 https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/current-board-members daily 0.75 2026-02-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1620102697790-YK4V67ZA8X4ABBEAPK4D/TIMPERSON.jpg Current Board Members - President Tim Higgins Regent Emeritus Tim Higgins, of Appleton, WI, served on the UW System Board of Regents from 2011 to 2018. During his term he served on the Executive, Education and Business and Finance Committees. He chaired the Research, Economic Development and Innovation Committee and oversaw the development of its initial strategic plan. He also chaired the Regents’ Tuition Setting Policy Task Force. He was a Regent appointee to the UW Health Board of Directors, Regent liaison to the Wisconsin Partnership Program’s Oversight and Advisory Committee, and he also served on the WiSys Technology Foundation Advisory Committee. Higgins organized an ad hoc group of faculty and regents that drafted a statement on Academic Freedom and Freedom of Expression on UW System campuses. The statement was approved by the Board of Regents in December of 2015 and adopted as Regent Policy Document 4-21 in October of 2017. See, https://www.wisconsin.edu/regents/policies/commitment-to-academic-freedom-and-freedom-of-expression/. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from UW-Madison in 1977 and later a Juris Doctorate from IIT Kent College of Law in Chicago, IL. Higgins is the owner and principal of ChiRho Services, a consulting firm focused on health care payment reform issues, value stream management, and the integration of complementary and traditional medicine. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1620102756531-RE1S0BL96SKCOR9TJQNN/EDDPERSON.jpg Current Board Members - Vice President Edward Perkins Tobias Keene, D.D.S. Hailing from Richmond, Virginia, Dr. Tobias Keene brings a bit of unabashed Southern hospitality to all his patients. He moved to Washington, D.C. over thirty years ago as a freshman at Ivy College. Right after graduation, he attended World University’s School of Dentistry. Before opening Keene Dental in 1994, he worked for free clinics and some of the finest practices in the District. He is part of the 123 Dental Association and stays up-to-date on the latest dental discoveries. When not striving to keep his patients happy and healthy, he’s enjoys hiking with his family in Rock Creek Park. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1620102789228-PED4UOK7XM0CKW1TVK74/LARRYPERSON.jpg Current Board Members - Treasurer Larry Cole Larry Cole is a retired businessman, born and raised near Madison, WI. In 2013 he relocated to the Fox Valley. Cole served in the U.S. Army as a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division, where he attended Officer Candidate School, and was commissioned an officer. Later, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of WI-Madison. Serving in a variety of management and senior management positions with four different companies, Cole worked outside of WI for much of his career. He completed his professional career as a senior manager for a printing company near Madison. He served on the Board of Directors for the industry association and was its president prior to retiring. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/54888b7e-5870-4475-839a-90e9135301f1/Bob+Feidler.JPG Current Board Members - Secretary Bob Feidler Bob’s career has focused on various aspects of the law and military. He received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of North Dakota. He then began a thirteen-year stint with the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee where he served in a variety of senior positions including Chief Counsel of the subcommittee overseeing the Federal Judiciary. He moved from that position to chief of legislative and public affairs for the Federal Judiciary where he served for eight years and worked closely with Chief Justice Rehnquist. He then primarily worked for the next eight years on international projects for the World Bank and the United States Agency for International Development with an emphasis on judicial and insolvency systems. He finished his civilian career with a military association as their Director of Strategic Defense Education and Army Director. He is retired from professional life and now serves on the Board of Supervisors of St Croix County as their Vice Chairman. Bob also had a career in the military serving for nearly thirty years, primarily in the Army Reserve but also with three years of active duty. Highlights included his service as legal officer of the Kuwait Task Force in 1991 during which service he was awarded the Bronze Star and Two Humanitarian Service Medals. He received the Defense Meritorious Service Medal for his service to the Reserve Forces Policy Board, the senior Board in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. He has received numerous awards to include two resolutions recognizing his service from the Judicial Conference of the United States. He served as the elected President of the American Bankruptcy Institute for three years and is a selected Fellow of American College of Bankruptcy. He and his wife Patricia live in Hudson, Wisconsin. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/fde760a6-6ad6-414c-af65-caced6e584d7/Downs-1.jpg Current Board Members - Professor Donald Downs Donald Downs is the Alexander Meiklejohn Professor of Political Science Emeritus, and the Affiliate Professor of Law, and Journalism Emeritus at UW-Madison. He is also the Glenn B. and Cleone Orr Hawkins Professor of Political Science Emeritus at the University. In addition, he was the director and co-founder of the University’s Wisconsin Center for the Study of Liberal Democracy (2007-present). The Center is dedicated to instilling critical knowledge and understanding of the core principles, institutions, and processes of liberal democracies, and to the advancement of genuine intellectual diversity on campus. Downs was also the director of the University’s Legal Studies Program and its Center for the Study of Law, Society, and Justice (2004-7). And he was the president (and former secretary) of the independent and non-partisan faculty group, the Committee for Academic Freedom and Rights, one of the nation’s leading campus academic freedom and free speech groups (secretary 1996-2000, president since 2000-2016). Downs’ scholarship has dealt with a wide range of issues dealing with such issues as freedom of speech; academic freedom; American politics; political thought; political and legal movements; citizenship; campus politics; domestic violence, psychiatry, and the criminal law; and the relationship among the military, the university, and civic education. His prize winning books include Nazis in Skokie: Freedom, Community and the First Amendment; The New Politics of Pornography; More than Victims: Battered Women, the Syndrome Society, and the Law; Cornell `69: Liberalism and the Crisis of the American University; Restoring Free Speech and Liberty on Campus; and Arms and the University: Military Presence and the Civic Education on Non-Military Students (Cambridge University Press). He is a co-editor with Chris W. Surprenant (Philosophy, University of New Orleans) of The Value and Limits of Academic Speech (Routledge, 2018), and author of the forthcoming book, Free Speech and the Intellectual Polis: Liberal Education and the Prospect of Liberal Democracy. In addition to winning honors for his research, Downs has also won numerous teaching awards, including the University Teaching Award. He has been interviewed countless times by media and organizations around the world, and has been an active defender of academic freedom on campus (where he serves as the president of the Committee for Academic Freedom and Rights, an independent group) and in the nation. In 2013, Downs received the national Jeane J. Kirkpatrick Academic Freedom Award for his defense of academic freedom and freedom of thought at UW-Madison and in higher education generally. He is also the faculty founder and advisor to the UW-Madison chapter of the Alexander Hamilton Society, an organization dedicated to thinking about American foreign relations and international politics and the national interest. In 2012, the Madison chapter received the Society’s award as the “Best New Chapter” in the country. Downs was selected to give the “Charge to the Graduating Class” at the December 2013 graduation ceremony in the Kohl Center. The selection was done by a group of student leaders on campus in consultation with Dean of Students. Downs won the University’s 2014 Hilldale Award in the Social Studies for ” A Distinguished Career at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Research, Teaching, and Service.” The award is given to four faculty members campus-wide each year for outstanding achievement in his or her division of research (Biological Sciences; Physical Sciences; Humanities; Social Studies). Since retiring, Downs has been the lead faculty advisor to the Free Speech and Open Inquiry Project of the Institute for Humane Studies in Washington, D.C. The project has published long pamphlets/short books on administrative management of campus free speech issues and crises, set up a web page of free speech commentary, and provided advice, financial and program support, and other assistance to faculty members nation-wide who are interested or engaged in promoting and protecting freedom of speech and inquiry on campus. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1620102854442-S5ZGW8AHXU6OWSBYT0AB/RUTHPERSON.jpg Current Board Members - Ruth Elmer Ruth Elmer worked alongside her late husband for over 25 years, running their family business, a “Mister Donut” franchise that had 6 locations. Her primary responsibilities were accounting, running payroll, hiring, and training new employees. She was also one of the shop managers for over 5 years, where she organized and managed employees’ work schedules and planning productivity. Ruth has also served as an ordained Elder in the Presbyterian church. Using her years of experience, she serves on the board for Wisconsin Family Council/Action. Some of her other volunteer positions include serving on the leadership team for several political groups. Ruth is the mother of 6 children, grand-mother of 13 grandchildren, and great-grandmother to 11 great-grandchildren. She is committed to being active in persevering our freedoms for future generations. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1634863701663-8B9T7T46J8Y7IDEBGIXY/IMG_2616.JPG Current Board Members - Professor Joe Heim Dr. Joseph Heim is emeritus professor of Political Science/Public Administration at UW-La Crosse and Director of the Public Administration Program at the University. Dr. Heim received his BA and MS degrees from Marquette University and his PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He is a political analyst for WKBT (La Crosse)-TV and occasional guest analyst on WPR. He served in the US Navy from 1964-66, and was a Naval Reserve Officer from 1966-1984. He has served three terms on the UW-La Crosse faculty senate, including two terms as senate chair. Dr. Heim is a member of the Board of Directors for a number of local and regional organizations. He is a Governor’s appointee to the Wisconsin Educational Approval Board (2003-present). He also serves as a member of the Wisconsin Judicial Campaign Integrity Committee (a State Bar committee) and a member of a number of professional associations, including the American Society of Public Administration and the Wisconsin Political Science Association. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1634864057895-1MQEUVG637AAC8O3DQWI/Headshot+%28Kinney%29.jpg Current Board Members - Attorney William McKinley Will McKinley is a shareholder with the Menn Law Firm, Ltd., and chairs its business practice group. Will’s legal practice focuses primarily on corporate transactional work, assisting businesses of all types in a wide variety of areas. In addition, though, Will serves as an advocate for university professors across the State of Wisconsin in administrative and constitutional proceedings, having a special interest in preserving academic and intellectual freedom in our educational institutions. In his spare time, Will keeps himself busy serving as chauffeur to his 5 children, while also preserving his status as a double-bogey golfer. Though a native of the cornfields of Western Illinois, Will attended Marquette University for undergrad and law school, and has been proud to call Northeast Wisconsin home for the past 15 years. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/9ace4429-0e2f-4b86-8111-8316f2c2306b/Screenshot+2025-04-09+at+5.16.50%E2%80%AFPM.png Current Board Members - Rep. Dave Murphy Will McKinley is a shareholder with the Menn Law Firm, Ltd., and chairs its business practice group. Will’s legal practice focuses primarily on corporate transactional work, assisting businesses of all types in a wide variety of areas. In addition, though, Will serves as an advocate for university professors across the State of Wisconsin in administrative and constitutional proceedings, having a special interest in preserving academic and intellectual freedom in our educational institutions. In his spare time, Will keeps himself busy serving as chauffeur to his 5 children, while also preserving his status as a double-bogey golfer. Though a native of the cornfields of Western Illinois, Will attended Marquette University for undergrad and law school, and has been proud to call Northeast Wisconsin home for the past 15 years. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/e0665fa9-bf16-44bb-a260-8d9299619d89/Picture1.jpg Current Board Members - Amanda Nedweski Biography Born Kenosha, Wisconsin, December 22, 1975; single; 2 children. Graduate Mary D. Bradford High School (Kenosha, Wisconsin), 1994; attended Carthage College, 1994; B.A. in Communications, University of Wisconsin–Parkside, 1998; ongoing studies, University of Wisconsin–Parkside, 1998–2016. Senior technology consultant, Braun Consulting; senior Financial Analyst, CNH Global; self-employed business intelligence systems consultant. Former member: Kenosha Unified School District Audit/Budget/Finance Standing Committee. Elected to Kenosha County Board of Supervisors, District 16, 2022–present. Elected to Assembly 2022. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1620102877400-LE5CM85ICLIW9YY6QHEN/DRDUKEPERSON.jpg Current Board Members - Professor Duke Pesta Dr. Duke Pesta is the Director of Freedom Project Academy, host of the Dr. Duke Show podcast, and a tenured professor of English at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. He received his M.A. in Renaissance literature from John Carroll University and his PhD in Shakespeare and Renaissance literature from Purdue University. He has written books and scholarly articles on a range of topics, including Shakespeare, Renaissance literature and culture, the history of medicine, and the intersection of science and art in the works of Michelangelo. He has also written many cultural and educational essays for a variety of publications and magazines. He serves on the boards of—and acts as advisor to—numerous political and educational groups, including Public School Exit, USPIE, the Heartland Institute, and is a founding member of Free Speech for Campus. Dr. Pesta is dedicated to preserving classical education, reigning in federal intrusion into public and private schools, promoting the freedom to home school, and defending our Constitutional liberties, especially the rights to freedom of speech, religion, due process, and freedom of association. Dr. Pesta is one of America’s foremost authorities on the dangers of Common Core and the federal takeover of education, having delivered over 1000 talks in 48 states. He has testified before a number of state legislatures. Dr. Pesta hosts his own weekly program about education—The Dr. Duke Show—which covers educational issues from preschool through graduate school. His collective videos and presentations top more than twenty-five million views online, and much of his work is available at FreedomProject.com and FPEUSA.org. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/a046ee1f-9b26-4a3b-9ff4-9c5d62949699/Picture1.jpg Current Board Members - Susannah Camic Tahk Education: B.A., Yale University; M.A., Yale University; J.D., Yale Law School Biography Susannah Camic Tahk has served as associate dean for research and faculty development at the Law School since 2016. In that capacity, she has focused on growing and diversifying the Law School faculty, increasing research support and visibility, strengthening faculty governance mechanisms, and sustaining a viibrant and inclusive intellectual community. She also directs the Law School's Institute for Legal Studies and sits on the University's Academic Planning Council. In 2018, she chaired the Law School's Strategic Planning Task Force on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. She is currently a fellow with the Big Ten Academic Alliance's Academic Leadership Program and also sits on the University of Wisconsin's Academic Planning Council. Tahk's own research is on tax and poverty law, and her articles have appeared or will appear in the Tax Law Review, the Tax Lawyer, the Columbia Journal of Tax Law, the Iowa Law Review, the Wisconsin Law Review, the Arizona Law Review, the Washington and Lee Journal of Civil Rights and Social Justice, the Brooklyn Law Review, the Penn State Law Review, the Fordham Law Review, the Harvard Journal on Legislation, the Pittsburgh Tax Review and the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics (see Jotwell coverage here and here). Her current projects are empirical ones on Tax Court and its litigants, particularly pro se parties and the issues they face. In 2020, Tahk received the Vilas Mid-Career Investigator Award from UW-Madison. In 2015, Tahk received the Vilas Early Career Investigator Award from UW-Madison and was named an Up and Coming Lawyer by the Wisconsin Law Journal. In 2017, she won the Pro Bono Award from Wisconsin's Association for Women Lawyers. She's a graduate of Madison's Vel Phillips Memorial High School and mom to Serena, age 9; Sam, age 4; and Sebastian, age 2. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/ecf52bbe-804c-4d21-aac0-6306565ab2a8/R+Taffora.jpg Current Board Members - Raymond P. Taffora Raymond P. Taffora is the Vice Chancellor for Legal Affairs Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He retired from a 35 year active law practice in August, 2021. Mr. Taffora served as Vice Chancellor for Legal Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for eight years (2013-2021), where he supervised the University’s Office of Legal Affairs and the Office of Compliance. Prior to his work for the University, Mr. Taffora has served as the Deputy Attorney General in the Wisconsin Department of Justice (2007-2011), Chief Legal Counsel to the Governor of Wisconsin (1987-1991) and as an attorney in the private practice of law for nearly 20 years. Mr. Taffora earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1983 and his law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1986. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/56b58d77-759b-4ad3-a115-767f31686797/Seshadri.png Current Board Members - Professor Ananth Seshadri Professor of Economics, Mary Sue and Mike Shannon Distinguished Chair University of Wisconsin–Madison Ananth Seshadri is a Professor of Economics at University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he specializes in macroeconomics and public finance. He has written on the causes and consequences of demographic change and the effects of technological change in accounting for various demographic patterns. His recent work explores the effect of the tax transfer system on the American Dream. His research has appeared in leading economics journals, including The American Economic Review, Quarterly Journal of Economics, Review of Economic Studies, and the Journal of Political Economy. He was awarded a research fellowship from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in 2006. He has received several competitive research grants from the National Science Foundation, and from the National Institute of Aging. He serves as co-director of the Center for Research on the Wisconsin Economy. Seshadri received a B.S in Management Science at BITS, Pilani, India in 1995, M.S in Economics from Arizona State University in 1996, and a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Rochester in 2000. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/274994a7-17e7-4e9c-b1ab-b9e7b93a39be/Volkman.jpg Current Board Members - Professor Brian Volkman Brian Volkman is a Professor of Biochemistry, Director of the Program in Chemical Biology, and Associate Director of the Mellowes Center for Genomic Sciences and Precision Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. Volkman joined the MCW faculty as an Assistant Professor in 2000, where he teaches medical students, mentors PhD students, and conducts laboratory research on protein molecules that orchestrate immune responses. His work has been published in more than 200 peer-reviewed articles in prominent journals including Science and Nature. Volkman co-founded two Milwaukee-based biotechnology companies to commercialize discoveries from his academic research lab as drug candidates and tools for biomedical research. An Indiana native, Volkman graduated from Butler University in 1989 with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry and physics, and then earned a PhD in biophysical chemistry from UC Berkeley in 1994. He pursued postdoctoral training in NMR spectroscopy in the UW-Madison Department of Biochemistry and was promoted to Associate Scientist before moving to Milwaukee to join the MCW faculty. As a member of the National Academy of Scholars and officer of the Wisconsin Association of Scholars (wisnas.org), Volkman works to promote viewpoint diversity and academic freedom for students and faculty. He lives in Muskego with his wife and two children, where he enjoys golfing in the summer, ice fishing in the winter, and brewing beer for his friends. https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/home daily 1.0 2024-11-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1619673823703-ME1U13HLRO7NPUR906FK/unsplash-image-b7CRDcwfNFU.jpg Home - Our vision is to provide a state-wide network of advocates who can offer first amendment campus education, financial assistance, media attention, and help coordinating legal representation for students and faculty denied due process, their rights to speech, association, or assembly. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1619583545289-7C86FJW3V3ZSO5XWJ3GH/me.png Home - Former student Polly Anna Olsen , started her fight for campus free speech when she filed and won a federal lawsuit against Northeast Wisconsin Technical College for violating her first amendment right by stopping her from handing out “Jesus Loves You” valentines to fellow students and faculty on campus. Picture: Olsen at the White House, March 2019 for the Executive order signing to protect Freedom of Speech on Campuses. https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/donate daily 0.75 2021-05-20 https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/professor-and-faculty-stories daily 0.75 2021-05-04 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1619588913632-PJRYATVL6N5P9PXFA0AF/duke.jpg Professor and Faculty Stories Investigating the Professor: University Bias Probe Turns Biased. Dr. Duke Pesta takes on the UW Osh. Campus. https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/about daily 0.75 2022-07-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1619674750101-VP5TU5YNA0KTQ1E0K55B/20200122_181516.jpg About - Check out what we are working on in Wisconsin. https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/projects daily 0.75 2023-02-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1677106537753-JW0EV1MWXELZGZNZNONC/unsplash-image-21yUg3Fpw5M.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657066500390-VJWU9AAW0S3S409ZJSV2/unsplash-image-_kd5cxwZOK4.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657086056625-WRXJ3I06XS2IM9HL6XB4/unsplash-image-qfp4-Ud6Fyg.jpg Projects - SURVEY SAYS: RADICAL INDOCTRINATION - June 1st, 2022 Interestingly, while the system stands by equity and inclusion surveys, it has had little tolerance for a student survey on First Amendment rights. The privately funded questionnaire titled “Student Perceptions of their First Amendment Free Speech Rights, Viewpoint Diversity, and Self-Censorship,” was supposed to go out earlier this spring. But then University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Chancellor Jim Henderson complained about the content and origin of the survey and resigned his post. He didn’t like that the UW System didn’t back him in his opposition to the questionnaire, financed by donations from the Menard Center “from the family of Wisconsin billionaire John Menard,” as Wisconsin Public Radio reported. The UW System’s failure to defend the survey led to its postponement until this fall. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657083865348-62A0SMLKRN5T5EH89HYS/unsplash-image-vbxyFxlgpjM.jpg Projects - “Student free speech survey that led to UW-Whitewater chancellor resignation delayed” -April 7, 2022 “The survey, titled "Student Perceptions of their First Amendment Free Speech Rights, Viewpoint Diversity, and Self-Censorship," has been in the works for months, and was scheduled to be sent out Thursday. The survey didn't become public until the day after UW-Whitewater interim Chancellor Jim Henderson resigned, citing a lack of support from UW System leadership.” “State Rep. Dave Murphy, R-Greenville, said he and others complained to the UW System about the initial delay. Shiell told WPR he has received messages from lawmakers indicating they would like the survey to be issued in this spring. "But there wasn't, you know, some kind of deal between us or pressure put on," Sheill said. The teachers union AFT-Wisconsin applauded the announcement to delay the survey until the fall.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1657083028141-17QTUW0N08QD9QMD655V/unsplash-image-AT77Q0Njnt0.jpg Projects - “UW System to survey all students about campus free speech, the s urvey is meant to gather data to 'inform discussions about potential changes to policy or law” - April 5th, 2022 “A copy of the survey provided to Wisconsin Public Radio includes questions about things like: their opinions on diversity; whether giving voice to unpopular or offensive viewpoints encourages healthy academic dialogue; and whether they have felt pressured by a professor to agree with a specific political or ideological opinion discussed in class.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1623101984745-WIY79KUT0QT2MBQ5SOOQ/unsplash-image-BIFm4ITjNVE.jpg Projects - SENATE COMMITTEE ON UNIVERSITIES AND TECHNICAL COLLEGES Committee Report May 2021 Several FSFC Board members, Including the late Professor John McAdams, made a presentation before the Senate Committee, a summary can be found between pages 11 and 17 in the committee’s 97 page report. This report has shocking findings about how freedom of speech is being attacked on campuses across Wisconsin and is proposing new laws be put in place to hold campus administrators liable for damages for violating the 1st Amendment of students and faculty members. https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/new-page daily 0.75 2026-02-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1619669443692-YCC64V1OWZ9MNL4W9915/PPOLLYPERSON.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1621617510636-MLPIVEGN82BGP8EDM44A/4x5+2019+Sen+Roth.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/1634864181993-1MVPZUMDZ1H2C9HVRZNH/094cf3d4-4b18-4b06-9b1f-49c115db2f0f.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/f2bb48d3-0871-4af4-923a-d0c71d40ff77/Berry.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6088c7db3209d4330f30a894/5890c008-94ef-43d6-b371-db6e45749e8e/owens.jpeg Former Board Members - Professor Ryan Owens Ryan Owens is a Professor of Political Science and Affiliate Faculty in the Law School. He also is an Honorary Fellow in the Institute for Legal Studies. Owens studies law and courts and American political institutions. His work analyzes the United States Supreme Court, the United States Courts of Appeals, legal institutions, and judicial behavior. Professor Owens’s work has appeared in the American Journal of Political Science, Journal of Politics, Political Research Quarterly, the Georgetown Law Journal, the William & Mary Law Review, the University of Illinois Law Review, Law & Society Review, and the Journal of Law and Courts. Owens received grants from the National Science Foundation, the Harvard Provost, the University of Wisconsin Graduate School, the Center for Empirical Research in the Law, and the George H.W. Bush Library Foundation. He also received the first undergraduate mentoring award given by the Office of the Provost. Between 2008 and 2011, Owens was Assistant Professor of Government at Harvard University, where he taught undergraduates and graduate students and seminars in the law school. From 2003-2008, Owens earned his Ph.D. at Washington University in Saint Louis. Prior to graduate school, Owens practiced law. Professor Owens grew up in Kronenwetter, Wisconsin. He is co-owner of the Green Bay Packers, along with roughly 360,760 others. https://www.freespeechforcampus.org/in-light-of-recent-national-events daily 0.75 2024-07-18