PFS Top Ten

PFS recommends the following actions of Princeton University’s leadership to restore a culture of free speech, open discourse and viewpoint diversity, and to eliminate the culture of fear in expressing controversial viewpoints. A stated commitment to free expression is not sufficient to cultivate a culture of academic freedom and respect for viewpoint diversity. These recommendations are intended to put Princeton’s free speech principles and policies into practice.

1. Protect the reputation of Princeton and its commitment to diversity of viewpoint by adopting as a core principle an institutional neutrality policy such as the Kalven Report on Institutional Neutrality and/or the Princeton Principles for a Campus Culture of Free Inquiry.
2. Eliminate the use of DEI statements for faculty hiring,  promotion and funding throughout the university. As compelled speech, such statements are ideological litmus tests that incentivize insincerity as they undermine freedom of expression.
3. Develop a comprehensive program to teach all students about Princeton’s policies. These actions should include: A required freshman orientation program that explains Princeton’s commitment to freedom of expression and its policies around respectful disagreement. Such a program should not be limited to new students, but should include regular instruction throughout the year on free speech, viewpoint diversity and civil discourse for students at all levels. It should include a letter to all incoming students devoted to describing the intellectual community they will be joining -- one that embraces freedom of thought, enquiry and expression, and one that protects the right of protest while making clear that right of protest does not include the right to harass, bully, threaten or prevent anyone from participating fully in campus life. 
4. Develop a program led by faculty whereby all Princeton faculty, particularly those in leadership roles, affirm and celebrate the university’s commitment to freedom of expression and academic freedom. Faculty roles includedefending the academic freedom of individual faculty members when it comes under threat from any quarter and making academic freedom itself the subject of ongoing inquiry and conversation on campus, raising the awareness among faculty that academic freedom is not something to be taken for granted.
5. Adopt principles for academic appointments similar to those embodied in the University of Chicago’sShils Report, which prioritizes academic excellence in research and teaching.
6. Educate and train all administrators on the importance of free expression and viewpoint diversity. Administrators have an outsized and widely criticized influence on the student experience. They are likely to lack appreciation for freedom of thought and viewpoint diversity, and they often act to create restrictive boundaries on what they deem to be acceptable speech. Such a program should emphasize the importance of free speech principles and viewpoint diversity to a healthy campus culture. It should provide training to staff on how to enforce “time, place and manner” restrictions on campus protest. 
7. Work with faculty to encourage academic and administrative departments to post statements in support of freedom of expression and academic freedom that resemble the departmental statements of commitment to diversity and anti-racism.
8. Continue to press Princeton to establish a free-standing ombuds office specifically dedicated to examining claims of breaches of free speech protections. This office would dismiss cases of attempted suppression of protected speech or retaliation for protected speech. It would also act as a resource to educate students and staff about free speech protections and their limits.
9. Reform Princeton’s anonymous reporting systems to ensure transparency, prompt notification, a right of rebuttal, and swift rejection of all complaints against First Amendment protected speech. This reform would limit review of complaints to those that are actionable discrimination and harassment. It would also prevent any accusation against students from becoming part of their permanent record.
10.  Admissions reform: In marketing, recruitment and evaluation, Princeton should reform admissions to expand viewpoint diversity and reward open inquiry. Add recruitment efforts to encourage intellectual diversity. Evaluate applications on open inquiry and constructive dialogue by, for instance, including questions to determine how an applicant would engage with a fellow student with whom they strongly disagree. Reform the decision-making process to reduce ideological bias.