Chancellor’s Statement on HB1218 and HB1231
Proposed Legislation Undercuts Academic Freedom
January 25, 2021
We have carefully reviewed HB1218 and HB1231. We oppose them due to the negative impacts these bills would have on our mission to advance the state of Arkansas through teaching and learning, research and discovery, and outreach and engagement. These bills undercut the foundation of academic freedom on which higher education rests, and place too many limits on avenues of inquiry, investigation and discourse. Academia depends on the open and free exchange of ideas to advance, while these bills would shrink and control the terms of discussion, which is antithetical to progress.