| Policy Statement | Academic freedom is essential to fulfill the ultimate objectives of the University of Memphis, to the free search for and exposition of truth, and applies to both teaching and research. Freedom in research is fundamental to the advancement of truth, and academic freedom in teaching is fundamental to the protection of the rights of the faculty member in teaching and of the student to freedom in learning.
The University of Memphis recognizes the principle of academic freedom, and accordingly:
- Faculty members are entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing materials relevant to the course.
- Faculty members are entitled to freedom in research and in the publication of the results, subject to adequate performance of their other academic duties; but all research, including research for pecuniary gain, must be performed in an ethical manner and in compliance with all applicable policies and standards in the field and must be based upon an understanding with the authorities of the University.
- Faculty members are citizens, members of a learned profession, and officers of an educational institution. When faculty members speak or write as citizens, they should be free from institutional censorship or discipline, but their special position in the community imposes special obligations. As persons of learning and as educational officers, they should remember that the public may judge the profession and the University by their utterances. Hence, faculty members should at all times strive to be accurate, should exercise appropriate restraint, should show respect for the opinions of others, and should make every effort to indicate that they do not speak for the University.
The right to academic freedom imposes upon the faculty an equal obligation to take appropriate professional action against faculty members who are derelict in discharging their professional responsibilities. Thus, academic freedom and academic responsibility are interdependent, and academic tenure is adopted as a means to protect the former while promoting the latter. While academic tenure is essential for the protection of academic freedom, all faculty members, tenured or non-tenured, have equal right to academic freedom and bear the same academic responsibilities. Any member of the university community, while engaged in teaching or research activities, is afforded the rights and responsibilities of academic freedom. |
