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Request for clarification of UC academic freedom rules

From: Leila Beckwith <lbeckwit@ucla.edu>
Date: Wed,May 16,2012 at 10:02 AM
Subject: Request for clarification of UC academic freedom rules
To: robert.anderson@ucop.edu
Cc: robert.powell@ucop.edu, jacob@math.ucsb.edu, lfbisson@ucdavis.edu,craig.martens@uci.edu, afl@ucla.edu, samussen@ucmerced.edu, mary.gauvain@ucr.edu, jsobel@ucsd.edu, rjn@itsa.ucsf.edu, bohn@econ.ucsb.edu, sgillman@ucsc.edu, goodhue@primal.ucdavis.edu, masmart@socrates.berkeley.edu, joel@physics.ucsc.edu, roberta.rehm@nursing.ucsf.edu, klindenberg@ucsd.edu, jose.wudka@ucr.edu, william.parker@uci.edu, bhavnani@soc.ucsb.edu, awramik@geol.ucsb.edu, ckelty@socgen.ucla.edu, jfalexan@uci.edu, john.crawford@uci.edu, jachalfant@ucdavis.edu, brundage@ucsc.edu, rfisher@mednet.ucla.edu, martha.winnacker@ucop.edu, todd.giedt@ucop.edu, brenda.abrams@ucop.edu, tenneh.fallah@ucop.edu, kenneth.feer@ucop.edu, michael.labriola@ucop.edu, jackie.shelton@ucop.edu, clare.sheridan@ucop.edu, eric.zarate@ucop.edu, agreenrush@berkeley.edu, deborah.karoff@senate.ucsb.edu, DHamann@ucsd.edu, gina.anderson@ucdavis.edu, jbalboa@senate.ucla.edu, sellyna.ehlers@ucr.edu, mbh@ucsc.edu, mcrespo@uci.edu, ssims3@ucmerced.edu, shilpa.patel@ucsf.edu, heather.alden@ucsf.edu, Clare.Sheridan@ucop.edu, president@ucop.edu, Steven.Beckwith@ucop.edu, chancellor@conet.ucla.edu, robert.anderson@ucop.edu, chancellor@berkeley.edu, chancellor@uci.edu, chancellor@ucmerced.edu, chancellor@ucr.edu, chancellor@ucsd.edu, henry.yang@chancellor.ucsb.edu, chancellor@ucsc.edu, chancellor@ucdavis.edu, sue.hellmann@ucsf.edu, regentsoffice@ucop.edu, David.Birnbaum@ucop.edu, Speaker.Perez@assembly.ca.gov, ttorlakson@cde.ca.gov, senator.pavley@senate.ca.gov, senator.lieu@senate.ca.gov, senator.price@senate.ca.gov, assemblymember.mitchell@assembly.ca.gov, assemblymember.feuer@assembly.ca.gov, alkin@gseis.ucla.edu, gbackus@ucsd.edu, aberk@ucsd.edu, ilan@ucsc.edu, nbertram@ucsd.edu, scohen@ucla.edu, pcosman@eng.ucsd.edu, Laura.Dunn@ucsf.edu, dfeifel@ucsd.edu, feldman@pstat.ucsb.edu, aglazer@uci.edu, drmarving@aol.com, bgolomb@salk.edu, agroisman@ucsd.edu, szhitomi@math.uci.edu, mkap63@gmail.com, urim.urim@gmail.com, jhkeyak@uci.edu, slakoff@mail.ucsd.edu, milangdo@uci.edu, lowenstein@law.ucla.edu, mandelsh@uci.edu, jmanson@anthro.ucla.edu, jake@ucsc.edu, daniel.j.b.mitchell@anderson.ucla.edu, EOrnitz@mednet.ucla.edu, jpolt@berkeley.edu, davidsavar@gmail.com, sschweit@ucla.edu, David.Siegel@va.gov, shsosnick@ucdavis.edu, nswerdlow@ucsd.edu, viterbi@viterbigroup.com, weissman@jsei.ucla.edu, smwolf@pol.net

Professor Robert Anderson, Chair
Assembly of the Academic Senate
University of California

Dear Professor Anderson:
We, the undersigned, are faculty at the University of California and members of the University of California Academic Senate.

We are deeply concerned about a lack of clarity about UC policies regarding academic freedom.

As you are well aware, a UCLA faculty member, David Delgado Shorter, Associate Professor of World Arts and Cultures/Dance, during Winter Quarter, 2012, used his official UCLA class website to promote the academic and cultural boycott of Israel. On both the home page for the class, Tribal Worldviews, and a webpage entitled “Resources II: Important Links”, he posted links to the U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, which he has publicly endorsed.  (See here and here).

Our issue is not with Professor Shorter, but with the general question of whether faculty, under a mantle of academic freedom, can use their classrooms and classroom resources to promote a personal political agenda, such as the U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel.

We believe it is imperative that the UC Academic Senate issue a statement that addresses the question:

Does academic freedom protect faculty who use their classroom, or class resources, to advance a personal political agenda?

We look forward to hearing from you in the near future.

Sincerely,

Leila Beckwith
Professor Emeritus
UC Los Angeles

Marvin Alkin
Professor Emeritus
UC Los Angeles

George Backus
Professor
UC San Diego

Ami Berkowitz
Professor Emeritus
UC San Diego

Ilan Benjamin
Professor
UC Santa Cruz

Neal Bertram
Professor Emeritus
UC San Diego

Sarale Cohen
Professor Emeritus
UC Los Angeles

Pamela Cosman
Professor
UC San Diego

Laura B. Dunn
Associate Professor
UC San Francisco

David Feifel
Professor
UC San Diego

Raisa Feldman
Associate Professor
UC Santa Barbara

Amichai Glazer
Professor
UC Irvine

Marvin Goldman
Professor Emeritus
UC Davis

Beatrice A. Golomb
Associate Professor
UC San Diego

Alex Groisman
Associate Professor
UC San Diego

Svetlana Jitomirskaya,
Professor
UC Irvine

Michael Kapovich
Professor
UC Davis

Jascha Kessler
Professor Emeritus
UC Los Angeles

Joyce H. Keyak
Associate Professor
UC Irvine

Sanford Lakoff
Professor Emeritus
UC San Diego

Mark Langdorf
Professor
UC Irvine

Daniel H. Lowenstein
Professor Emeritus
UC Los Angeles

Vladimir Mandelshtam
Professor
UC Irvine

Joseph H. Manson
Professor
UC Los Angeles

Jacob B. Michaelsen
Professor
UC Santa Cruz

Daniel J.B. Mitchell
Professor Emeritus
UC Los Angeles

Edward M. Ornitz
Professor Emeritus
UC Los Angeles

John Polt
Professor Emeritus
UC Berkeley

David Savar
Professor
UC Los Angeles

Stuart O. Schweitzer
Professor
UC Los Angeles

David Siegel
Professor
UC Davis

Stephen H. Sosnick
Professor Emeritus
UC Davis

Neal Swerdlow
Professor
UC San Diego

Andrew Viterbi
Professor Emeritus
UC San Diego

Barry A. Weissman
Professor
UC Los Angeles

Sheldon Wolf
Professor
UC Los Angeles

CC: UC Senate Division Chairs
UC Senate Committee Chairs
UC Senate Staff
President Mark Yudof
Vice President Steven Beckwith
UC Chancellors
UC Regents
UC Chief Deputy Counsel David Birnbaum
California Speaker of the Assembly John A. Perez
California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson
California Senator Fran Pavley (UCLA)
California Senator Ted W. Lieu (UCLA)
California Senator Curren D. Price, Jr. (UCLA)
California Assembly Member Holly J. Mitchell (UCLA)
California Assembly Member Mike Feuer (UCLA)

 

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