It’s never just academic

As the first “normal” semester since 2019, this past fall proved to be anything but normal – and 2023 is likely to be just as tense.

His recent death reminded me of the crucial role that The Consenting University and the Dissenting Academy: Binary Friction played in my academic and intellectual journey. This is a tribute to a man I never met and to a paper he wrote.

The University of Ottawa’s report on academic freedom is only the latest in a long list of reports that miss the opportunity to bring the discussion to a higher level.

The 2021 school year is still fraught with risks, but with major risks come major opportunities.

Universities are mostly resuming face-to-face teaching this fall. This will not be a return to normal; the success of online education has fostered a historic disconnect.

Instead of having mediated debates, faculty and students need to set aside their differences and decide among themselves what should be covered under academic freedom.