At James Madison University in Virginia, 57% of students say that their campus’s political environment prevents them from freely expressing their views.
Down the road at Virginia Commonwealth University, 47% of students say it is acceptable to shout down campus speakers whom they disapprove of, with a whopping 21% going so far as to say that violence is sometimes or always acceptable to silence people they don’t like.
And at the highly prestigious College of William & Mary, 47% of students reported having a lower or much lower opinion of the United States based on what they’d learned there.
The shocking results of the survey, conducted by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, make it clear that despite recent successes in dismantling discriminatory “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) programs at public universities, academia remains firmly in control of progressives who teach that America is a land of systemic oppression. Students who dissent from the progressive line still fear expressing their views on campus. The survey of 2,345 students at six public universities in Virginia reveals just how much work remains to stop progressive indoctrination and restore rigorous education to public universities.
The results indicate that the curriculums at these schools continue to promote leftist narratives that reject the view of America as a land of opportunity and freedom.
Over one-third of respondents (38%) reported that what they had learned in college had given them a more negative view of the United States. Only 15% reported that college instruction had given them a more positive view of the country.
At some institutions, students reported an overwhelmingly leftist bent among professors. Survey respondents were asked which of these statements was more accurate: professors “teach that the United States is a land of freedom, equality, and opportunity for all,” or professors “teach that the United States is a systemically racist and oppressive country in which many people do not have a fair shot.” At William & Mary, 72% agreed that the latter statement was more accurate.
While 48% of survey respondents said that readings and assignments often provided them with liberal or progressive views, only 17% said the same about conservative views.
This ideological imbalance contributes to a remarkably intolerant campus atmosphere. One-third of students reported that their university was unwelcoming to students with unpopular political opinions. Nearly half of respondents (49%) said that they self-censored for fear of others finding their views offensive. And 43% were uncomfortable expressing their views on a controversial political issue in a class discussion.
The survey results also cast doubt on the quality of academic instruction at Virginia’s public universities. One quarter of students falsely believe that their university can ban “hate speech” on campus. Of course, the Constitution and the Supreme Court do not recognize a “hate speech” exception to the First Amendment. This widely held but mistaken opinion demonstrates the lack of quality civics instruction at Virginia universities.
Disturbingly, 39% of respondents agreed that it was acceptable to shout down campus speakers to prevent them from expressing their ideas. That over one third of students endorsed shout-downs suggests that Virginia’s universities are failing to create an environment conducive to the free exchange of ideas.
These results demonstrate the urgency of reform to restore public universities to their core missions: the pursuit of knowledge and the education of citizens. Policymakers should look to Goldwater’s suite of higher education reforms, including the Abolish DEI Bureaucracies policy and the Freedom from Indoctrination Act.
This latter policy reforms the lopsided curriculum that persistently emphasizes the supposed bigotry of American society to the exclusion of teaching American ideals of equality of opportunity, political liberty, and the defense of individual rights. Among other provisions, the Freedom from Indoctrination Act directs universities to create required courses that educate students in foundational principles of American civics, such as freedom of speech, federalism, and separation of powers.
Federal and state actions restricting discriminatory DEI programs were just the first step in renewing public universities. State leaders must continue to enact commonsense reforms to ensure that public universities produce capable citizens who understand their rights and responsibilities under our constitutional system.
Timothy K. Minella is a Senior Fellow at the Goldwater Institute’s Van Sittert Center for Constitutional Advocacy.
