The Opinionated University: Academic Freedom, Diversity, and the Myth of Neutrality in American Higher Education

Why institutional neutrality is nothing but an illusion. Can a university ever truly be neutral in today’s social and political climate?Pushing against the tide of universities increasingly pledging to stay neutral about contentious issues, law professor Brian Soucek argues that their promises are doomed to fail-universities can’t help being opinionated. In The Opinionated University, Soucek shows that neutrality is a myth by taking a deep dive into several prominent campus controversies of the day, including diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts and restrictions on campus speech and protest.Each issue requires universities to choose a side in what they do, if not also in what they say.In everything from curricular and admissions decisions to their response to outside rankings and their evaluation of faculty, universities express the values at the heart of their mission.Soucek argues that those pushing for neutrality are only preventing universities from standing up for their