A new episode of The Academic Freedom Podcast from the Academic Freedom Alliance is now available. Subscribe through your favorite platform so you don't miss an episode.
In this episode, I talk with Mitch Daniels about the state of campus free speech, some initiatives at Purdue University, and the growing Republican hostility to universities. Daniels is the outgoing president of Purdue University. He previously served as a Republican governor of Indiana and the director of the Office of Management of Budget in the second Bush administration. Given Daniels serious experience in both university leadership and Republican Party politics, I was particularly happy to get his views on higher education as a target in the culture wars.
Purdue has an impressive record on free speech. The university clocked in at number three in the latest FIRE rankings. During Daniels' presidency, Purdue launched a free speech component as part of its orientation for first-year students. Purdue was an early adopter of the University of Chicago statement on free expression.
