Background Readings on Academic Freedom

This curated list of readings includes canonical works on academic freedom, assembled with an eye towards providing additional context and resources for those leading discussions.

Additional AAUP Statements

AAUP, “1915 Declaration of Principles on Academic Freedom and Academic Tenure.”

AAUP, “Statement on Government of Colleges and Universities,” 1966.

**A summary of key AAUP statements can be found here**

Historical Background on Academic Freedom

• Matthew W. Finkin and Robert C. Post, For the Common Good: Principles of American Academic Freedom. New Haven: Yale University Press.
• O’Neil, Robert. 2008. Academic Freedom in the Wired World: Political Extremism, Corporate Power, and the University. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
• O’Neil, R. M. 2016. “Academic Freedom: Past, Present, and Future.” In M. N. Bastedo, P. G. Altbach, & P. J. Gumport (Eds.), American higher education in the twenty-first century: Social, political and economic challenges (4th ed., 35–59). Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Reichman, Henry. Understanding Academic Freedom. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2021.
• Scott, Joan. 2019. Knowledge, Power, and Academic Freedom. New York: Columbia University Press.
• Scott, Joan W. “On Free Speech and Academic Freedom,” Journal of Academic Freedom, Vol. 9, 2017.