American universities have long been unique institutions that generate novel sometimes controversial and even classic ideas that will challenge and sometimes press popular wisdom bringing to bear deeper more rigorous analyses of evidence. Such ideas can at times youll advances or even breakthroughs of the most vexing questions and problems of our day. One of the most indispensable pillars in Higher Education, which makes such advanced wholly possible, is a cardinal principle and practice of Academic Freedom, the protection and the unfettered pursuit of ideas, concepts, evidence and knowledge, and the passing on of such in our education students. While the principle of Academic Freedom is a central freedom of american education, the university of chicago has a rather distinctive and deeply held approach to Academic Freedom, a which im sure youll be hearing more about this evening from some of our panelists. The school of social Service Administration has a a professional school of social work, particularly benefits from and contributes to Academic Freedom and unfettered pursuit of ideas. Ideas that address the concerns of those who are most vulnerable and marginalized. We dive into and it is the most complicated multilayered and sometimes contentious of social problems like poverty or violence, and we do so in a tireless search for a real solution and to rigorously educate for social equity and justice. The ideas that we develop and discuss dont just stay among the scholars and students here at the university of course but they develop and deliver to have real tangible benefit to people and their lives. Because our scholarship and education at ssa are intimately connected to real people and real world problem solving. Ssa is oftentimes sort of a crucible of ideas and implications in the best sense of the word but we are constantly searching to forage for your insight and light and Enduring Solutions out of what is oftentimes the heat of polarized, oversimplified or not well tested ideas and strategies. The second pillar found broad in american Higher Education is a cardinal value on diversity. That is, our value on bringing to the University Community individuals from different backgrounds, Life Experiences and statuses. And especially so for those from underrepresented or marginalized backgrounds. Of course, part of the importance of diversity stems from a value on social equity and societal inclusion. As universities are arguably the most Important Institution in our society, which foster entry into and integration in the mainstream. An additional indispensable component of diversity is that by bringing together diverse members to the University Community, all of its members are enriched by the mutual exposure to divergent experiences, backgrounds, and viewpoints. In this way our cardinal value on diversity is closely intertwined in a complementary branch from the same tree as Academic Freedom. As bringing to university of diverting expenses and viewpoints, brings with it the questioning of assumptions and the challenging of conventional or prevailing ideas. And again, at the university of chicago and in particular at ssa, these values are distinctive, given that we are as a professional school in social work at core concern with such questions as conclusion and access, and reaching grounded understandings of an Effective Service to those who are most marginalized. Because of our core values on ideas that serve, ssa is very much at a nexus point on conversations about the complementary values of Academic Freedom and diversity, edits for the very reasons i am especially delighted that ssa is hosting this panel of four distinct thought leaders on this topic. For this i especially want to thank ssa professors gina samuels and marcy for their vision and initiative of working with my office phone together this evenings panel. As well as to thank ss as committee on inclusion of equity and diversity for cosponsoring this evenings event. Professor samuels will be joining us up at the micro in a few moments to edit is the panels to you this evening, and will moderate the event. Before she does that tell i also want to take this opportunity to thank University Chicago president bob zimmer does provide his safe vision and leadership on this issue here at the university of chicago and, indeed, nationally, and for that id like to invite him up now to offer some welcome comments for this evenings event. Bob . [applause] thank you very much, neil. Let me say how much i appreciate the idea that ssas posting this panel and hosting this discussion hosting on this topic. That topic, joint topics i should say, Academic Freedom which i like thinking about a bit more generally as Academic Freedom and its companion Free Expression and diversity which also like thinking about a bit more broadly than diversity and inclusion are two core issues for any university, and particularly so for the university of chicago. Neil described i think very beautifully why these are so important. I might just offer my own take on this, which is to start by universities are not just a random collection of people who are here doing what they feel like doing. Universities are institutions with very clear mission. That mission is a mission of education. Its a mission of research, and its a mission of finding vehicles for the impact of that education and research. If we are going to do our students justice, do them well by the education that we provide them. If we are going to have an environment in which our faculty can, in fact, explore the ideas to the fullest and prepare themselves to have the greatest impact in an environment of Academic Freedom and Free Expression is critical. It is simply our core to the functioning ofthe university in fulfilling its core missions. In a similar way the issue of Diversity Inclusion becomes absolutely central to university for two reasons that neil alluded to. First of all, if one is going to be engaged in rigorous analysis and inquiry, having a bunch of people all from the same background, similar perspectives sitting around, fundamentally agree with each other but arguing only at the margins is not the way to actually make a serious advance and its not the way to create an environment of intellectual challenge for our students and to fill their education. So diversity of perspectives of backgrounds, beliefs and so on becomes crucial to creating the environment for the kind of rigorous analysis that underlies the success of the university. There is another reason that Diversity Inclusion is so important, and that goes beyond the university itself, which is that universities does not exist in isolation to exist in a societal context and it exists in history. Its no surprise to anyone that the history of really all countries but the very, particularly this country, has an enormous amount of exclusionary behavior built into its history. We have, therefore, a dual obligation, an obligation as fulfilling our own mission and bringing those diverse perspectives to bear in a nondisclosure and a. But we also have an obligation as an important member of society to deal with the particular history of this country and the exclusionary aspects that a been involved in it. And i think neil articulated the meaning of ssa very nicely in terms of doing that, from the point of view of ssas concrete mission, but i think the university as a whole itself has an obligation in that direction. Now, some people have argued that these two issues are in conflict to some extent, that Academic Freedom and Free Expression on one hand, and Diversity Inclusion on the other hand, are in conflict. Saying that theres no tension between them would be disingenuous. Saying that theres a fundamental underlying conflict between them is something i actually do not believe. I believe they are mutually reinforcing, but that one needs to recognize that our tensions and tensions that need to be worked out. But anything less than an aspiration to fully embrace both of these values is failing ourselves as an institution. The discussant tonight im sure well look at these issues and in considerably more detail and then a quick loss both neil and i have given them. I think the reason that we are able to have such a discussion goes back to exactly what neil was saying. Its an example of the power and importance of an open discourse and rigorous analysis. And Free Expression. So i just want to again thank neil, thank the faculty here at ssa for organizing this, and im sure you are going to have a fascinating evening. So thank you very much. [applause] thank you, president. So my name is gina samuels and i will be the moderator this evening and i will take several roles that i will explain in just a moment. I would also like to welcome all of you here this evening, this afternoon, and extend a special thanks to my faculty and staff colleagues for their support and work there and i had to say im quite humbled to see that we are at standing room only. So thank you for coming. Special thanks to dean Neil Guterman for being so supporti supportive, for the cosponsors of any particular to my colleague marcy who couldnt have done it without you, marcy. Finally i extend a special gratitude to the ssa community and others of you in attendance here tonight. The success of this dialogue and are exemplary practice of Free Expression tonight deeply rests with the juju, and i will explain that a little bit more in a moment. We will proceed by my getting a brief introduction to this panel, and then i will introduce each of the panelists will each talk for about 10 minutes. I will then pose a question to them. We probably wont come i forgive them for question i think thats a bit ambitious and we will probably get through one or two, and then i transition us to the evening informal event which will involve an informal dialogue amongst all of us. So bit of a social experiment is to come. So in 1915 the American Association of University Professors advanced a declaration of principles that laid the foundation for much of todays legal and tacit understanding of Academic Freedom and tenure within institutions of Higher Education. However, the university of chicago as president zimmer and Neil Guterman abovementioned represent a unique brand of Academic Freedom. And we were deeply and publicly shaping and advancing these ideas long before the 1915 statement. Most recently in 2014 president zimmer and then provost isaacs formed a special committee on freedom of expression. Chaired by one of our panelists, professor geoff stone, it reached its universities enduring commitment to the Free Exchange of ideas and a resolute core principle and value at this institution. President zimmer has already referenced this history in his opening remarks and im sure provostprovost professors boyerd stumble likely discuss this and the leadership in our universe is contemporary practice of this value into individual remarks. For the content or university, however, debates do persist around the very meaning and limits of Academic Freedom in the context of growing diversity on campus and the two met to a Campus Climate that is not only inclusive of a diverse set of ideas, but also of a demographically diverse student, staff and faculty body. This year the university of chicagos dean of students in the College Alison issued a walking statement to firstyear students reaffirming our universities Longstanding Institution of commitment to Academic Freedom, and as such are institutional rejection of silencing or avoiding uncomfortable or disagreeable ideas and perspectives. This was paired with the idea that faculty are not required to create safe bases or issue trigger warnings. This statement was met with a vigorous national and local response both affirming and contesting these views and more deeply position University Chicago itself as an iconic symbol and offender of the unfettered practice of Academic Freedom. This afternoon as a type of us a Universe Community to engage with each other and fully practice this freedom. It is my hope that we all deepen our understanding of and ability to critically consider the diversity of ways in which this value is interpreted and practiced. Now i would like to just briefly introduce expert panel. We are deeply honored and excited to have each one of you here. Each of our panelists you should do it is a distinguished scholar in the own right, and time does not permit me to go over all of their Media Conference so i apologize in advance so well stick to names and affiliations so we have time to hear the thoughts. To my far left is Professor John boyer, Dean University of chicago college, distinguished Service Professor in history. Next, the professor geoff stone, distinguished professor, Service Professor university of chicagos law school. Next, professor zareena grewal, associate professor, department of american studies and religious studies in the program of ethnicity race migration from Yale University. And last but not least, professor lorraine gutierrez, professor of social work and university of Michigan School of social work, professor of psychology, college of literature, science and arts and the inaugural director of university of Michigan School soldier works diversity, equity and inclusion initiative. And with that i would love for us to begin. Professor boyer, with you. Thank you very much. I thought i would just talk a little bit about two subjects that are of some interest to me. I became interested in the subject of Academic Freedom as an academic administered perspective. About 14, 15 years ago i published this i came to write that but because of there were a number of current abroad indolent as a were involving the backlash or reaction to some significant changes we have made in our core curriculum at the time. There were some lobbying, petitions being formed coming from a rather different ideological directions, but all of which were attending to influence in some ways pressure the faculty to reverse the changes or to modify the changes. And also to change the content of new courses that had been developed in the context of these changes. I became concerned about this as kind of an episode, small but not insignificant episode in the kind of long history of Academic Freedom. I began, began to take a look at the broader history several this book which is not Available Online pixels going there been other episodes and all too many in regards of faculty being criticized for things that the right, students being criticized for things they would say. This is a life issue. I want to say two things about it. First of all from the point of view of the history of the university i published last year a family size history of the university of chicago which im not going to talk about that. Its available in the bookstore. Thats a plot by the way. Last night by do what to draw from that, stress something that is unique about chicago come not totally unique but relative unique and that is impact of the european context, the ending context of european Higher Education and its influence on the university of chicago. I think this is important because the idea of Academic Freedom what the germans would call is representing a bunde of concepts that were practiced vigorously contested, vigorously fought over and defended and criticize within the larger context of the modern German Research university, the university of berlin, munich, the big foreign german Higher Education. Many of the founding faculty at this university were trained at the university or had studied at them. If only for a short time, at least enough time to be able to draw from inspiration and values and ideals on the practice of Economic Freedom within the senior faculty of his great german and austrian universities. These were ideas that were rather strange for the americans to comprehend because these are state universities. They were paid in some ways to do the states bidding but the state or the states decided the bidding they were to do had to do with the advanced, creation of original research as a National Cultural project. In some ways there was an unusual a tendency to great at homogeneous culture of thought because this was for the good of the state. Bubut on the other in order to create this ambient cu