FIRE Faculty Network Conference

The FIRE Faculty Network is a coalition of faculty supporters interested in promoting and defending free expression and academic freedom at their institutions. Join us at the upcoming annual conference.

JOIN the FACULTY NETWORK

Alexandria and the waterfront along the Potomac River in northern Virginia

The 2023 conference took place from October 19-21 in Alexandria. Faculty whose papers are selected for individual presentation will receive an honorarium of $3,000, and co-presenters on a panel or debate will split the honorarium equally, in addition to receiving reimbursement for travel and lodging. There is no registration fee to attend.

Faculty are encouraged to apply to attend our conference as early as possible, before our limited number of spaces fill up. As the Faculty Network Conference is smaller than many academic conferences (generally drawing between 50 and 60 faculty members), FIRE also attempts to give extra consideration to those who have not attended FIRE’s conference previously. 

We are no longer accepting proposals to present at the conference.

Dr. Steven Pinker delivered the keynote address Friday night.

If you have any questions about applying for or attending the conference, email us at facultyoutreach@thefire.org.


Praise for FIRE's Faculty Conference

“This was my first FIRE conference so I did not know exactly what to expect. Overall, it exceeded my expectations for being informative, interesting, friendly, and professionally beneficial. I was also impressed by how well organized it was and how well the participants were treated. I have been telling friends to apply in the future.” — Michael Veber, East Carolina University

FIRE 2021 Faculty Conference

“I was hoping to make connections and find people who are also fighting for free speech and open inquiry at their institutions. I found a lot of them.” – Luana Maroja, Williams College

“I am incredibly grateful to have been invited back to attend a second faculty conference. The content shared and support offered is inspiring. More opportunities to engage like this would help build more confidence to build a culture of free expression on campus. The conference also attracts a high caliber of thinkers, which inspires me to up my scholastic game in order to more fully engage at this level.” – Matt Moreali, Southern Oregon University

“I was hoping to get a better sense of resources available to faculty who speak out on issues of university administration or other issues more generally, and I definitely achieved this goal. I thought the FIRE staff presentations were particularly useful and helpful.” – Enrique Armijo, Elon University

WATCH: Erika López Prater, an art history professor at Hamline University, lost her teaching position after showing images of the Prophet Muhammad in class. While some faculty members and students called for Hamline to fire López Prater, professor of religion Mark Berkson defended the besieged professor in an essay published in The Oracle, Hamline’s student newspaper. For Berkson’s brave defense of academic freedom, FIRE presented him with the first-ever "Berkson Courageous Colleague Award" at the 2023 FIRE Faculty Network Conference.

 

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