School Spotlight
Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania
Speech Code Rating
Technology Services: Computing and Information Network Usage Policy
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Internet Usage Policies
Last updated: March 13, 2020No person shall harass, intimidate, threaten, or stalk another person by using email or other electronic means. Read MoreShippensburg University Student Code and Conduct Process: Preamble
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Advertised Commitments to Free Expression
Last updated: March 13, 2020The community exists for the pursuit of learning, the transmission of knowledge, the development of students as scholars and citizens, and ultimately, for the general well-being of society. Freedom of inquiry, speech, action, and expression is indispensable in the attainment of these goals. Academic freedom is at th... Read MoreWhat Is Sexual Misconduct?
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: March 13, 2020Sexual Harassment: Commit or attempt to commit sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is any unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or other harassing or physical conduct of a sexual nature when: … Such conduct is sufficiently severe, persistent or pervasive from the perspective of a reasonable p... Read MoreEquity, Inclusion, and Compliance: Anti-Discrimination & Anti-Harassment Policy
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: March 13, 2020Harassment: Verbal or physical conduct that is directed at an individual because of the individual’s race, color, religious creed, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, veteran status, or other status protected by law, and that is severe or persistent or pervasive and objectivel... Read More
Pennsylvania House of Representatives Select Committee on Student Academic Freedom
September 19, 2005
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives brought together a committee to examine allegations that Pennsylvania’s public universities were plagued by liberal ideology and indoctrination. David A. French, at the time president of FIRE, served as a legal adviser to the panel. FIRE released FIRE Report on the First Amendment Responsibilities of Pennsylvania State-Funded Colleges and Universities,… Read more
Shippensburg University: Speech Code Litigation
April 23, 2003
In April 2003, FIRE Legal Network attorneys David A. French and William Adair Bonner filed a complaint against Shippensburg University, challenging the legality of its speech code, on behalf of two unnamed students. The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania later issued a preliminary injunction ordering Shippensburg to cease enforcement of certain… Read more
Victory for Free Speech at Shippensburg: After Violating Terms of 2004 Settlement, University Once Again Dismantles Unconstitutional Speech Code
October 24, 2008
Shippensburg University (SU) has agreed―again―to dismantle its unconstitutional speech code. In a victory for free speech on campus, the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) announced yesterday that it had reached an out-of-court settlement with Shippensburg. The settlement ends ADF’s lawsuit, filed this past May, which alleged that the university had violated the terms of a 2004… Read more
Shippensburg Issues Statement on Speech Code Lawsuit, Blames Student Government for Constitutional Violations
May 15, 2008
Shippensburg has released a statement in response to the federal lawsuit the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) filed against the school. In the lawsuit, ADF charged that Shippensburg unconstitutionally reinstated its speech codes in violation of a previous settlement, and denied recognition to a student organization based on its viewpoint. In its statement, Shippensburg concedes that… Read more
Federal Lawsuit Filed against Shippensburg University for Violation of Settlement Repealing Unconstitutional Speech Codes
May 7, 2008
In a press release today, FIRE announces that a complaint has been filed in federal court today by attorneys from the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) against Shippensburg University. The complaint alleges that Shippensburg University has dishonestly reinstituted unconstitutional policies in violation of the terms of a 2004 legal settlement reached with members of FIRE’s Legal… Read more
Federal Lawsuit Filed against Shippensburg University as School Blatantly Violates Settlement Repealing Unconstitutional Speech Codes
May 7, 2008
SHIPPENSBURG, Pa., May 7, 2008—A complaint filed in federal court today by attorneys from the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) alleges that Shippensburg University has dishonestly reinstituted unconstitutional policies in violation of the terms of a 2004 legal settlement reached with members of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education’s (FIRE’s) Legal Network. The existing settlement… Read more
There Is No Such Thing as ‘Hate Speech’
February 24, 2006
Yes, that is correct. “Hate speech” is not a category of speech recognized under current constitutional law. It is merely a convenient way to pigeonhole speech that some people find offensive. But what is very troubling is when people begin to treat “hate speech” as unprotected speech. For example, a student leader at Penn State,… Read more
Speech codes make universities intolerant
January 5, 2006
Have you ever known a legislator who didn’t think his job was terribly important?Imagine the campaign slogan: “Elect me, because who really cares?” Or the direct-mail letters: “It’d be nice if you sent me a donation — but it doesn’t really matter.” The very concept is ridiculous. But apparently someone forgot to tell that to… Read more
Your ‘Guide’ to Fighting Thought Reform on Campus
November 11, 2005
If there is any fixed star in our constitutional constellation, it is that no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion or force citizens to confess by word or act their faith therein. If there are any circumstances which permit an exception, they… Read more
Wronging student rights
September 3, 2005
As summer ends and college students return to campus, a number of dreadful court decisions may cause them to wonder if their rights have taken a permanent vacation. While the past decades have hardly been a golden age for student rights, there was good reason to be optimistic in recent years. Speech codes fell at… Read more
The Authoritarian Communitarian Impulse
July 27, 2005
The Chronicle of Higher Education contains a fascinating account of an anthropology professor who spent a year posing as an undergrad student as part of a study of modern student life. Many of her findings were unsurprising (particularly for those of us who can still remember our own college days). Students are busy, focused on… Read more
FIRE Has Never Been ‘Sheepish’ on the Danger of Confusing Free Speech with Indoctrination
March 2, 2005
I wanted to add to David’s post about the article from The Nation. The author wrote: New, well-funded organizations like the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) specifically urge universities to monitor and divest themselves of those engaged in “rank political indoctrination”—which even they rather sheepishly acknowledge is an awfully thin line away from… Read more
More on ‘Soft’ Violations of Conscience
February 21, 2005
Thank you David for the recent post, and I would like to assure him I am not much for skewering (except the barbeque kind). However, I do disagree, in part, with a recent post in which David discussed his thoughts on violations of the right to conscience. I fully agree that “mandatory diversity training, ‘sensitivity… Read more
UC Santa Barbara’s Unlikely Claims
February 8, 2005
Last week the University of California at Santa Barbara capitulated in its attempt to force the owner of a site called thedarksideofucsb.com to remove the initials “UCSB” on its site. This is a remarkable case for so many reasons, not the least of which is that it highlights the trend of using intellectual property law… Read more
Shippensburg University: Freedom of Speech 101
March 1, 2004
Since the beginning, America has struggled with the concept of free speech. It’s a great idea in the abstract. But when reality hits – when free speech alarms, threatens and offends – the temptation is to rein it in. But then it’s not free speech anymore. Universities have become prime places to witness this free… Read more
A Great Victory for Free Speech at Shippensburg
February 24, 2004
SHIPPENSBURG, PA—In a historic victory for free speech on college and university campuses, Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania, which first vehemently defended its extensive restrictions upon student free speech, has agreed to repeal its unconstitutional speech code. The settlement comes after the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania issued a preliminary injunction against… Read more
Speech Codes: Alive and Well at Colleges
August 1, 2003
Five years ago, a higher-education editor for The New York Times informed one of us, Harvey Silverglate, that Neil L. Rudenstine — then president of Harvard University — had insisted that Harvard did not have, much less enforce, any “speech codes.” Silverglate suggested the editor dig deeper, because virtually any undergraduate could contest the president’s… Read more
Follow FIRE