School Spotlight
Tennessee Technological University
Speech Code Rating
This school has adopted the chicago statement for free speech.
Policy No. 302 Student Conduct: Prohibited Conduct- Harassment
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: October 14, 2021Prohibited conduct includes but is not limited to the following: … Any conduct that falls within the terms of Tennessee Code Annotated Sections 39-17-308 (Harassment) or 39-17-315 (Stalking) or “student-on-student harassment,” which means unwelcome conduct directed toward a person that is discriminatory on a b... Read MorePolicy No. 121 Use of Tennessee Tech Property by Affiliated Users and for Free Speech Activities: Distribution of Leaflets, Literature, Pamphlets, Etc.
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Posting and Distribution Policies
Last updated: October 14, 2021A. Subject to the requirements of TTU Policy 007 (Free Speech on Campus), Tennessee Tech limits locations where the sale or distribution of literature associated with an activity or event will be allowed. B. Subject to the requirements of TTU Policy 007 (Free Speech on Campus), a User must request to distribute or s... Read MorePolicy No. 141 Prohibited Discrimination and Harassment
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: October 14, 2021Harassment: unwelcome conduct based on a protected category where, considering the totality of the circumstances, the conduct complained of is (1) objectively offensive and (2) sufficiently severe or pervasive to alter the conditions of an employee-Complainant’s employment or to interfere with or deny a student-Comp... Read MoreGuide for Successful Living: Community Bill of Rights
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Policies on Tolerance, Respect, and Civility
Last updated: October 14, 2021The community bill of rights is a reminder to you of your rights as an individual and your responsibility to your fellow community members. … The right to be free from fear of intimidation, physical and emotional harm. … The right to be free from peer pressure or ridicule regarding one’s beliefs, i... Read MorePolicy No. 144 Title IX Policy and Grievance Procedures
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: October 14, 2021Sexual harassment — conduct on the basis of sex that satisfies one or more of the following: … Unwelcome conduct determined by a reasonable person to be so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to Tennessee Tech’s education program or activity; R... Read MorePolicy No. 007 Free Speech on Campus
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Advertised Commitments to Free Expression
Last updated: October 14, 2021B. Tennessee Tech is committed to giving Students the broadest possible latitude to speak, write, listen, challenge, learn, and discuss any issue, subject to limitations set forth in this policy or in state or federal law. C. Tennessee Tech is committed to maintaining a campus as a marketplace of ideas for all Stude... Read MorePolicy No. 121 Use of Tennessee Tech Property by Affiliated Users and for Free Speech Activities: Specific Provisions Related to Affiliated Users
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Protest and Demonstration Policies
Last updated: October 14, 2021Affiliated Users are required to submit an Application for Use for open-air (open space) activities and events if any of the following apply: a. The Affiliated User wants to be assured that the Property will be available for use at the preferred time; b. The activity or event will involve more than twenty-five (25) ... Read More
Tennessee Technological University: Professors Punished for Satirical Flyer Criticizing Another Professor
October 8, 2021
In February 2021, two Tennessee Tech professors, Julia Gruber and Andrew Smith, created and distributed a flyer depicting professor and Putnam County Commissioner Andrew Donadio sitting on the Iron Throne from HBO’s Game of Thrones. The flyer criticized Donadio after a dispute over the failed effort to rename a middle school mascot. Tennessee Tech disciplined… Read more
Tennessee Tech professors sue their university for punishing them over Game of Thrones parody flyers
October 8, 2021
Refusing to bend the knee after suffering punishment over their Game of Thrones parody flyers, two professors at Tennessee Technological University are suing their university in federal district court for violating their First Amendment rights. Their Oct. 5 lawsuit represents the latest clash of cavalry between university administrators’ censorship and faculty standing up for their… Read more
Tennessee Tech punishes professors for flyer parodying Game of Thrones
April 26, 2021
Tennessee Tech University is seeking to punish two professors for lampooning a local government official. By doing so, the university is disregarding the First Amendment, common sense, and its own policies promising faculty expressive rights. FIRE urges Tennessee Tech to reverse its disciplinary findings against the professors and refrain from punishing them for exercising their… Read more
Sixth Circuit Publishes Important Campus Speech Case
July 9, 2012
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently decided to publish its April decision (PDF) in McGlone v. Bell, an important case for campus speech rights. It’s worth taking a closer look at the case and its implications for free speech zones maintained by universities nationwide. In McGlone, the Court ruled that… Read more