FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Anne D. Neal, 202-467-6787; 920-251-9308
(cell)
APPROVES LEGISLATION REQUIRING
ANNUAL REPORTS ON INTELLECTUAL DIVERSITY
ACTA President Testifies, Calling HB
1222 a National Model
for Ensuring
a Free Exchange of Ideas on Campus
PIERRE, SOUTH DAKOTA, (February 7,
2006) — The South Dakota House Committee on Education today approved House
Bill 1222, a bill which requires higher education institutions to report
annually on concrete steps taken to ensure the free exchange of ideas on their
campuses. The vote came after testimony
by ACTA president Anne Neal, who called the bill a national model. “By passing
HB 1222, legislators will fulfill their responsibility to make certain that
students receive the best education possible through an open and free exchange
of ideas, and do so in a way that
fully protects academic freedom, shared governance, and academic standards,”
Neal told the legislators.
“This bill is a national
model,” Neal continued, “since it understands that issues concerning
intellectual diversity should be addressed first and foremost by colleges and
universities themselves and that governing boards have the ultimate obligation
to address those concerns.”
HB 1222 was filed by Rep. Phyllis M. Heineman, chairman of the House Committee on Education, and
mandates that the South Dakota Board of Regents require institutions they
govern to report on specific steps taken “to ensure and promote intellectual
diversity and academic freedom.” The bill suggests a variety of measures
institutions can take, but leaves the contents of the report—which will be made public—up to each reporting institution.
More than 30 legislators co-sponsored the
bill, including both Democrats and Republicans. Full floor consideration is
expected later this week.
The bill comes in the wake of a national
initiative, launched by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, to ensure
the free exchange of ideas on college and university campuses. In a report
released last month, Intellectual
Diversity: Time for Action, ACTA outlined steps universities could take to
encourage a mix of ideas on campus and to respond to the growing public concern
about the lack of intellectual diversity. These suggestions are incorporated
into the text of the
Neal addressed the committee at the request
of bill sponsor Heineman, who publicly thanked the
American Council of Trustees and Alumni for providing her advice and counsel
after a constituent raised concerns.
The American Council of Trustees and Alumni
is a national higher education nonprofit dedicated to academic freedom,
academic excellence, and accountability. Founded in 1995, ACTA is dedicated to advancing intellectual diversity through its
network of 12,000 alumni and trustees from
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