To the Editor:
Tuesday's column by Kevin Collins ("More Harm Than Good," The Daily Pennsylvanian, 3/15/05) takes a stab at the only student organization that is actively fighting against discrimination on campus. Many students at Penn know the feeling of fearing to express one's true opinions for fear that the "wrong" opinion will result in a lower grade.
Collins claims that "grade inflation is sure to result" if this bill is adopted and implies that this is too high a price to pay for freedoms that are critical to the integrity of our university. In defending a practice that is inherently unjust he misses the entire point. The debate is about academic freedom, integrity and its essential role in the educational process. Grade inflation has absolutely no relevance to the issue and is only a "red herring" that is put out to divert attention from the injustice that all too often takes place in our classrooms.
Students for Academic Freedom wants to ensure that the faculty do not use the classroom as a platform for their political agendas. Students should not be forced to tailor their papers to agree with a professor's opinion nor should they suffer the repercussions for voicing their own opinions. The problem is not the number of liberal professors, but rather it is the manner in which they present controversial issues. Any bias in the classroom should not, and cannot, be tolerated.
SAF promotes intellectual diversity, defends the right of students to be treated with respect by faculty and administrators -- regardless of their political or religious beliefs -- and promotes fairness, civility and inclusion in student affairs. Encouraging and respecting diversity of opinion is essential and the Academic Bill of Rights is the first step towards achieving this goal.
Julie Blinbaum
College '06
