California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly): Bias Reporting System Targets "Politically Incorrect" Professors
California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly), which has already once been on the losing side of a free speech lawsuit, suspended an unconstitutional program targeting professors and students whose speech is "biased" or not "politically correct." The program even planned to let students report complaints anonymously, meaning that those deemed "politically incorrect" might never have known whom they had offended or why. Under pressure from FIRE, Cal Poly has promised that any future CARE-Net program (short for Community Advocating REspect) "will not function to suppress controversial, offensive, or any other kind of protected speech."
- "Cal Poly Suspends Reporting on ‘Politically Incorrect’ Faculty and Students," June 1, 2009: California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly), which has already once been on the losing side of a free speech lawsuit, has suspended an unconstitutional program targeting professors and students whose speech is "biased" or not "politically correct." The program even planned to let students report complaints anonymously, meaning that those deemed "politically incorrect" might never have known whom they had offended or why. Under pressure from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), Cal Poly has promised that any future CARE-Net program (short for Community Advocating REspect) "will not function to suppress controversial, offensive, or any other kind of protected speech."
- "Letter to FIRE from Cal Poly Vice Provost for Academic Programs W. David Conn, May 15, 2009," June 1, 2009
- "Cal Poly "CARE-Net" Homepage as of May 5, 2009," May 12, 2009
- "FIRE Letter to California Polytechnic State University President Warren J. Baker," May 6, 2009
Case Materials
- "Cal Poly Establishes Neutral Ombuds as Successor to CARE-Net, Resolving Yearlong Controversy," by Adam Kissel, March 22, 2010
- "Cal Poly Suspends Reporting on ‘Politically Incorrect’ Faculty and Students," by Adam Kissel, June 2, 2009
- "Progress at Cal Poly, but Concerns Remain," by Samantha Harris, May 22, 2009
- "Blogger Rips Cal Poly’s “CARE-Net”," by Luke Sheahan, May 13, 2009
- "After Letter from FIRE, Troubling Bias Incident Policy Disappears from Cal Poly Website," by Samantha Harris, May 12, 2009
Blog Entries
- "New CARE-Net program will allow students to report biased incidents,"
by Chris Jagger, May 3, 2009
