AltLiberalArts Lecture Series: How Americans Adopted Academic Freedom
Wednesday, June 11, 2025
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm EDT/GMT-4 Online Event
4 PM New York l 10 PM Vienna
AltLiberalArts presents a lecture by Nicholas Tampio, professor of political science at Fordham University, on the history of the idea of academic freedom. In this lecture, Professor Tampio discusses the twentieth century history of academic freedom in the United States. He explains how In the early 20th century, university trustees and presidents in the US could and did fire professors at will. In 1915, the American Association of University Professors published a Declaration of Principles on Academic Freedom and Academic Tenure to protect academics who taught controversial topics. This document is cited often to protest violations of academic freedom, but the document is also important for what it demands that professors do inside and outside of the classroom.
Nicholas Tampio is a professor of political science at Fordham University. He earned a BA from New College, an MA from Indiana University, and a PhD from Johns Hopkins University. Tampio researches the history of political thought, contemporary political theory, and education policy. Tampio is an associate editor of The Journal of Politics, and he often writes for public facing outlets such as the Boston Globe, USA Today, and the Washington Post. He lives with his family in Ridgefield, Connecticut.