UI Center for Intellectual Freedom Director: ‘It's not a political enterprise’

IOWA CITY — Leadership of the Legislature’s new Center for Intellectual Freedom based at the University of Iowa on Friday dismissed recent polling showing the vast majority of students across Iowa’s public universities feel comfortable sharing their views in class.

“I was, in all honesty, a little bit surprised,” Christine Hensley, a regent and member of the new center’s advisory council, said Friday about the polling during a taping of “Iowa Press.”

“Because I do get emails from students and parents of students expressing concern about it,” Hensley said. “And I'll be real honest. I had family members that attended the University of Iowa … and we had regular conversations with them. And they made it very clear that if they wanted to get a good grade in some of the classes, then they really had to go along with what the philosophy was of the professor — even though they felt it was wrong or they totally disagreed with it.”

Radio Iowa News Director and “Iowa Press” host Kay Henderson asked Hensley and the center’s interim director Luciano de Castro about the Board of Regents’ 2024 free speech study after they shared thoughts on the center’s mission and metrics for success.

“One of the aspects that we want to create is actually bringing academic excellence to our students,” de Castro said. “It's not an ideological objective. It's not a political enterprise. It's an academic unit we are striving for to create academic excellence for students.”

When asked whether academic excellence already exist on the campuses, de Castro pointed to his unsupported attempts as a UI economics professor to create a course on capitalism.

And Hensley again cited anecdotal evidence for the dearth in balance.

“As you talk with alumni, significant donors and parents of students, there is a feeling that there's not enough balance,” she said. “We — as a regent, and also from a personal perspective — have received emails from parents and donors very concerned about not having open dialogue, diverse discussion about freedom, civics and American history.”

The Iowa Legislature last session passed a bill creating the Center for Intellectual Freedom to be based on the UI campus but reporting directly to the Board of Regents. It’s advised by a 26-member council — half of whom are professors from outside Iowa and most of whom have expressed conservative ideology.

Of the 26 members, two are women and the new law allows just one of the council members to work for the university.

The nine-member executive committee — leading a national search for a permanent center director — is led by University of Texas finance professor Richard Lowery, who identifies as an independent but in 2023 sued his own campus on allegations it was funding and supporting “left-wing” causes like affirmative action, critical-race theory, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Lowery is joined on the executive committee by four out-of-state professors, giving them the majority. The other four minority members with Iowa ties include Hensley, former Gov. Terry Branstad, former Democratic Sen. Liz Mathis, and founder and CEO of Heart of America Group Mike Whalen.

When asked about her previous comments promising the center “will not fail,” Hensley during the taping Friday said she has confidence — in part — because of the “high-level outstanding faculty from throughout the country” serving on the council.

Metrics for success going forward, she said, will include the level of speakers the center manages to bring to campus.

“I think the student participation — we want to make sure that these courses are really attractive and the students are excited about them, maybe have a waiting list even,” Hensley said.

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“One of the measures of success is the academic reputation of the center, and we are already making very strong progress in this area,” de Castro said — pointing to last weekend’s inaugural event that welcomed both Gov. Kim Reynolds and conservative commentator Christopher Rufo as keynote speakers.

One of the panel discussions from that event asked, “What is wrong with universities?” and Henderson pressed the center leaders Friday to address research showing many teens adopt the political ideology of their parents, not their professors.

“I don't know this research that you mentioned,” de Castro said. “And if you ask me, the perception of most of the courses at the University of Iowa, they are very high quality. I wouldn't say that they are bad. And actually, even if a professor is left-leaning, you can most of the time learn from them. The point is to offer things that go beyond.”

Henderson raised to Hensley the 2024 Board of Regents free speech survey that found 87 percent of student respondents felt comfortable expressing opinions in class and 83 percent felt the university provides an environment for free and open expression.

Similarly, 77 percent of employee respondents said their university provides an environment supporting free expression of ideas, opinions, and beliefs.

“I think what you find from students is that they are hesitant at times to speak up,” Hensley said in response. “I think you also hear that from faculty members. This came out last week as faculty were talking about what's wrong. They said you'll hear one discussion publicly, but when you go behind closed doors with those faculty members, that's when you really hear what is happening and some of the concerns that they have.”

Addressing “the elephant in the room,” Erin Murphy, The Gazette’s Des Moines bureau chief, asked whether the goal of the center is to provide a conservative counterpoint to the perceived liberal bias on college campuses.

“It's academic excellence,” de Castro said. “It's not ideological, it's not political. And this is something that we have to highlight.”

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com