Our Work

Through convening and dialogue, we create spaces where students, scholars, leaders, and thinkers from diverse institutions gather to engage substantively with the challenges facing academic freedom, open inquiry, and free expression. Our programs generate intellectual energy, demonstrate that difficult conversations can occur across deep disagreement, and build community among those committed to defending academic freedom. We model the conditions under which pluralism strengthens rather than weakens institutional integrity.

Through intensive preparation of academic leaders, faculty, staff, and the public, we develop capacity to sustain and renew the conditions for free expression on university campuses and in civic life. We strengthen faculty governance, empower student leaders to engage constructively across difference, and prepare administrators to navigate pressure from all directions while maintaining institutional integrity. We create citizens who welcome discourse across political and ideological difference, influencing our society over time. 

Through strategic partnerships with other departments and centers across the University of Chicago, as well as like-minded organizations and institutions around the world, we strengthen the collective commitment to academic freedom and free expression. We share insights and practices across institutions, connect those facing similar challenges, and build networks of support that extend far beyond any single campus or organization. We demonstrate that defending intellectual freedom is a shared responsibility requiring a constant commitment and coordinated action across sectors.