The Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship (SAFS) is a Canadian

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

founded to promote

academic freedom Academic freedom is the right of a teacher to instruct and the right of a student to learn in an academic setting unhampered by outside interference. It may also include the right of academics to engage in social and political criticism. Academic ...

and intellectual excellence on Canadian institutions of higher education (i.e.,

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

and

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

campuses). It opposes campus speech codes, political and religious tests for academic hiring, hate-speech legislation that restricts academic freedom, and non- merit-based

affirmative action Affirmative action (also sometimes called reservations, alternative access, positive discrimination or positive action in various countries' laws and policies) refers to a set of policies and practices within a government or organization seeking ...

in university hiring. The SAFS also works to promote reasoned

debate Debate is a process that involves formal discourse, discussion, and oral addresses on a particular topic or collection of topics, often with a moderator and an audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for opposing viewpoints. Historica ...

on a wide range of issues relating to academic freedom and scholarly excellence. Although its membership is open to the general public, the Society is composed mostly of faculty and students from Canadian universities.

History

The Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship was established in 1992 in

London, Ontario London is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River (Ontario), Thames River and N ...

. Its first newsletter was published in May 1992.

Founding members

The society's initial membership included the following founding academic officers: *

Doreen Kimura Doreen Kimura (February 15, 1933 – February 27, 2013) was a Canadian psychologist who was professor at the University of Western Ontario and professor emeritus at Simon Fraser University. Kimura was recognized for her contributions to the fiel ...

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

, FRSC (Psychology, University of Western Ontario) – president * Douglas N. Jackson, PhD, FRSC (Psychology, University of Western Ontario) – secretary-treasurer * Judy Wubnig, PhD (Philosophy, University of Waterloo) – newsletter editor * C. Davison Ankney, PhD (Zoology, University of Western Ontario) – board member * John J. Furedy, PhD (Psychology, University of Toronto) – board member.

''SAFS Newsletter''

Since its founding, the SAFS has published a regular tri-annual newsletter (January, April, September), originally entitled the ''Society for Academic Freedom & Scholarship Newsletter'', later renamed the ''SAFS Newsletter''. The newsletter contains news articles and commentary relating to issues in higher education. The first issue, appearing in May 1992, contained articles by Judy Wubnig and John J. Furedy, as well as announcements from the Board of Directors. Editors of the newsletter have been as follows: * 1992–1994: Judy Wubnig * 1994–2000: Christine Furedy, PhD (Urban Studies, York University) * 2000–2004: Nancy K. Innis, PhD (Psychology, University of Western Ontario) * 2004–2015: Clive Seligman, PhD (Psychology, University of Western Ontario) * 2015–2023: Mark Mercer * 2023–2024: Robert Thomas * 2024-present: Frances Widdowson

Organization

The Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship is financed solely by membership fees and voluntary donations.

Mandate and goals

In its first newsletter, the SAFS listed its central goals as being the defense of

intellectual freedom Intellectual freedom encompasses the freedom to hold, receive and disseminate ideas without restriction. Viewed as an integral component of a democratic society, intellectual freedom protects an individual's right to access, explore, consider, and ...

and the promotion of

academic excellence Academic achievement or academic performance is the extent to which a student, teacher or institution has attained their short or long-term educational goals. Completion of educational benchmarks such as secondary school diplomas and bachelor's deg ...

. Specifically, it listed the society's founding purposes as being:

(1) To resist the ideological misuse of teaching and scholarship, (2) To support
rigorous Rigour (British English) or rigor (American English; see spelling differences) describes a condition of stiffness or strictness. These constraints may be environmentally imposed, such as "the rigours of famine"; logically imposed, such as math ...
standards in research and teaching in university hiring practices, and (3) To preserve academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas, regardless of popular doctrine.

Beginning in 2001, the Society began advertising its main purpose as helping to maintain "freedom in teaching, research and scholarship" and helping to defend "high standards of excellence in academic decision making concerning both students and faculty."

Board of directors

The current board of directors is composed as follows: * Mark Mercer, PhD (Philosophy, Saint Mary's University) – president since 2015 * Janice Fiamengo, PhD (English, University of Ottawa) * Andrew Irvine, PhD (Economics, Philosophy and Political Science, University of British Columbia) * Steve Lupker, PhD (Psychology, University of Western Ontario) * Clive Seligman, PhD (Psychology, University of Western Ontario) – past president *

Peter Suedfeld Peter Suedfeld (born August 30, 1935) is a Hungarian-Canadian professor emeritus of psychology at the University of British Columbia. Suedfeld is a researcher in the field of Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy (REST), and was the fou ...

, PhD, FRSC (Psychology, University of British Columbia) * Robert Thomas, MA, MLIS (Librarian, University of Regina) *

Frances Widdowson Frances Widdowson is a Canadian political scientist. She was an associate professor in the department of economics, justice and policy studies at Mount Royal University from 2008 to 2021. She was fired from the university in December 2021 after an ...

, PhD (Economics, Justice and Policy Studies, Mount Royal University). Past presidents of the society have been: *

, University of Western Ontario (1992–93) * John J. Furedy, University of Toronto (1993–98) *

, Simon Fraser University (1998–2000) *Clive Seligman, University of Western Ontario (2000–15)

Activities and influence

Throughout its history, SAFS has been vocal in its opposition to policies it believes are inconsistent with the goals of an open,

meritocratic Meritocracy (''merit'', from Latin , and ''-cracy'', from Ancient Greek 'strength, power') is the notion of a political system in which economic goods or political power are vested in individual people based on ability and talent, rather than ...

, academic community. It is in this context that it has spoken out against campus

speech codes A speech code is any rule or regulation that limits, restricts, or bans speech beyond the strict legal limitations upon freedom of speech or press found in the legal definitions of harassment, slander, libel, and fighting words. Such codes are ...

, hate-speech legislation that impinges on academic freedom, religious and political tests used in place of strictly academic criteria in university hiring, and non-merit-based affirmative action programs for the hiring of university faculty and librarians. Moreover, unlike some other non-profit societies with similar goals, SAFS has been as much concerned with the academic freedom of university students as it has with the that of university faculty. Since its founding, the Society has regularly been called on by the media to comment on cases relating to academic freedom across Canada. The SAFS has also aspired to promote reasoned debate on a wide range of cases and issues relating to academic freedom and scholarship quite broadly. In addition to sponsoring conferences and

panel discussion A panel discussion, or simply a panel, involves a group of people gathered to discuss a topic in front of an audience, typically at scientific, business, or academic conferences, fan conventions, and on television shows. Panels usually include a ...

s, the SAFS makes publicly available on its official website most of its correspondence concerning cases that it has been involved with. Such correspondences—which often include replies from university administrators, union representatives, and others—provide insight into a large variety of significant Canadian cases relating to academic freedom. According to ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'' columnist Robert Fulford, SAFS has stood up for academic freedom at a time when "fresh waves of intolerance continue to sweep across academe." Similarly, in the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper and the flagship publication of the American-owned Postmedia Network. It is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Monday released as a digital e-edition only.

'', columnist

Barbara Kay Barbara Kay (born 1943) is a columnist for the Canadian newspaper ''National Post''. She also writes a weekly column for '' The Post Millennial'' and a monthly column for '' Epoch Times''. Early life and education Kay was born in 1943 to an "int ...

describes the Society members as "accomplished, disinterested, ruthlessly honest academics united in visceral contempt for those of their peers who are willing to bend and manipulate the truth to serve their ideological ends." For several years the Society recognized important contributions to academic freedom through its Furedy Academic Freedom Award. Established by

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

and Christine Furedy in honour of John's parents, Bela and Dusi Furedy, the award recognized members of the university community, both students and faculty, who have championed academic freedom.

Annual General Meeting

The first SAFS Annual General Meeting was held on 17 May 1994 at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

. From then on, keynote speakers and addresses have included: * 1994:

Jack Granatstein Jack Lawrence Granatstein (May 21, 1939) is a Canadian historian who specializes in Canadian political and military history. Education Born on May 21, 1939, in Toronto, Ontario, Granatstein received a graduation diploma from Royal Military Coll ...

(history,

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

) – “Academic Freefall: Whatever Happened to Free Speech?” * 1995: John Fekete (cultural studies and english literature,

Trent University Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Founded in 1964, the university is known for its Oxbridge college system, sma ...

) – “Moral Panic: Biopolitics and Academic Freedom” * 1996: ''N/A'' * 1997: Barry Smith (philosophy,

SUNY at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo (commonly referred to as UB, University at Buffalo, and sometimes SUNY Buffalo) is a public research university in Buffalo and Amherst, New York, United States. The university was founded in 1846 as ...

) – “The Open Society and Its New (Multiculturalist) Enemies” * 1998–99: ''N/A'' * 2001:

Margaret Wente Margaret Wente (born 15 February 1950) is a Canadian journalist and was a long-time columnist for ''The Globe and Mail'' until August 2019. She received the National Newspaper Award for column-writing in 2000 and 2001. In 2012, Wente was foun ...

(columnist, ''

Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it fall ...

'') – “Moral Panics and The Media,” Margaret Wente (Globe and Mail) * 2002: Alan Kors (history,

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

; president & co-founder,

Foundation for Individual Rights in Education The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), formerly called the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit civil liberties group founded in 1999 with the mission of protecting freedom of speech on col ...

, or FIRE) – “Betrayal of Liberty and Dignity on America’s Campuses” * 2003:

Frederick Lowy Frederick Hans Lowy, (born 1933) is a Canadian medical educator and former President and Vice-Chancellor of Concordia University.Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

) – “Defending Academic Freedom in the Politicized University,” * 2004: ''N/A'' * 2005:

Stephen Balch Stephen H. Balch is an American conservative scholar and higher education reformer. He was the founding president of the National Association of Scholars from 1987 to 2009. Early life and education Balch was born on January 31, 1944, into a Jew ...

(president,

National Association of Scholars The National Association of Scholars (NAS) is an American 501(c)(3) non-profit politically conservative education advocacy organization. It advocates against multiculturalism, diversity policies, and against courses focused on race and gender i ...

) – “Reopening the Intellectual Marketplace in Academe” * 2006:

Salim Mansur Salim Mansur is a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Western Ontario in Canada. He is a former columnist for the ''London Free Press'' and the ''Toronto Sun'', and has contributed to various publications including ''N ...

(political science,

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

) – “Has The Danish Cartoon Controversy Pushed The World To A Tipping Point In The Clash Or Crash Of Civilizations?” * 2007: James Turk (executive director,

Canadian Association of University Teachers The Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT; , ACPPU) is a federation of independent associations and trade unions representing approximately 70,000 teachers, librarians, researchers, and other academic professionals and general staff a ...

) – “Academic Freedom” * 2008: Anton Allahar and Jim Côté (sociology, University of Western Ontario) – “Ivory Tower Blues: A University System in Crisis” * 2009:

(columnist, ''

'') – “Manipulating Debate: Anti-Israel Rhetoric and Political Activism on Universities Worldwide” * 2010: ''no meeting'' * 2011: John Carpay (founder & president,

Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) is a Canadian legal advocacy group, advocacy organization specializing in a libertarian approach to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The libertarian organisation has partnered w ...

) – “Freedom of Speech on Canadian Campuses” * 2012: Gábor Lukács (fmr. mathematics,

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

) – “Is Academic Integrity adequately promoted by Academic Governance, Collective Bargaining, and Judicial Review?” * 2013: Peter Wood (president, National Association of Scholars) – “What does Bowdoin teach? An examination of the current content of a liberal arts college” * 2014:

Greg Lukianoff Gregory Christopher Lukianoff (; born 1974) is an American lawyer, journalist, author and activist who serves as the president of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). He previously served as FIRE's first director of legal a ...

(president, FIRE) – “Unlearning Liberty: Campus Censorship and the End of American Debate” * 2015: Janice Fiamengo (English,

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a Official bilingualism in Canada, bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ot ...

) – “From Micro-Aggression to BDS: Can Humanities Education Be Saved from Social Justice?” * 2016: Donald Alexander Downs (political science, law, and journalism,

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

; director & co-founder, Wisconsin Center for the Study of Liberal Democracy) – “Challenges to Academic Freedom: Anything New Under the Sun?” * 2017:

Jordan Peterson Jordan Bernt Peterson (born 12 June 1962) is a Canadian psychologist, author, and media commentator. He received widespread attention in the late 2010s for his views on cultural and political issues. Often described as Conservatism, conservativ ...

(psychology, University of Toronto; clinical psychologist) – “Why freedom of speech is not just another value” * 2018: Gad Saad (evolutionary psychology; marketing,

John Molson School of Business The John Molson School of Business, commonly known as John Molson, is a business school located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The John Molson School of Business was established in 1974 by Concordia University. Programs Undergraduate programs S ...

) – “A Tsunami of Maladies Afflicting the Soul of Our Universities” * 2019:

Rachel Fulton Brown Rachel Fulton Brown (born 1965) is an American medievalist. She is an Associate Professor of Medieval History, Fundamentals, and the College at the University of Chicago."Rachel Fulton Brown", University of Chicago faculty website entryOnline Last ...

(history,

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

) – “Is Academia Good for the Soul?” * 2020: Samir Gandesha (humanities,

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a Public university, public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It maintains three campuses in Greater Vancouver, respectively located in Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, British Columbia, Surrey, and ...

) – “Is Academic Freedom Under Attack in the Canadian University?” * 2021 (May 21): Tomáš Hudlický (chemistry,

Brock University Brock University is a public university, public research university in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It is the only university in Canada in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, at the centre of Canada's Niagara Peninsula on the Niagara Escarpment. The ...

) – ''Hudlický will discuss what happened after a journal pulled his critique of trends in chemistry research and teaching''.''SAFS Newsletter, No. 87''
January 2021.

References

External links

* *
Annual General Meeting of the Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship
{{Authority control Advocacy groups in Canada Academic freedom Freedom of speech Freedom of expression Non-profit organizations based in Canada 1992 establishments in Ontario