1. Recommendation from the Committee on Faculty Welfare and Privileges (Jan Blits, Chairperson) with the concurrence of the Rules Committee (Jack Baroudi, Chairperson) and the Executive Committee (John Madsen, Chairperson) for the request to replace the University’s 1979 Academic Freedom Statement with a more protective Academic Freedom Statement located in the Faculty Handbook Section 4: Personnel Policies for Faculty – Academic Freedom and Standards of Conduct – Academic Freedom Statement (attachment a Current Policy) (attachment b Newly Proposed Policy)

Whereas: a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision (Garcetti v. Ceballos, 547 U.S. 410 [2006]) and subsequent U.S. Circuit Court rulings, including one by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (Gorum v. Sessoms 08-1741 [2008]), have removed Constitutional protections for public university faculty and students in all areas of “professional duties” other than teaching and research, and

Whereas: the University of Delaware’s 1979 Academic Freedom Statement (www.udel.edu/provost/fachb/IV-B-1-acadfreedom.html )does not specifically protect the freedom of faculty and students to address matters of institutional policy and action or to conduct institutional governance, be it therefore

Resolved: that the Faculty Senate approves replacing the University’s 1979 Academic Freedom Statement with the proposed Academic Freedom Statement.