Dear colleagues,

I am proud and humbled to stand together with you all, to work with you as faculty colleagues, and to collaborate with our classified colleagues.

Last night, the Board of Education changed course and removed the speech restriction policy from their agenda after hearing numerous eloquent and compelling speakers over the better part of an hour of public testimony. In addition, the Board postponed consideration of the copyright and intellectual property rights policies in order to allow for more time for deliberation.

LCCEA will, of course, stay abreast of these issues and will strive to notify faculty of any upcoming discussions about these policies and will continue to advocate to preserve speech rights on campus, to ensure hate speech continues to be prohibited, to protect faculty intellectual property rights, and to encourage development and unrestricted sharing of open educational resources.

In the meantime, please know that your voices, your statements, your presence, the Faculty Council statements, and LCCEF solidarity were impactful in changing the course of the Board at the meeting and in upholding some of the democratic principles we hold most dear, which are fundamental to an institution of higher education, and which we strive to foster in engagement with students.

In solidarity, with appreciation and humility,

Adrienne