A civil liberties group focused on free speech issues is putting Michigan State University on notice, sending a letter to the East Lansing-based university Friday raising concerns with recent revisions to the board of trustees code of ethics and conduct.
In a letter to the university’s board, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression argued that several newly-approved provisions on board member behavior violate the First Amendment by “restricting trustees’ ability to speak about university affairs, criticize institutional decisions, and communicate candidly with the people they were elected to represent.”
Aaron Terr, the foundation’s director of public advocacy, called on the board to eliminate these new provisions in order to comply with the Constitution, offering the group’s assistance at no cost…