Students and faculty are increasingly being investigated and punished for exercising their right to protected speech on Tennessee college campuses, according to a new report.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression found the number of students punished by university administration or student government for protected speech rose sharply between 2020 and 2024. Nearly two-thirds of the controversies resulted in some form of punishment.
Sean Stevens, chief research adviser for the foundation, said students with left-leaning tendencies are more often singled out for investigations and discipline…