Statement on Academic Freedom and in Support of Professor Laurie Rubel

Brooklyn College is committed to the core principles of academic freedom and the free expression of ideas. We support our faculty members' right to explore ideas through research, the publication of scholarship, and academic discourse and debate. The free expression of ideas is instrumental to our faculty fulfilling their role as professors and scholars in an academic setting. It is also the lifeblood of any vibrant institution of higher education.

Professor Laurie Rubel, a widely published scholar in the School of Education, recently wrote an article in the Journal of Urban Mathematics Education that focused on educational equity and access in math education. That article generated public interest and some controversy, which has led to anonymous threats of injury. We strongly defend Professor Rubel's right to publish her work without threat of personal harm. She has the right to pursue scholarship within her field and publish her research in professional venues. We strongly support her academic freedom, as well as her right to explore issues of educational fairness and racial equality in education systems.

William A. Tramontano
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs