The University of Southern Maine (USM) has a commitment to academic freedom. In a class environment, this freedom is exercised through the norms established by the faculty who play a distinct role in a class setting rooted in their professional training and in the standards established by disciplinary cultures, professional organizations, and accreditors.
Public institutions of higher education function for the common good, not to further the interest of either the individual faculty member or the institution as a whole. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free expression. Academic freedom is essential for protection of the rights of the teacher in teaching, and the rights of the student to freedom in learning. Teachers must be accorded freedom of speech under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and are entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. Controversy lies at the heart of free academic inquiry, and provocative teaching techniques are often effective. Rights carry corresponding duties; both faculty and students should exercise this freedom in a responsible manner.
A fundamental premise of academic freedom is that decisions concerning the quality of faculty scholarship, teaching, and service are best made by reference to standards of the academic profession, as interpreted and applied by the community of scholars who are qualified by academic expertise and professional training to establish them. Possible violations of professional standards are most appropriately remedied through supervision of faculty peers. This occurs during regular performance appraisals of faculty, in which adequate consideration of student teaching evaluations is required.