Academic freedom talks stir tensions at Faculty Executive Committee

The Faculty Executive Committee met Monday to discuss issues of academic freedom and opposition to part of a North Carolina gun law that affects college campuses.

President of the UNC Retired Faculty Association Jim Peacock brought the issue of the new gun law before the committee, asking them to support repealing the law.

According to an official resolution written by UNC RFA member Jonathan Kotch, the UNC RFA advocates to repeal the part of Section 3 in House Bill 562 that legalizes removing a firearm from a vehicle parked on campus if the firearm owner thinks a threatening situation has arisen.

“At the present time, it is legal for individuals to keep a weapon, if they have a concealed carry permit, in a concealed and locked location inside their car,” Kotch said.

He said the RFA supports the immediate repeal of this part of the bill, as the presence of a gun on a college campus decreases safety.

UNC Department of Public Safety Chief Jeff McCracken said he and other police chiefs opposed this bill.

“The police chiefs and I are all in agreement — this is not a safe law and we oppose it,” he said.

McCracken said he was concerned that allowing the gun to be retrieved from its stored location could make it harder for officers to handle difficult situations safely and effectively.

The committee made no decision regarding this proposition from the RFA.

“I sense a lot of support around the table for what you’re doing,” said Vin Steponaitis, secretary of the faculty.

The committee also discussed issues of academic freedom that have arisen since the presidential election, focusing on the role the committee plays in handling faculty complaints about academic freedom.

Committee members made repeated references to a specific complaint by an individual made recently, while refraining from disclosing the individual’s name. The discussion became heated.

“If a person who has a complaint comes to talk to us, we start to get into the fact-finding and the adjudication, which is not what this committee should do,” Steponaitis said.

The debate centered around the FEC’s role in the process of faculty complaints and whether or not the committee should have contacted the individual who filed the complaint.

“I think what is important is people feeling heard and feeling like faculty government responds to them,” Mimi Chapman, a professor in the UNC School of Social Work, said.

“That doesn’t mean that they always get what they want, but it means that they get a response.”

Unable to reach a consensus on the matter, the committee adjourned and tabled the discussion.

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