FIRE Open Letter to the University of Mississippi, 12/18/2020

December 18, 2020

Chancellor Glenn Boyce

Chancellor’s Office

The University of Mississippi

Lyceum 123

University, Mississippi 38677

Sent via Electronic Mail (chancellor@olemiss.edu)

Dear Chancellor Boyce:

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to defending liberty, freedom of speech, due process, academic freedom, legal equality, and freedom of conscience on America’s college campuses.

FIRE appreciates that the University of Mississippi is one of the few institutions in the country whose policies earn a “green light” rating from FIRE. We are, however, concerned by the circumstances of the University’s nonrenewal of Professor Garrett Felber. Your acceptance of the recommendation for his nonrenewal appears to have been predicated on an incomplete accounting of these circumstances, which suggest that the nonrenewal was motivated in part by Felber’s criticism of the institution on social media. Accordingly, we join calls for a full and transparent account of the University’s response to Felber’s criticism1 and urge you to reevaluate his nonrenewal.