Most of us take academic freedom for granted. We assume that professors should be allowed and encouraged to pursue the truth, even if this truth may not agree with popular political views.

Indeed, the integrity of a liberal arts education has been one of the greatest American traditions and has been valued as crucial for the success of democracy from individuals as diverse as Thomas Jefferson, Walt Whitman, Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton. Recently, several bills have appeared before the U.S. House of Representatives that might change this.

One bill, HR-3077, has passed the House and has gone to the Senate. This bill affects Title VI funding, which was created in the 1950s to promote the study of foreign languages and cultures because the government believed that academic research in these fields was important for U.S. security and productive international relations. Since the Nixon administration, the government has believed that Title VI should not be subject to the fluctuating political preferences of the Congress or the President. However, HR-3077 will eliminate the part of Title VI that protects professors and researchers from the whims of D.C. politics.

Even worse, it will shift jurisdiction from the Department of Education (where it belongs) to the new Department of Homeland Security. This bill has dangerous implications for education at Penn State. For more information about Title VI and to sign a petition against H.R. 3077, please come to our table in the food court level of the HUB between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. today.