"I have yet, in 15 years of university teaching, to ever have students feel as if they are being influenced, pressured, brainwashed or even made to feel uncomfortable expressing their own opinions in my classes," he said.
YAF members found the largest disparity between Democrats and Republicans is in human development and family studies (HDFS), where the ratio is 23 to one.
"I think the university is a place where there should be views that are listened to and people are tolerated," HDFS professor David Almeida said. "If being liberal is being tolerant, then maybe we're guilty."
J.D. Goldstein (senior-political science and religious studies) said he didn't see the purpose in YAF's protest because he feels professors should not bring their political bias into the classroom.
"Political bias should not enter the dialogue," he said. "They should play devil's advocate."
Tony De Los Angeles (junior-political science) said he has never found any political bias among his professors.
"I think they do a really good job at hiding their political affiliations," he said. "For every one of my teachers, I haven't been able to tell."
However, De Los Angeles said he thinks it is possible for students to be influenced by their teachers' political views.
Plutzer said there tends to be more liberal professors than conservative ones because many conservatives are not interested in pursuing careers in higher education. "I think there are very few economic conservatives who really would like to go through six years of graduate school at meager wages and uncertain futures as professors, compared to the economic opportunities in the private sector," he said.
Plutzer added that more Republicans should enter fields in higher education if they feel there should be more of a balance.
Moser said professors should have a balanced curriculum. "Students look at a professor as somebody at a higher authority," she said.
Send an 
