The number of colleges and universities that have adopted institutional neutrality has dramatically increased since Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, according to a new report from Heterodox Academy, a nonprofit organization focused on viewpoint diversity.
Prior to Israel’s retaliation and the ensuing protests, just eight institutions had official policies discouraging administrators from commenting on sociopolitical events that did not directly impact their campus. By the end of 2024, however, 140 more institutions adopted institutional neutrality.
Community and inclusion, academic freedom and earning public trust were among the leading reasons colleges and universities created neutrality policies. These institutions now serve about 15% of the student population in the U.S. and Canada.
The Heterodox Academy, along with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression and the Academic Freedom Alliance, released a statement last year encouraging university regents and trustees to adopt institutional neutrality in light of intensifying campus protests.
College destiny: Students list their hopes, worries and dream schools
How much has political pressure driven policy adoption?
Campus protests have drawn significant backlash from the public and lawmakers who believe they’ve fueled antisemitism. Political pressures have led some college and university presidents to step down while Columbia recently lost $400 million worth of federal contracts, and the Department of Education has threatened to punish 60 more institutions.
At public universities, which made up most of the list, governing boards were most often responsible for going neutral. About a third of those decisions followed state legislation in, for instance, Indiana, Utah and North Carolina.
Only 33 private institutions have adopted institutional neutrality. The majority of these decisions were driven by the president or faculty bodies. All Ivy League schools—which have faced severe public and political scrutiny over campus protests—have made the change. Other notable private universities on the list include Stanford University, Johns Hopkins University and the University of Southern California.
