Author Profile

David Seidemann

David Seidemann is a professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Brooklyn College. He earned a B.S. from the State University of New York at Stony Brook, and M.Phil. and Ph.D. degrees from Yale University. In 2002, he brought a pro se case against the faculty union that represented him. That litigation resulted in federal circuit court decisions that cited the union for violating the First Amendment rights of its fee payers. (Seidemann v. Bowen, 499 F.3d 119, 125-26, 2nd Cir. 2007; and 584 F.3d 104, 2d Cir. 2009)

Articles by David Seidemann

The Slippery Slope of Speech Suppression at CUNY

Feb 6, 2019 · David Seidemann · Comments Off

Public universities morally should and legally must uphold free speech. Unfortunately, the university where I’ve taught for 43 years has a very bad record, and matters are getting worse. The City University of New York (CUNY) has a long history of speech suppression, as a sampling of legal cases at its various campus units reveals. … Continue reading “The Slippery Slope of Speech Suppression at CUNY”

Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville Oct 5, 2022
It’s by now a commonplace story: State universities in “red” states, where most of the voters and legislators dislike progressive ideology, are being infiltrated by administrators and faculty who insist on implementing radically leftist policies and courses. Earlier this year, for example, the Martin Center published this article by Jonathan Small on the ways that … Continue reading “Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville”
Higher Education Used to Love Controversy Sep 28, 2022
It is interesting but depressing to me that the more eminent a college or university is perceived to be, the more outrageous are efforts by administrators to stifle individual expression and enforce a numbing conformity of ideas reminiscent of universities in the old Soviet Union or Nazi Germany. The most prestigious group of schools in … Continue reading “Higher Education Used to Love Controversy”
N.C. Campuses’ Long War Sep 26, 2022
World wars have been fought in less time than the battle the UNC and N.C. Community College Systems have waged to create a user-friendly database that active-duty military personnel and veterans can use to ease their transition into higher education. Lawmakers and veterans advocates want to know why higher-education officials have failed for nearly a … Continue reading “N.C. Campuses’ Long War”

Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville Oct 5, 2022
It’s by now a commonplace story: State universities in “red” states, where most of the voters and legislators dislike progressive ideology, are being infiltrated by administrators and faculty who insist on implementing radically leftist policies and courses. Earlier this year, for example, the Martin Center published this article by Jonathan Small on the ways that … Continue reading “Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville”
Do American Undergraduates Still Respect Their Professors? Sep 29, 2022
The pandemic has affected numerous aspects of daily life. Included among these are how students and faculty relate and respond to each other on campus. With many classes going virtual and universities dealing with unprecedented circumstances, student and faculty relations may well be expected to have shifted. How students view faculty can tell us many … Continue reading “Do American Undergraduates Still Respect Their Professors?”
Higher Education Used to Love Controversy Sep 28, 2022
It is interesting but depressing to me that the more eminent a college or university is perceived to be, the more outrageous are efforts by administrators to stifle individual expression and enforce a numbing conformity of ideas reminiscent of universities in the old Soviet Union or Nazi Germany. The most prestigious group of schools in … Continue reading “Higher Education Used to Love Controversy”

Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville Oct 5, 2022
It’s by now a commonplace story: State universities in “red” states, where most of the voters and legislators dislike progressive ideology, are being infiltrated by administrators and faculty who insist on implementing radically leftist policies and courses. Earlier this year, for example, the Martin Center published this article by Jonathan Small on the ways that … Continue reading “Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville”
Re: “Failing Introductory Economics” Oct 4, 2022
To the editor: I admire the fact that Professor Ross is not willing to “dumb down” his class in order to make it more popular. Colin Barnett Albuquerque, NM
Failing Introductory Economics Oct 3, 2022
In June 2014, I wrote a piece entitled “Reform Intro Economics” for Inside Higher Ed. There, I argued that then-current introductory economics courses were little changed from those of decades past. I further stated that the students of 2014 found the unrevised course somewhat unsatisfactory: Today’s students are … not accustomed to sitting through 50-minute … Continue reading “Failing Introductory Economics”