President Michael Stevenson
Stroud Hall
Simon Fraser University
Burnaby, B.C.
V5A 1S6

Dear President Stevenson:

I am writing on behalf of the Society for Academic Freedom and Scholarship. Our chief goals are the protection of academic freedom and the merit principle in decisions about faculty and students. Please see our website for more information about our society: www.safs.niagara.com

We have become concerned at possible inappropriate administrative action in the consideration of Professor David Noble for the J.S. Woodsworth Chair in the Humanities. What especially concerns us is the report that agents representing the university asked questions of Professor Noble's referees that would be in conflict with generally accepted conditions of appointment. More particularly, the referees were reportedly asked whether Professor Noble could be counted on to represent the university's views, in his role as occupant of the chair.

If true, we would regard the asking of this question as a serious attack on academic freedom. Most universities subscribe to the CAUT's principles on academic freedom, i.e., "Academic members of the community are entitled to... freedom to criticize the university,... freedom from institutional censorship", etc. It would clearly not be required that a faculty member represent the university's views; on the contrary, faculty have the explicit right to disagree with such views.

Could you clarify for us whether in fact such questions formed part of the evaluation process? If so, can we receive some assurance that this was a mistaken approach, and that Simon Fraser University does in fact endorse academic freedom in its broadest form, as described by CAUT.

Sincerely,

Clive Seligman, President

c.c. Dr. David. Noble, Department of History, York University