Harvard and the Effort to Resist Political Interference in Higher Education

A Panel Discussion on Harvard's Efforts to Protect Academic Freedom

Date: October 30  Kendeda Building, Georgia Tech  6 - 9 PM

The Harvard Club of Georgia is presenting a panel on the recent efforts by Harvard and the Corporation to resist demands from the current administration in Washington, DC to make certain changes in how Harvard carries out its mission. The evening includes a discussion via Zoom with U.S. Representative Jamie Raskin AB '83 LLM '87 regarding Academic Freedom and Democracy.

In early September, U.S. District Judge Allison D. Burroughs delivered a landmark ruling, blocking the Trump administration’s unconstitutional freeze of more than $2 billion in research funding to Harvard — a resounding victory for academic freedom, institutional independence, and the fight to protect the mission, effective operation, and core values of our educational institutions. The court’s decision addressed two separate challenges to the slashing of funds: one filed by Harvard and another filed by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). Despite the recent legal victories, it does not appear that threat of interference is abated.

Join your fellow Harvard alums in Georgia for a timely and urgent panel discussion to unpack the significance of Judge Burroughs’ decision, examine its implications for higher education, and discuss the path forward for Harvard and educational institutions confronting political interference.

The audience will get an introduction to the Kendeda Building for Innovative and Sustainable Design by its Director Shan Arora. Shan is  is a globally recognized leader in advancing regenerative building practices.

Wine and buffet dinner will be available from 6 - 7. The panel will start at 7:15.

Cost: $35 for members and $45 for non-members.

Special Guest

Representative Jamie Raskin AB '83 LLM '87

Special Guest Q&A via ZOOM

Rep. Raskin represents Maryland’s 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives and was sworn into his fifth Term at the start of the 119th Congress on January 6, 2025.
After the violent insurrection at the Capitol in January 2021, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed Rep. Raskin as the lead impeachment manager in the second impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump, the fourth Member of Congress to serve as a lead presidential impeachment manager in American history. It ended in the most sweeping bipartisan vote to convict an impeached president in our history, 57-43, still short of the constitutional threshold.

Meet our Panelists:

Tanya Washington LLM '99

Moderator

Tanya Washington, a native of the city that bears her last name, is a professor of children's constitutional rights at Georgia State University College of Law. After earning her J.D. from The University of Maryland School of Law she clerked for then Associate Judge Robert M. Bell on the Maryland Court of Appeals.

Evelyn Kim AB '95

Crimson Courage

Evelyn Kim is a 1995 graduate of Harvard College. Trained as a historian of science, she currently is a freelance journalist and educator focused on science, environment and food systems both in the laboratory and in policy.

She currently co-chairs the Communications Committee at Crimson Courage, the grass-roots Harvard alumni group defending academic freedom and democracy at Harvard and higher education institutions nationwide.

Tom Rogers

American Association of University Professors

Tom Rogers is Professor of History at Emory University. He teaches on Latin America, focusing particularly on Brazilian labor, environmental, and energy history. He has published two books in these fields and a third, co-authored book on the transnational history of ethanol has just come out. He completed his graduate work in History at Duke University.

Deron Boyles

Academic Freedom in Context

Deron Boyles is Distinguished University Professor in the Department of Educational Policy Studies at Georgia State University. His research interests include school commercialism, epistemology, critical pedagogy, and the philosophy of John Dewey. Boyles received his Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University in 1991, is a Fellow in the Philosophy of Education Society, Past-President of the American Educational Studies Association, and Past-President of the John Dewey Society.

Craig Goodmark

Summary and Charge

Since 1999, Mr. Goodmark has dedicated a majority of his practice to representing families, teachers and students in their pursuit of equality, fairness and justice in Georgia’s schools.