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Academic Freedom and Freedom of Speech Policy

Section 1 - Purpose

(1) To affirm RMIT’s commitment to upholding academic freedom and freedom of lawful speech.

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Section 2 - Overview

(2) RMIT was founded on the unceded lands of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nations. RMIT recognises that knowledges have been produced, exchanged and applied by Indigenous Peoples of this Country for thousands of generations. The inclusion and relationship with the knowledge of Australia's Indigenous Peoples contributes to and extends the mission of RMIT.

(3) The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology Act 2010 articulates the production, application and critique of knowledge as central to the objects of RMIT. In this context, RMIT recognises that academic freedom and free intellectual enquiry are the foundation stones of RMIT as a public institution that serves communities locally and internationally as well as the public interest broadly defined.

(4) RMIT recognises academic freedom and freedom of speech as paramount values and affirms its commitment to intellectual rigour, social responsibility and institutional autonomy and accountability.

(5) RMIT recognises its obligation to strengthen, enhance and advance the conditions for free enquiry, informed intellectual discourse and reasoned debate through its operations, management and governance. These institutional responsibilities are shared by a community of scholars, teachers and learners committed to the value of research, education and scholarship for the practical betterment of humanity.

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Section 3 - Scope

(6) This policy applies across the RMIT Group to its officers, staff, students, governing and decision-making bodies (including those involved in academic governance). This policy also applies to student representative bodies to the extent they have policies and rules which are capable of being applied to restrict intellectual freedom. For brevity, the people in scope are collectively referred to in this policy as staff, students and visitors.

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Section 4 - Policy

Principles

(7) RMIT will have regard to the intent and provisions of this policy, when drafting, reviewing, or amending any non-statutory policies or rules and in the drafting, review or amendment of delegated legislation pursuant to any delegated law-making powers.

(8) RMIT’s non-statutory policies and rules will be interpreted and applied, so far as is reasonably practicable, in accordance with the provisions of this policy.

(9) Any power or discretion under an RMIT non-statutory policy or rule will be exercised in accordance with the provisions of this policy.

(10) This policy prevails, to the extent of any inconsistency, over any RMIT non-statutory policy or rules.

(11) Any power or discretion conferred on RMIT by a law made by RMIT in the exercise of its delegated law-making powers shall be exercised, so far as that law allows, in accordance with the provisions of this policy.

(12) Any power or discretion conferred on RMIT under any contract or workplace agreement shall be exercised, so far as is consistent with the terms of that contract or workplace agreement, in accordance with the provisions of this policy.

(13) RMIT will support staff and students to the extent reasonably practicable in the exercise of academic freedom and freedom of lawful speech, including when those rights are exercised in jurisdictions outside Australia.

Academic Freedom

(14) Every member of academic staff and every student enjoys academic freedom, subject only to prohibitions, restrictions or conditions imposed by:

  1. law, including those laws which protect persons from harassment, vilification or intimidation, or
  2. the reasonable and proportionate regulation necessary to enable RMIT to discharge its obligations in relation to its:
    1. teaching and research activities
    2. duty to foster the wellbeing of students and staff
    3. legal duties, or
    4. reasonable requirements as to programs and courses to be delivered and the content and means of their delivery.

(15) Subject to the limitations in clause (14), the exercise by a member of academic staff or of a student of academic freedom will not constitute misconduct nor attract any penalty or other adverse action.

Freedom of Speech

(16) Every member of staff and every student at RMIT enjoys freedom of speech and a right to peaceful protest exercised on RMIT land or in connection with RMIT, subject only to restraints or burdens imposed by:

  1. law, including those laws which protect persons from harassment, vilification, or intimidation, or
  2. the reasonable and proportionate regulation of conduct necessary to enable RMIT to discharge its obligations in relation to its:
    1. teaching and research activities, including by making arrangements to ensure that those activities are not disrupted by any protests
    2. duty to foster the wellbeing of students and staff
    3. legal duties, including its duties in relation to visitors to RMIT, or
    4. the right and freedom of others to express themselves and to hear and receive information and opinions.

(17) Subject to the limitations in clause (14) a person’s speech or peaceful protest on RMIT land or in connection with RMIT will not constitute misconduct nor attract any penalty or other adverse action by reference only to its content, nor will the freedom of staff to make lawful public comment on any issue in their personal capacity be subject to constraint imposed by reasons of their employment with RMIT.

External Relationships

(18) In entering into affiliation, collaborative or contractual arrangements with third parties and in accepting donations from third parties subject to conditions RMIT will:

  1. take all reasonable steps to minimise the restrictions or burdens imposed by such arrangement or conditions on the academic freedom or freedom of lawful speech of any member of the academic staff or students undertaking teaching, research or study under the third-party arrangements; and
  2. ensure, as far as reasonably possible, that the scholarly contributions of academic staff are accurately represented by third parties, particularly where the third party has commissioned the work.

(19) RMIT will take active measures to prevent academic freedom or freedom of lawful speech being impeded in any way by foreign interference.

(20) RMIT has the right and responsibility to determine the terms and conditions for the use of its resources and facilities and the basis on which invited or external visitors speak on RMIT land and/or use RMIT facilities and resources. RMIT will consider the objectives of the RMIT Act 2010 in terms of promoting intellectual standards and informed public debate when making decisions about the use of its resources and facilities, and in doing so may require a person or persons.

(21) RMIT may refuse permission for an invited or external visiting speaker to speak on RMIT land or use RMIT facilities where the content of the speech is or is likely to:

  1. be unlawful, including in relation to those laws which protect persons from harassment, vilification, or intimidation
  2. prejudice RMIT’s ability to fulfil its duty to foster the wellbeing of students and staff, or
  3. involve the uncontested advancement of theories or propositions which purport to be based on scholarship or research, but which fall below scholarly standards to such an extent as to be detrimental to RMIT’s character as an institution of higher learning.

(22) Subject to clauses (20) and (21), RMIT will not refuse permission for the use of its land or facilities by an invited or external visiting speaker, nor attach conditions to its permission, solely on the basis of the content of the proposed speech by the visitor.

Responsibilities

(23) When exercising academic freedom or freedom of lawful speech, staff and students must:

  1. comply with law
  2. have due regard to the need for reasoned argument, discourse, critique and debate in order to further a positive intellectual culture, and
  3. acknowledge that in the furtherance of its teaching, learning and research objectives, RMIT benefits from a diversity of views being voiced and contested. The provisions of this policy do not extend to a duty to protect any persons from feeling offended, shocked or insulted by the lawful speech of another.

(24) When exercising academic freedom, staff must also act in good faith, in accordance with their own professional judgement having due regard to the expectations of their discipline, broad scholarly standards and formal accrediting bodies.

(25) The Academic Board is responsible for monitoring the implementation and operation of this policy, including reporting to the RMIT University Council on its effectiveness in support of Council’s annual attestation.

(26) The Deputy Vice-Chancellor Education is responsible for ensuring staff and students are well informed of their rights and responsibilities regarding academic freedom and freedom of speech through publication of guidance materials and integration of awareness into relevant induction and training.

(27) Staff with delegated decision-making authority under RMIT non-statutory policies and rules must ensure those decisions are made in accordance with the provisions of this policy.

(28) Policy owners are responsible for regarding the protection of academic freedom and freedom of lawful speech in the drafting, review or amendment of any RMIT non-statutory policies and rules.

Review

(29) This policy will be reviewed every five years at a minimum in accordance with the Policy Governance Policy.

Review

(30) A breach of this policy is managed in accordance with the Compliance Breach Management Reporting Procedure and should be reported through the Organisational Breach Reporting Form.

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Section 5 - Compliance

(31) RMIT University Council annually attests in RMIT’s Annual Report that it is satisfied that RMIT:

  1. has a policy that upholds academic freedom and freedom of lawful speech as paramount values, as required under the Model Code
  2. maintains an institutional environment in which academic freedom and freedom of lawful speech are upheld and protected; and
  3. addresses questions in relation to the management of academic freedom and freedom of speech issues promptly, actively and in good faith.
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Section 6 - Subordinate Policy Documents

(32) Academic Freedom and Freedom of Speech Complaints Procedure.

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Section 7 - Definitions

Note: Commonly defined terms are in the RMIT Policy Glossary. Any defined terms below are specific to this policy.
Academic freedom
Refers to:
  1. the freedom of academic staff to teach, discuss, and research, and to disseminate and publish the results of their research
  2. the freedom of academic staff and students to engage in intellectual enquiry, to express their opinions and beliefs, and to contribute to public debate in relation to their subjects of study and research
  3. the freedom of academic staff and students to express their opinions in relation to RMIT
  4. the freedom of academic staff to participate in professional or representative academic bodies
  5. the freedom of students to participate in student societies and associations
  6. the autonomy of RMIT in relation to the choice of academic courses and offerings, the way in which they are taught and the choices of research activities and the ways in which they are conducted.
Academic staff Includes those engaged by RMIT to teach and/or carry out research, regardless of their employment status (casual/sessional, ongoing, adjunct, honorary, visiting) and includes all those engaged by RMIT to teach vocational educational courses
External visiting speaker Includes any person who is not an invited visiting speaker and for whom permission is sought to speak on RMIT’s land or facilities.
Imposed by law In relation to restrictions or burdens or conditions on a freedom include restrictions or burdens or conditions imposed by statute law, the common law (including the law of defamation), duties of confidentiality, restrictions deriving from intellectual property law and restrictions imposed by contract.
Intellectual freedom Includes the rights related to academic freedom and freedom of lawful speech that are protected by RMIT.
Invited visiting speaker Means any person who has been invited by RMIT to speak on RMIT’s land or facilities.
Non-statutory policies and rules Means any non-statutory policies, rules, guidelines, principles, codes or charters or similar instruments.
Speech Extends to all forms of expressive conduct including oral speech and written, artistic, musical and performing works and activity and communication using social media; the word ‘speak’ has a corresponding meaning.
The duty to foster the wellbeing of staff and students
  1. Includes the duty to ensure that no member of staff and no student is subjected to unlawful vilification, or suffers unfair disadvantage or unfair adverse discrimination on any basis recognised at law.
  2. Includes the duty to ensure that no member of staff and no student is subject to threatening or intimidating behaviour by another person or persons on account of anything they have said or proposed to say in exercising their academic freedom or freedom of lawful speech.
  3. Supports reasonable and proportionate measures to prevent any person from using lawful speech which a reasonable person would regard, in the circumstances, both as likely to humiliate, intimidate, harass or bully other persons; and which is intended to have any of those effects.
  4. Does not extend to a duty to protect any person from feeling offended, shocked or insulted by the lawful speech of another.
Unlawful Means in contravention of a prohibition or restriction or condition imposed by law.
Vilification Means conduct that incites, intends to incite, or is reasonably likely to incite hatred, serious contempt, revulsion, or severe ridicule against a person or class of persons on the basis of attributes protected at law. Serious vilification includes conduct that threatens physical harm or incites others to do so.