Legislative Clampdown on Campus Speech

A new report from PEN America warns that higher education in the U.S. has reached a freezing point for free speech on campuses. By June 30, lawmakers in 26 states had introduced more than 70 bills aimed at limiting classroom discussions. Sixteen states had already signed 22 of those bills into law. Notably, six states, Kansas, Ohio, West Virginia, Wyoming, Kentucky, and Arkansas, enacted such legislation for the first time in 2025.

Direct Censorship and Educational Gag Orders

Some of the new laws are direct forms of censorship, commonly referred to as educational gag orders. These laws ban or restrict teaching about race, religion, ethnicity, sex, or national origin. States like Mississippi, West Virginia, and Wyoming have now barred discussions on these topics. In Arkansas, the restrictions even include teaching ideas or beliefs that could be seen as violating federal civil rights laws.

Indirect Restrictions and Structural Control

Many of the proposed laws take a more indirect approach. Instead of outright bans, they shift control over how colleges operate. This includes changes to accrediting oversight, limits on faculty autonomy, and tighter control over what’s taught. In Ohio, a new law prevents public university faculty from expressing opinions on controversial issues. It also requires them to encourage students to reach their own conclusions, without instructors taking a position themselves. These changes might appear subtle, but the effect is the same: limiting academic freedom.

Iowa in Focus: Higher Ed at Ground Zero

Iowa has become a focal point in this movement. Three major bills passed in the state now reduce the influence of accrediting bodies, ban DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) offices at public colleges, and create a new Center for Intellectual Freedom at the University of Iowa. That center will be governed by a board mostly made up of people outside the university. Only one seat is reserved for faculty. The board will have full authority over who gets hired and which speakers are invited to campus.

Supporters of the legislation argue that DEI programs have strayed from academics and promote ideology. Senator Ken Rozenboom stated that state institutions should not be used to push ideological agendas.

What This Really Means

When lawmakers dictate what can or cannot be taught, and who makes those decisions, they are controlling the academic environment. According to Amy Reid, senior program manager at PEN America and author of the report, this creates more than just a chill. Faculty, staff, and students are becoming hyper-aware of what they say, how they ask questions, and even how they engage with one another. That kind of climate discourages learning.

Reid also cautions against seeing these laws as isolated events. While federal education policy grabs most headlines, these state-level laws often go unnoticed. Yet they are steadily reshaping how universities function. Reid emphasizes that it’s not just about stopping future bills. If current laws are not challenged, the academic space continues to erode. As she puts it, bullies don’t stop until you stand up to them. Raising awareness is one way to protect campus freedom.

Why It Matters

Free expression on college campuses isn’t just a feel-good value. It’s essential to honest debate, research, and discovery. When speech is limited by law, students are exposed to fewer ideas, teachers take fewer risks, and the entire point of a university, as a space for intellectual exploration, gets undermined. Even worse, students start censoring themselves. Faculty become overly cautious. The result? Fewer questions asked, fewer truths uncovered.

Looking Ahead

This trend is not slowing down. According to PEN America, since 2021, 21 states have passed similar laws, six of them just this year. The real question now is how faculty, students, and education advocates will respond. Legal challenges, organized protests, and public pressure are already underway in some states. The text of these laws may look official, but their real-world effect is clear: they make it harder for ideas to breathe and grow in American higher education.