Through this letter we call on JHU President Daniels to affirm the JHU Statement on the Principles of Academic Freedom.
Dear President Daniels,
We write to you as dedicated members of the scholarly community at Johns Hopkins. At an unprecedented pace and on a scope unseen in U.S. history, federal executive actions undertaken since January 2025 are undermining the principle of academic freedom and institutional self-governance that forms the bedrock of research and teaching in our nation’s universities.
As the nation’s first research university, Johns Hopkins has played a central role in shaping the academic values that have made our country’s institutions of higher education among the world’s greatest. The principle of academic freedom integral to the democratic exchange of ideas and to scientific progress was laid out in 1915 by JHU Professor of Philosophy Arthur O. Lovejoy along with other charter members of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). One century later, our Board of Trustees reaffirmed the University’s commitment “to the steadfast protection of the right to academic freedom.” Its words offer unambiguous guidance in this time of crisis: “Without a full and vigorous protection of this principle,” the statement reads, “the university’s capacity to discharge its hallowed mission would be compromised.”
In the words of our university’s 2015 statement, academic freedom affords “the broadest possible scope for unencumbered expression, investigation, analysis, and discourse.” It “protects the right to speak and create, to question and dissent, to participate in debate on and off campus, and to invite others to do the same, all without fear of restraint or penalty.”
We write now to affirm our collective responsibility to defend the right to intramural and extramural utterance, including the expression of political disagreements: a right aligned with U.S. First Amendment protections, which are now actively under attack. Targeting members or groups of our community for retribution, criminalization, or deportation based on ideological criteria that equate disagreement with discrimination, contravenes this core principle. To allow outside political powers to target and retaliate against JHU academic units engaged in the work of discovery and instruction, we believe, is likewise to betray our institution’s foundational values.
In the face of the present and future pressures by government authority, we believe that Johns Hopkins must maintain its historic commitment to central values of academic freedom and institutional self-governance. U.S. universities must not go further than any constitutionally legitimate order demands.
Absent academic freedom, the societal benefits of higher education are degraded, our ability to educate and train students for the challenges of tomorrow is disrupted, and discourse based on hypothesis, evidence, and sound reasoning becomes impossible.
We ask that you support the Board of Trustees and faculty whom you represent, and our university leaders who follow your guidance, to each act with these principles in mind. Now is the time to make public your commitment to academic freedom, in concert with colleges and universities nationwide.
Respectfully,
The Executive Committee of the JHU AAUP Advocacy Chapter
Juliana Paré
Clinical Associate Professor, School of Education; Chapter President
Photini Sinnis
Professor BSPH and JHU SOM, Deputy Director, Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute; Chapter Vice-President
François Furstenberg
Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of History; Chapter Secretary
Derek Schilling
Professor of French, Director of the Centre Louis Marin, Department of Modern Languages and Literatures; Chapter Past President
More information about Academic Freedom at Hopkins:
To date, over 270 faculty and community members have signed, including the following:
Signatories
Eric Rice, Assistant Professor, School of Education
Naveeda Khan, Professor, Anthropology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Nancy Glass, Professor, School of Nursing
Shane Butler, Nancy H. and Robert E. Hall Professor in the Humanities, Professor, Classics, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Juliet Ray, School of Education
Yiannis Sakellaridis, Professor, Mathematics, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Tom Louis, Professor Emeritus, BSPH
Sarah Woodson, T.C. Jenkins Professor, Biophysics, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Soha Bayoumi, Medicine, Science, and the Humanities, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Alessandro Angelini, Assistant Professor, Anthropology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Joel Andreas, Professor, Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jeffrey J. Gray, Professor, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering
Lisa Siraganian, Professor, J.R. Herbert Boone Chair of Humanities, Comparative Thought and Literature, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Suzanne Roos, Modern Languages and Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Sharon Achinstein, Sir William Osler Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Michelle Muratori, Counseling & Educational Studies, School of Education
Jennifer Culbert, Associate Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
N. Peter Armitage, Professor, Physics and Astronomy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Erin Wright, Assistant Professor, School of Nursing
Monet Jackson, School of Nursing
David Savitt, Professor, Mathematics, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Elizabeth Tanner, Professor Emerita, School of Nursing
Judah Adashi, Music Composition, Music Theory, Professional Studies; Peabody Institute
Denise Rucker, School of Nursing
Mary A. Favret, Professor, Department of English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Paola Marrati, Professor, Comparative Thought and Literature, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Dorcas Baker, School of Nursing
Michaela Bronstein, Associate Research Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Richard S. Miller, Applied Physics Laboratory
Parvathy Prem, Applied Physics Laboratory
Tyreesia Johns, Business Office/ Finance & Administration, School of Nursing
Christopher Grobe, Associate Research Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Kathy McDonald, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, School of Nursing and School of Medicine (GIM)
Drew Daniel, Professor, Department of English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Nadia Nurhussein, Mary Elizabeth Garrett Chair in Arts and Sciences, Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Lauren Russell, Assistant Professor, The Writing Seminars, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Mark Christian Thompson, Krieger-Eisenhower Professor, English, Chair of English, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Stuart Schrader, Associate Professor, History & Chloe Center for the Critical Study of Racism, Immigration, & Colonialism, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Claude Guillemard, Senior Lecturer, Modern Languages & Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Clara Han, Professor, Anthropology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Rochelle Tobias, Professor of German, Modern Languages & Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Anand Pandian, Professor, Department of Anthropology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jared Hickman, Associate Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Todd Shepard, Arthur O. Lovejoy Professor, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Charles A Hibbitts, Scientist, Space Department, Applied Physics Laboratory
Jane Bennett, Andrew Mellon Professor of the Humanities, Political Science/Comparative Thought and Literature, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Gabrielle Dean, Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts and Adjunct Professor, Sheridan Libraries and University Museums/ Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Aja M. Lans, Assistant Professor, Anthropology, Center for Africana Studies, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Joshua Simon, Associate Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Elisia Cassell, Post Award Administrator, Nursing Office of Research Administration / School of Nursing
Elizabeth McGraw, Instructional Technologist, School of Nursing
Steven R David, Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Elanor Taylor, Associate Professor, Philosophy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Lindsay Muratore, Clinical Instructor and Nurse Practitioner, School of Nursing
Adam Sheingate , Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Sean Carroll, Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy, Physics & Philosophy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Graham Mooney, Associate Professor, History of Medicine / School of Medicine
Lester Spence, Professor, Political Science and Africana Studies, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Rao Mohsin Ali Noor, Assistant Professor, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Karen Kruse Thomas, Staff Historian, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Bloomberg School Office of External Affairs
N. D. B. Connolly, Herbert Baxter Adam Associate Professor, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Andrew Miller, Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Vadim “Vaadeem” Dukhanin, Assistant Scientist, Bloomberg School of Public Health, HPM
Christopher Nealon, John Dewey Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Lan Li, Assistant Professor, History of Medicine, School of Medicine
Adam Sitze, 1951 Professor in Law, Jurisprudence and Social Thought, Amherst College
April Wuensch, Senior lecturer, Modern Languages and Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Niloofar Haeri, Professor, Anthropology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Ann Monihan, Instructional Designer, School of Nursing
P.J. Brendese, Associate Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Beverly J. Silver, Professor, Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Toby Ditz, Professor Emeritus of History & Academy Professor, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Hilary Bok, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences; Berman Institute of Bioethics
Vesla M. Weaver, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Political Science and Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Robert Rynasiewicz, Professor, Philosophy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Tarak Barkawi, Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Emily Agree, Research Professor, Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences & PFRH, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Zackary Berger, Associate Professor, School of Medicine
Joseph Aaron Joe, Mr., History of Medicine
Robert Moffitt, Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Ahmed Ragab, Associate Professor, The Department of the History of Medicine, School of Medicine
Steven Farber, Professor, Biology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Bruce Parrott, Professor of Russian and Eurasian Studies Emeritus, School of Advanced International Studies
Ho-fung Hung, Henry M. and Elizabeth P. Wiesenfeld Professor in Political Economy, Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences & School of Advanced International Studies
Lydia Pecker, Associate Professor, School of Medicine
Ilya Shpitser, John C Malone Associate Professor, Computer Science, Whiting School of Engineering
Adria Lawrence, Aronson Associate Professor of Political Science and International Studies, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences & School of Advanced International Studies
Steven Salzberg, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine; Computer Science, Whiting School of Engineering; Biostatistics, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Peter R. McCullough, Adjunct Professor, Physics and Astronomy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Allison Pugh, Research Professor, Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jocelyne DiRuggiero, Associate Professor, Biology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Adam K Webb, Resident Professor of Political Science and Co-Director, Hopkins-Nanjing Center
Daniel Schlozman, Joseph and Bertha Bernstein Associate Professor of Political Science, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Collin Broholm, Gerhard H. Dieke Professor, Physics and Astronomy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Stephen J Campbell , Henry and Elizabeth Wiesenfeld Professor, History of Art, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Dora Malech, Professor, Writing Seminars, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Patrick J. Connolly, Associate Professor, Philosophy, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Cass Crifasi, Associate Professor, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Liesl Nydegger, Assistant Professor, Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Svea Closser, Professor, International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Amy Knowlton, Professor, Health, Behavior & Society, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Mitchell Merback, William Arnell and Everett Land Professor, History of Art, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Nino Zchomelidse, Associate Professor, History of Art, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Roger Raufer, Resident Professor, Hopkins-Nanjing Center, School of Advanced International Studies
Stephen Tamplin, Associate Scientist, Health, Behavior & Society, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Marian Feldman, W.H. Collins Vickers Chair in Archaeology, Professor of History of Art and Near Eastern Studies, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Chas Phillips, Associate Teaching Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Sarah Murray, Associate Professor, Department of Mental Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
John Kim, Associate Professor, Biology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Zophia Edwards, Assistant Professor, Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Kavi Rangan, Assistant Professor, Biology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Will Cole, Associate Faculty, Health, Beahvior & Society, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Erin Jimenez, Assistant Professor, Biology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Alison McManus, Assistant Professor, History of Science and Technology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Chenery Lowe, Associate, Sr. Research Data Analyst, Health, Behavior & Society (BSPH) and Otolaryngology, School of Medicine
Zoobia Chaudhry, Assistant Professor of Medicine, GIM/DOM/ School of Medicine
Carl Latkin, Professor, Health, Behavior & Society, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Michael Kwass, Professor, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Thomas Haine, Professor, Earth & Planetary Sciences, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Ginger Hanson, Associate Professor, School of Nursing
Lauren Czaplicki, Associate Scientist, Department of Health, Behavior & Society Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Alicia Puglionesi, Lecturer, Medicine, Science, and the Humanities, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Anne E. Lester, John W. Baldwin and Jenny Jochens Associate Professor of Medieval History, Department of History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Elisa Ignatius, Assistant Professor, School of Medicine
Ashwin Balagopal, Associate Professor of Medicine, School of Medicine
Laura Vasilyeva, Associate Professor of Musicology, Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University
Lisel Hintz, Assistant Professor, School of Advanced International Studies
Sarah E. Parkinson, Aronson Associate Professor, Political Science and School of Advanced International Studies
Kawsar Talaat, Associate Professor, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Daniel Webster, Bloomberg Professor of American Health, Department of Health Policy & Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Ruth Karron, Professor, International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Jessica Schue, International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Kathleen Page, Professor, Medicine, School of Medicine
Eugene Finkel, Kenneth H. Keller Professor, School of Advanced International Studies
Brendan Saloner, Bloomberg Professor of American Health, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
David Gutkin, Assistant Professor, Musicology, Peabody Institute
Leonardo Proietti, Senior Lecturer of Italian Language and Cultural Studies, Modern Languages and Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Minkah Makalani, Director, Center for African Studies, Associate Professor, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Brittany Feijoo, Research Associate, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Elizabeth Skinner, Senior scientist, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Christine Durand, Associate Professor, School of Medicine
Alan Regenberg, Director of Outreach & Research Support, Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics
Siobhán B. Cooke, Associate Professor, Center for Functional Anatomy and Evolution, School of Medicine
Karen Shen, Assistant Professor, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Julian Lim, Arthur Eisenberg and Susan Engel Associate Professor of History, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Nicholas Meyerson, Assistant Professor, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Debra Roter, Professor Emeritus and University Distinguished Service Professor, Health, Behavior and Society, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Olivia K. Sugarman, Assistant Scientist, Department of Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, Professor, School of Nursing
Elaine Stashinko
Ashley Gresh, Assistant Professor, School of Nursing
Theodore J Iwashyna, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Medicine, Public Policy, and (by courtesy) Business
John Mark Wiginton, Assistant Scientist, Mental Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Paul Bolton, Senior Scientist, Mental Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Kenneth A. Feder, Assistant Research Professor, Department of Mental Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Shoshanna Fine, Assistant Research Professor, Department of Mental Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Ebony O. McGee PhD, Professor, School of Education
Marina Bedny, Associate Professor, Psych and Brain Sciences, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
David L Meyers, Lecturer, KSAS Post-baccalaureate pre-med program, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Neta Stahl, Professor, Modern Languages and Literature, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jianhui (Frank) Xu, Assistant Scientist, Department of Health Policy & Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Tobie Meyer-Fong, Professor and Chair, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Robert C. Lieberman, Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Caroline Lillian Schopp, Assistant Professor, History of Art, Krieger School of Arts & Sciences
Justin Lauka, Assistant Clinical Professor, Counseling and Educational Studies, School of Education
Erin Chung, Charles D. Miller Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Maria Merritt, Professor, Berman Institute of Bioethics and International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Brian Caffo, Professor, Biostatistics, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Erica Schoenberger, Professor Emerita, Environmental Health and Engineering/ Whiting School of Engineering and Bloomberg School of Public Health
Graeme Warren, Assistant Professor of Practice, Carey Business School
Ranjini JohnBull, Associate Professor, School of Education
Michelle Kaufman, Associate Professor, Health, Behavior & Society, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Kathleen Day, Lecturer, Carey Business School
Nicolas Jabko, Associate Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Arielle Saiber, Charles S. Singleton Professor of Italian Studies, Modern Languages & Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jaana Myllyluoma, Senior Lecturer, Carey Business School
Suntae Kim, Assistant Professor, Carey Business School
Alex McCourt, Assistant Professor, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Michael J. Matunis, Professor, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Katherine Miller, Assistant Professor, Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Betsy Ogburn, Professor, Biostatistics, Bloomberg School of Public Health
David Bulman, Assistant Professor, School of Advanced International Studies
Christina Black, Assistant Professor of Practice, Carey Business School
Nina Hall, Associate Professor of International Relations, School of Advanced International Studies
Olivia Marcucci, Assistant Professor, School of Education
Eric Husmann, Lecturer, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering
Sachini Bandara, Assistant Professor, Department of Mental Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Alene Kennedy-Hendricks, Associate Professor, Department of Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Susan Weiss, Professor Emerita, Musicology/Modern Languages and Literature, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Emily Riehl, Kelly Miller Professor of Mathematics, Department of Mathematics, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Monica Prasad, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Sociology and SNF Agora, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Roni Neff, Professor, Environmental Health & Engineering, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Marc Ostermeier, Professor, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering
Melissa Hendricks
Tamar Mendelson, Professor, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Attia Goheer, Assistant Scientist, Department of Health Policy and Management, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Karen Houppert, Director of MA in Writing Program, Advanced Academic Programs, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jennifer A. Robinson, Assistant Professor, Gynecology and Obstetrics, School of Medicine
Julia Burdick-Will, Associate Professor, Sociology, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Parul Christian, Professor, International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Jesse Rosenthal, Associate Professor, English, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Anne-Elizabeth Brodsky, Associate Teaching Professor, University Writing Program, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Laura DeSisto, MLA Program Director & Senior Lecturer, Advanced Academic Programs, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Katrin Pahl, Professor of German, Modern Languages and Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Heidi Wheeler, Senior Lecturer, German, Modern Languages & Literatures, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Alexandre White, Assistant Professor, Sociology & History of Medicine, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences/School of Medicine
Shari Liu, Assistant Professor, Psychological and Brain Sciences, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jessica Marie Johnson, Associate Professor, History, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Jennifer Luff, Associate Teaching Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Tristan Cabello, Senior Lecturer, Master of Liberal Arts, Advanced Academic Programs, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Sandy Koullas, Lecturer, University Writing Program, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Katharine Noel, Associate Teaching Professor, The Writing Seminars, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Angelina Cotler, Dirctor, Program in Latin American, Caribbean and Latinx Studies, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Laura Mason, Teaching Professor, History/ Program in Film & Media Studies, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Kim O’Connell
Nicole Labruto, Senior Lecturer, Program in Medicine, Science, and the Humanities, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Steven R. David, Professor, Political Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Neşe Devenot, Senior Lecturer, University Writing Program, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Kari Debbink, Associate Teaching Professor, Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Amber Clough
Ilan Kokotek, Physician – General Preventive Medicine Resident, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Maya Gomes, Assistant Professor, Earth and Planetary Science, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences
Elizabeth Rusaitis-Graham, PhD Alumni, Department of International Health, Human Nutrition program, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Anjalee Kohli, Applied Research Consultant, Alumni, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Hannah Tappis, Associate, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Shatha Elnakib, Assistant Scientist, International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Pooja Sripad, International Health/Bloomberg School of Public Health
Linnea Zimmerman, Associate Professor, Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Julia Wolfson, Associate Professor, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Yeeli Mui, Assistant Professor, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Kris-Stella Trump, Associate Research Professor, Political Science, Krieger School or Arts and Sciences
Thomas Godsey, Software Engineer, IT@JH University Information Systems