It looks like the Kansas board of regents really doesn’t understand academic freedom and freedom of speech
Impairs discipline by superiors or harmony among co-workers, has a detrimental impact on close working relationships, impedes the performance of the speaker’s official duties, interferes with the regular operation of the university, or otherwise adversely affects the university’s ability to efficiently provide services.
via Regents pass social media policy in wake of Guth tweet / LJWorld.com.
The basic issues with the decision is found in the paragraph that states:
Impairs discipline by superiors or harmony among co-workers, has a detrimental impact on close working relationships, impedes the performance of the speaker’s official duties, interferes with the regular operation of the university, or otherwise adversely affects the university’s ability to efficiently provide services.
That basically means you have no avenue to argue, reject, discuss, or otherwise challenge administration. I imagine the regents felt that this was a common-sense type standard, but it is an immensely chilling statement. A university is not about harmony. Spend a few years dealing with peer review and you will understand just how fraught with near violence is the process of getting something published.
This is an example of the chilling of academic freedom in higher education and one of the reasons tenure is important. More importantly this is an example of codification of rules that trump tenure and give administration an easy out for firing faculty who might have tenure. Welcome to the intellectual dark ages Kansas.