Boone’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors hosted a teach-in  at the Jones House Cultural Center April 17. Professors from across departments gathered to voice concerns with political interference in higher education through censorship and corruption.

The AAUP is a nationwide coalition of university professors that works to “maintain quality in education and academic freedom in US colleges and universities,” according to its website. 

“Shared governance is essential,” said Stella Anderson, a retired management professor at App State. “When there’s an erosion of shared governance, this works to the detriment of the institution.”

Anderson voiced disagreement with the UNC System’s new policy on public syllabi, as well as their method of running universities like businesses. 

At the teach-in, a poster outlined the organization’s goals of providing a strong voice for faculty, being a member-driven and member-led organization, being a force for good in uncertain times and defending fundamental educational principles.

Sustainable development professor and co-president of Boone’s AAUP chapter, Jacqui Ignatova, moderated the teach-in. She introduced speakers on the lawn while calling out what she sees as an authoritarian shift in government. 

Ignatova also spoke about traits of fascism, including “powerful nationalism,” “disdain for arts,” “disdain for human rights,” “rampant sexism” and “obsession with national security.”

To her left, the organizers set up a craft table with a list of banned or flagged terms by the Trump administration in its push to combat diversity, equity and inclusion. A few of these terms are electric vehicle, climate justice, climate change, water quality, gender, systematic and underserved. Attendees were encouraged to write these terms on rocks to preserve them and raise awareness of censorship.

Jay Fenwick, chair of the computer science department at App State and member of the Watauga County School Board, spoke against the Parents’ Bill of Rights Act passed in 2023 by the state legislature. 

Fenwick said parents already had the right to a voice in their children’s education and the new law was an excuse to “meddle in local governance.” He also said these changes would suppress rigor, challenges and positive relationships in school environments. 

“What this really ends up doing is saying: ‘We don’t trust you with our child,’” Fenwick said. “Teachers are looking over their shoulder.”

Başak Çandar, an English professor and co-president of Boone’s AAUP chapter, spoke against the new regulations on DEI. She spoke about a “new era of McCarthyism” she believes has resulted from recent American discourse over Palestine. Çandar, who teaches about the literature of political violence, feels “visible and invisible pressure from the university.”

“What is the purpose of a literature of violence class if it can only discuss the violence of the past?” Çandar said.