Independent Study: Free Speech on Campus

Professor Lee Epstein and Chancellor Andrew D. Martin
POLSCI 4913-05
Spring 2026

Grades and Learning Outcomes

Grades

Grades will be based on class attendance and participation (worth 75%) and a short essay (worth 25%).

Attendance and Participation. You should attend all four class sessions, and you should come prepared to discuss the assigned materials. If you can’t attend in person, we’ll provide a Zoom link.

Essay. We’d like you to analyze a Texas law that restricts expressive activity on state (public) university campuses. Detailed instructions are here.

As noted in the instructions:

  1. Your essay should be no longer than 3 pages, including references, double-spaced with 1-inch margins, using 12-point Times New Roman (or another serif) font.

  2. Feel free to use any materials you want but be sure to reference them appropriately. Any citation style is fine as long as we can identify the source.

  3. You should not collaborate (or discuss the essay) with your classmates (or any other humans for that matter).

  4. It’s OK to use generative AI (e.g., ChatGPT) but if you incorporate any information it produces please cite it as you would any other source and include your prompts on a separate page at the end of your essay. Prompts/responses do not count toward the 3-page limit.

  5. Your grade will be based on your analysis of the law—whether it constitutes a legitimate effort to balance free speech with safety. Additionally, essays that are well-organized, clear, and to the point will earn higher scores.

  6. If you have questions, please email TA Caroline Piskurich (piskurich@wustl.edu) between April 14 and April 23 or Professor Epstein (epstein@wustl.edu)

  7. Please email your essay to Professor Epstein at epstein@wustl.edu on or before April 27, 2026 by 5 pm central time. Essays will be marked down (from, for example, an A to an A-) for each day late—including essays received after 5 pm on April 27, 2026.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of the major justifications (theories) for free speech

  2. Evaluate doctrines governing free speech that are relevant to campus controversies

  3. Recognize the extent to which non-legalistic factors—especially political values and bias—affect how people (including judges) evaluate free speech claims

  4. Apply your knowledge to contemporary free-speech campus controversies

  5. Consider how theory and doctrine should inform university policies on free speech