Conservative discrimination

Recent legislation in Colorado has forced many universities to look into the effects of political bias in the classrooms of their schools. \nState Rep. Shawn Mitchell, R-Colo. introduced legislation that would create an outlet for students who feel their grades were affected by the conflict of political beliefs between their conservative views and their liberal professors. Mitchell told The Chronicle of Higher Education the bill is more about creating a fair environment and allowing political debate as opposed to trying to stifle it.\nBut is the matter really worthy of legislation?\nThe answer, simply put, seems to be no. \nThere is no doubt the issue certainly deserves to be addressed, especially if the integrity of college grading is on the line, but to present such an issue to a group of state legislatures seems to be the wrong starting point. Tackle the problems from within the universities themselves before jumping into the senate in a flippant attempt to pass new laws.\nThough the actions being taken in Colorado might seem like overkill, the stir the situation has created certainly warrants an interesting aspect for universities to investigate. All too often a professor's political standing is made evident within the confines of the classroom, and for students who vary from that viewpoint, it can create an intimidating environment.\nThe basis of higher education is to promote the blending together of countless backgrounds, viewpoints and ideas. Professors should stimulate their students to express independent views and, in the process, make every student feel comfortable stating their opinion about any given matter. If ever a situation arises where students feel their views would threaten their grade in a class, then the system has failed.\nAll too often students and professors are warned of discriminating on the basis of race, sex, religion or sexual orientation. Every one of these issues holds a no-tolerance policy and discriminating against a student would result in severe reprimands for that professor. But, of all those categories, political viewpoints are far more often openly discussed and debated in a classroom setting.\nIt needs to be stressed in terms of making any sort of a political argument, the focus should be made on how well the argument is made, not which side of the fence the argument is for. This is something IU seems to be doing with some amount of success, but the issue should never be overlooked.\nIU College Republicans President Angel Rivera might have coined it best. "It's good to an extent because it could help limit bias," he said. "But I fear anything that could limit discussion in American classrooms."\nPolitical bias in the grading of students is a definite issue in universities today, and certainly deserves to be reported and dealt with accordingly. Legislation, however, should not be necessary to uphold a university's academic integrity.