President Beilock and Members of The Board of Trustees,

We, the undersigned alumni of Dartmouth College, recognize the importance of higher education in our own lives and the vital role it plays in a democratic and free society. We have pursued a rich variety of personal and professional endeavors, and in doing so, we owe much to core educational principles that we share with Dartmouth, including critical thinking, free expression and exchange of ideas, and respect for the dignity and value of our fellow human beings.

Presently, however, our institutions of higher learning face an unparalleled and thoroughgoing assault from the federal government. It has pressured  them to compromise academic freedom, constitutionally protected free speech, and self-governance in order to retain federal research funding that furthers our knowledge across the sciences (including engineering, medicine, and technology), the social sciences, and the humanities.

At the same time, scholars and students across the nation, especially those from abroad, have been targeted for retaliation for speech and protest activities. International students and scholars, regardless of immigration status, are essential to Dartmouth’s reputation as a premier liberal arts college, a school that prides itself on being “a vibrant, inclusive learning environment where students and faculty respond with research and innovation to the most pressing challenges of our time.”

Dartmouth alumni have been encouraged by its administration to stay active in the life and governance of the College and to invest monetarily in its future to foster academic excellence and in support of its mission.

With this in mind, we write as alumni of Dartmouth College to unequivocally condemn the attacks by our government on institutions of higher education and other pillars of American democracy. We ask you to stand with us in affirming Dartmouth’s commitment to academic freedom and to the First Amendment freedoms of everyone in the Dartmouth community. 

We urge you to:

1. Publicly condemn attacks by the federal government on the academic freedom of colleges and universities, and affirm Dartmouth’s commitment to academic freedom and to the First Amendment rights—including the freedoms of speech, the press, assembly, and association—of all members of the Dartmouth community, whether United States citizens or not.
2. Legally contest and refuse to comply with unlawful demands that threaten academic freedom and college self-governance. This includes a commitment, within the bounds of the law, not to cooperate with federal government efforts to punish individuals for their speech, protest activity, and other exercises of their civil rights—including non-citizens who may have their visas revoked or whom the government may seek to deport.
3. Coordinate with other colleges and universities and other relevant educational, scientific, and cultural institutions to mount a strong, collective opposition to unlawful federal government actions that threaten academic freedom and freedom of thought and expression.

The editorial board of The Dartmouth has invoked the spirit of Daniel Webster — who sought to protect Dartmouth College from government overreach — in calling on us to protect our institution once again. As our government tests the durability of our democracy, we urge Dartmouth to join the growing ranks of colleges and universities that are resisting. We ask for your courageous leadership at this moment in history. We look forward to standing alongside you in this work.

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