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Madalyn Godfrey/ Fourth Estate

BY MADALYN GODFREY, COPY EDITOR

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) and College Pulse released their 2025 College Free Speech Rankings with Mason ranked at 16th place in free speech. Eight spots down from their 2024 ranking.

For a fifth year in a row, FIRE and College Pulse surveyed 58,807 students enrolled in four-year degree programs from 257 colleges and universities across the United States “to help high school students and their parents identify which colleges promote and protect the free exchange of ideas.”

In their key findings, FIRE noted that Mason has “consistently performed well” since 2020 being above average in their overall score. An institution’s overall score is determined by “Comfort Expressing Ideas,” “Self-Censorship,” “Mean Tolerance,” “Disruptive Conduct,” “Administrative Support” and “Openness.” In the 2024 ranking, Mason scored 67.65 out of 100; whereas, this year scored 63.92.

Mason also obtained the “green light” in speech codes for the 2025 ranking. According to FIRE, “A ‘green light’ rating indicates that an institution maintains no policies that seriously threaten speech, although this rating does not indicate whether a college actively supports free expression.”

Out of 132 Mason student responses, collected by the survey between Jan. 25 through June 17, “67% of students say shouting down a speaker to prevent them from speaking on campus is at least rarely acceptable” with “49% of students say they have self-censored on campus at least once or twice a month.”

When asked to share a moment of inability to express opinions in the anonymous forum, one student from the class of 2024 said, “many of my fellow students have a different political and religious background than I do. I feel to express my spiritual side freely I would be made fun of and called a witch because most students don’t understand.”

Another student from the class of 2024 said, “if you share their liberal biases then you are safe, if not you suffer grades, suspension, cancellation, etc.”

FIRE determined the majority viewpoint of Mason to be liberal with approximately three liberal students for every one conservative student.

Along with ranking 16th in overall ranking for free speech, Mason also ranked 198th place for “Comfort Expressing Ideas,” 46th in “Tolerance for Speakers,” 59th in “Disruptive Conduct,” 25th in “Admin Support,” 190th in “Openness” and 247th in “Self Censorship.”

Based on national data in regards to recent controversial events over the past five years, the top issue identified to be the most difficult topic to have a conversation about on campus is the “Israeli/Palestinian conflict” with 55% students responding as so. Followed by “abortion” at 45%, “transgender rights” at 41% and “racial inequality” and “gun control” both at 36%.

Although Mason ranks as 16th, FIRE determined the University of Virginia to rank first in overall free speech with a score of 73.41, moving from sixth place in the 2024 ranking, and Harvard in last place for the second year in a row.

FIRE is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization with a mission that “defends and promotes the value of free speech for all Americans in our courtrooms, on our campuses, and in our culture.”