The national organization for the Students For Academic Freedom published a pamphlet on its Web site Tuesday calling attention to the group's concerns with Ball State's Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution program.
The publication, "The 'Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution' Program at Ball State University Indoctrination or Education," describes the program as "not a proper academic program but an indoctrination effort by political radicals," Sara Dogan, national campus director for SAF, said.
The program came under scrutiny by SAF after Ball State senior Brett Mock contacted the group at the beginning of this semester. Mock was a student in the Spring 2004 Introduction to Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution class, taught by George Wolfe, director of the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies.
"I expected to learn about methods through which to resolve conflict, the course description gives students the idea that there are multiple ways of resolving conflict," Mock said. "Instead he only taught extreme pacifist ways to resolve conflict."
Wolfe discouraged discussion of other resolutions and taught the class on the basis of his own opinions, Mock said.
Wolfe declined to comment because he had not yet read the SAF's publication.
Dogan said in her letter that the class "includes sympathy for the terrorists who attacked the World Trade Center on 9/11 and for political organizations with radical agendas."
Randy Hyman, dean of students, said SAF has the right to publish its opinions, but he disagrees that the class is one-sided or endorses terrorism.
"I find it appalling that they would find peace studies to be sympathetic of terrorism," Hyman said. "It's ignorant and incorrect."
Dogan addressed the issue in a letter to Jo Ann Gora, president of Ball State University, on Sept. 13. Beverley Pitts, provost and vice president for academic affairs, sent a letter back on Sept. 23 saying the university had looked into the matter and did not find a problem with the program.
Dogan thanked Pitts for her response, but said in the letter that she was disappointed that the university had not contacted Mock during the investigation. Dogan said that Pitts has not responded to her second letter of concern.
Joe Losco, president of the Indiana conference of the American Association of University Professors, said SAF's statements are an attack on subjects it does not like.
"They want their conservative agenda taught in the classroom and they want it in every classroom," Losco said. Neither Losco nor Hyman had read the pamphlet, but they are familiar with the material found within because it has been posted previously by SAF.
The peace studies class wasn't the sole reason for Mock to contact SAF, Mock said.
"I experienced similar situations in other classes where I felt like my thoughts and opinions were attacked by the professor," he said.
If the feeling of oppression is common around campus then more students would speak up, Losco said.
"If the students at large believed there was a problem there would be some sort of ground swell and there isn't," he said.
Pitts said she does not expect the university to respond to SAF's pamphlet because it has already responded to every letter received from students or parents about the issue.
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