URBANA, Ill. (AP) — University of Illinois officials say free speech and campus culture will be the focus of the board of trustees’ annual retreat this summer.
The News-Gazette reports the plans come amid controversial speakers facing backlashes at campuses nationwide.
The university’s Carl Woese Institute for Genomic Biology recently dropped plans to have Nobel Laureate James Watson, who co-discovered the structure of DNA, lead a discussion at the school because of his views on race and intelligence.
Other incidents at campuses include protesters shouting at political speakers or preventing them from appearing.
University President Tim Killeen says the school has in recent months been analyzing ways to reduce potential risk, including student safety, free speech and assembly.
The trustees’ retreat is scheduled for July.
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