Despite having a president who trumpeted in 2019 that “free speech on campus is doing just fine, thank you,” Columbia University isn’t doing so hot when it comes to that very subject, according to a new report. In fact, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression’s 2022-2023 College Free Speech Rankings, it might just be the worst in the nation. Published Wednesday, the annual list ranked Columbia 203rd out of 203 schools, making it the only school to be given a speech climate rating of “abysmal.” A non-profit organization that considers itself nonpartisan, FIRE surveyed 45,000 students across the country alongside College Pulse to create this year’s list. Topping the chart was the University of Chicago, which scored just under 78 points out of 100. This isn’t the first time Columbia has faced rankings trouble this year; in July, U.S. News & World Report quietly “unranked” the university from its No. 2 position after their researchers found they were unable to verify the data it had submitted.
