On March 28, Senate Bill 1 (SB 1), the Advance Ohio Higher Education Act, was signed into law by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine. Once implemented, the bill will lead to several changes at Ohio’s public universities, including the required posting of course syllabi, a mandatory civics course and expanded review of faculty post-tenure. The bill also prohibits “any orientation or training course regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI), the creation and continuation of DEI offices and references to diversity in job descriptions and future hiring.
SB 1 passed 20-11 in the Ohio Senate and 58-34 in the Ohio House of Representatives. Across the two State Senate and three state House Districts that cover Case Western Reserve University’s campus, all five representatives—all Democrats—voted against SB 1.
Rep. Darnell Brewer, whose district includes the southernmost parts of CWRU, said in a comment to The Observer, “The decision by Governor Mike DeWine to sign Senate Bill 1 into law is deeply disappointing and poses a significant threat to the future of higher education in Ohio. This bill also marks the first step toward eroding hard-won workers’ rights across our state by restricting faculty rights in our public universities, driving away students through harmful policies, and undermining programs that foster inclusion and critical thinking.” He added, “Our state deserves better than legislation that stifles growth, limits opportunity, and weakens the voices of those committed to shaping the next generation.” Another representative, State Sen. Kent Smith, simply labeled the bill the “Higher Education Destruction Act” and encouraged DeWine to veto it.
Because CWRU is a private institution, the contents of SB 1 do not directly impact university operations. In a comment to The Observer, a university spokesperson reaffirmed this, saying, “While we will comply with any federal and state laws, our priority remains ensuring an environment that fosters academic and research excellence, free inquiry and student success.”
Several members of the CWRU community engaged with the passing of SB 1, including Michael Clune, a professor in the Department of English, who testified in favor of the bill. In his testimony, Clune said that the “primary responsibility for the unsustainable politicization of academia rests on bloated, unaccountable university administrations, which have instituted a ‘shadow curriculum’ of politicized faculty and student training, hired teams of administrators to police speech, and incentivized the politicization of academic teaching and research.” In a clarifying statement to The Observer, Clune said, “The majority of the population, as shown in well publicized and high quality polling, believes universities are monolithically far left and practice ideological indoctrination. It is to the benefit of universities to adopt policies that show we are committed to showing students different sides of controversial political issues, and that we are not engaged in indoctrination.” Clune expressed support for “ideological diversity” and “institutional neutrality,” which he believes are supported by SB 1’s aims.
Barbara Daly, a nursing professor at CWRU, testified against SB 1. In her testimony, she argued that “the material that appears to be attempting to assure that students are not limited in expressing a variety of opinions about any topic, including politically and historically controversial events and issues, will actually seriously interfere with the goals of encouraging debate and discussion.” According to Daly, the bill does not distinguish between opinion and misinformation, and she believes that its restrictions might lead faculty to avoid discussing controversial topics in the classroom for fear of retribution from university and state administration.
Daly’s sentiments were echoed by CWRU’s chapter of the Ohio Student Association (OSA). In a statement to The Observer, CWRU’s OSA said that SB 1 leads to the destruction of DEI programs that protect marginalized populations, eliminates labor rights of university faculty and promotes the demonization of Chinese citizens. For reference, SB 1 explicitly prevents public universities from accepting gifts, donations or any contributions from entities affiliated with China, excluding the tuition and donations from alumni. “We urge the administration of this university, as well as university administrators across the state, not to comply with any of the provisions of this bill. Compliance will see the best and brightest of our students and educators flee Ohio, devastating our higher education,” CWRU OSA said. “It is also dangerous to all of us as Americans, and as people who believe in democracy, because it sets a terrifying precedent of political actors controlling education to their own ends, with little regard to the principles of free speech.”
CWRU masters student Abra Lisowski, a member of OSA, has been working to fight against bills like SB 1. When contacted by The Observer, she expanded on the possible influence of SB 1 at CWRU. “Case Western Reserve University may be a private institution, but it is not exempt from the scope of this bill … The university has shown that when federal and state money is at stake, it is willing to sacrifice the wishes, well-being, and safety of its students to protect their bottom line,” she said. “With the passage of SB 1 this past week, it will be up to Case Western Reserve University and its administration to finally take a hard stance against the encroachment of conservative governmental overreach on higher education in the state of Ohio and stand up for its students and staff.”
A CWRU faculty member who requested to remain anonymous echoed Lisowski. “Our freedoms should not be taken for granted, both our legal right to freedom of speech and our institutional right to academic freedom. We cannot sit back and assume that everything will be fine because we are at a private university,” they said. “I am extremely disappointed that college and university administrators are remaining silent rather than taking a stand on issues and legislation that will have serious effects on our ability to do our jobs effectively, as well as on the entire project of higher education in our country. If we are silent, we are complicit.”
The passage of SB 1 closely resembles a push during the previous legislative session for Senate Bill 83 (SB 83), known by the similar name: Enact Ohio Higher Education Enhancement Act. While the bill never passed the legislative process, many provisions of the original SB 83 exist in SB 1, such as the elimination of DEI training, requirements around teaching “controversial beliefs or policies” and a mandatory American history course. Such requirements were originally applied to all universities in the state, including CWRU, but the provision requiring compliance from private schools was omitted from the original bill by the time it passed the Ohio Senate. In spite of widespread support from Columbus Republicans, SB 83 was stalled in the Ohio House of Representatives, only to have commonalities reemerge in 2025 with SB 1, which survived.