Miami Faculty and SB1: Guidance from FAM

Note: This is FAM’s guidance for faculty based on our analysis of Senate Bill 1 (SB1) as well as discussions and resource-sharing among faculty unions around the state. Special input from the Ohio Conference of the AAUP, the University of Toledo AAUP, Ohio State AAUP, and Ohio State’s SB1 Compliance page. 

Other universities around Ohio have implementation committees that include faculty and union leadership. Although FAM asked management to involve faculty in developing policies and procedures mandated by SB1 — in particular around faculty evaluations, syllabus posting, tenure, retrenchment, and student complaints, Miami’s implementation committee includes no faculty.

Update: In early fall semester 2025, Miami released guidance for faculty on SB 1.

FAM guidance for faculty

• Do not overcomply! SB1 does not ban any specific classroom topics and does not require specific changes to teaching or research. While the bill defines “controversial subjects,” it does not ban them. 
• SB1 does not require teaching “both sides” of an issue in the classroom. (That part of the bill did not make the final cut.) It does require instructors to allow for students’ “ideological diversity” and to avoid “indoctrination.”  
• SB1 expressly allows faculty to make teaching judgments (such as grading) based on our professional judgment and expertise.
• Bargaining unit faculty are covered by our strong Academic Freedom article as well as other contract protections, such as our article on retrenchment.
• FAM was able to keep periodic post-tenure review out of the CBA, which remains a win: under SB1, post-tenure review kicks in only after a faculty member fails to meet performance expectations in the same category twice in any three-year period.
• SB1 requires the university to develop a complaint process for faculty and students who wish to allege interference with free speech or ideological diversity. Contact FAM (info@famiami.org) if you are subject to a complaint, especially if you are concerned about potential disciplinary action. We have strong discipline and discharge protections under the CBA.
• Bargaining unit faculty (all tenured, tenure-track, and TCPL faculty) have the Weingarten right to request a union representative at any meeting with a supervisor that could lead to discipline. 
• Email info@famiami.org with questions or to get involved!

FAM guidance for chairs

• Protect your faculty’s right to teach and publish in their discipline. SB1 does not expressly ban any classroom or research subjects.
• Protect your faculty’s academic freedom. While students may complain about “ideological bias,” the law does not require specific ideological changes to faculty members’ teaching. Moreover, bargaining unit faculty members are covered by our Academic Freedom article.
• Protect faculty privacy. Provide only minimal contact and location information. Keep sensitive information private. Consider encouraging the university to make the online Course List, which contains classroom locations, private (password-protected). 
• Pursue fair policies and processes when students complain. Assume that faculty are doing our jobs, and give us the benefit of the doubt when accused of “bias.” Advocate for us.
• Speak up in Council of Chairs and other meetings about appropriate policies and procedures around syllabus posting, student complaints, student evaluations, tenure, and retrenchment.
• Ask management questions about how they are implementing SB1 — ask them to share specifics. Don’t let them remain silent on the implementation process. 

FAM guidance for management

• Involve faculty in implementation decisions and in the development of new processes and policies affecting faculty and curriculum, as other Ohio universities are doing.
• Do not overcomply — aim for minimum compliance under the law. 
• Meet with FAM leadership when developing SB1 policies and procedures that impact the faculty CBA, as required by our Separability article.
• Develop fair policies and procedures around aspects of SB1 that affect faculty, including student complaints, faculty evaluations, low-enrollment degrees, and post-tenure review.
• Protect faculty privacy. Do not overshare contact and location information that is not specifically required by the bill. Keep the syllabus posting requirement minimal. Make the Course List — which contains classroom locations — private (password-protected). 
• Pursue fair policies when students complain. Assume that faculty are doing our jobs, and give us the benefit of the doubt when accused of “bias.” Advocate for us.
• Protect Miami’s educational mission by protecting faculty academic freedom and, by extension, students’ freedom to learn. Protect the teacher-scholar model that earned Miami its national ranking for undergraduate education.

For more information 

• Summary of Senate Bill 1 (SB1) from the Ohio Legislature 
• Miami University’s guidance for faculty on SB 1
• FAQs from the Ohio Conference of the AAUP 
• Ohio State University’s SB1 Compliance page 
• University of Toledo AAUP’s analysis of SB1