Average Score The Average Score is the average of all Overall Scores from colleges in a state that were included in the College Free Speech Rankings.
60.4 Treanding Down
/ 100
Average Rank The Average Rank is the average of all Overall Ranks from colleges in a state that were included in the College Free Speech Rankings.
128 Treanding Down
/ 257
Average Grade The Grade is a letter based on the college's rounded Overall Score. Scores fall into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D-
Speech Controversies Controversies are campus incidents where a student, professor, or speaker faces backlash or pressure for speech that's protected by the First Amendment or academic freedom.
6
Comfort Expressing Ideas Comfort Expressing Ideas measures how comfortable students feel sharing their views on controversial topics in different campus settings. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D
Disruptive Conduct Disruptive Conduct measures how acceptable students think it is to disrupt a campus speaker. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
C+
Openness Openness measures how many controversial topics students feel they can openly discuss on campus. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D+
Self-Censorship Self-Censorship measures how often students hold back their views on campus. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93–100) to F (below 60).
D-
Administrative Support Administrative Support measures how clearly students think their school supports free speech and how likely the administration is to defend a speaker's rights during a controversy. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
F
Political Tolerance Political Tolerance measures how willing students are to allow controversial speakers — on both the left and right — to speak on campus, even if they disagree with their views. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
F
Overview
Four Indiana schools are ranked in the 2026 College Free Speech Rankings. The state’s average speech-climate grade is D–, compared to a national average of F.Purdue University is not only the top-ranked school in Indiana but is the second best-ranked school in the country. Purdue has adopted both the pro-free speech Chicago Statement and a statement on institutional neutrality. It holds a “green light” rating in FIRE’s Spotlight database, meaning its written policies do not seriously threaten student expression.
DePauw University follows at 18 and has also adopted the Chicago Statement. It holds a “green light” rating but has not adopted institutional neutrality. Indiana University Bloomington ranks 255 and the University of Notre Dame ranks 238. Both earn F grades and have not adopted either statement. Notre Dame holds a “red light” rating, and IU Bloomington holds a “yellow light” rating.
Indiana is home to some of the nation’s strongest and weakest campus speech environments. Raising the floor through policy reform and broader commitment to expressive rights would help close the state’s gap.
Highlights
46% of students say they have self-censored on campus at least once or twice a month.
71% of students say shouting down a speaker to prevent them from speaking on campus is acceptable, at least in rare cases.
31% of students say using violence to stop someone from speaking on campus is acceptable, at least in rare cases.
1.74:1
Across Indiana, there are roughly 1.74 liberal students for every one conservative student.
Average score over time
Speech Controversies
Speech Controversies: When Free Expression Is Challenged
Explore notable incidents where free speech was tested on campuses across Indiana. From speaker deplatformings to administrative actions, these events highlight the challenges — and consequences — of restricting expression.
Speech Controversies Controversies are campus incidents where a student, professor, or speaker faces backlash or pressure for speech that's protected by the First Amendment or academic freedom.
6
Scholars Under Fire Scholar Controversies are campus incidents where a professor or academic staff member faces backlash or punishment for speech protected by academic freedom or the First Amendment.
0
Students Under Fire Student Controversies are campus incidents where a student or student group faces punishment or pressure from the school for speech that's protected by the First Amendment.
1
Deplatformings Deplatformings are the number of incidents where a scheduled event or speaker is canceled or prevented from taking place.
5
Honor Roll Statements Honor Roll Statements are the number of public messages from a college or university defending free speech during a campus controversy. Schools that make these statements can earn bonus points on their Overall Score for standing up for free expression when it counts.
0
Attempted Disruptions Attempted Disruptions are the number of incidents where people on campus try to stop a scheduled event or speaker.
1
New in 2025 The number of controversies that have occurred since the previous launch of the College Free Speech Rankings.
2
Students Under Fire
| Year | School | Target | Controversy Explanation | Score Impact | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Indiana University | Elena Thomas/Cameron Pierce/Christoher Hadwerger | Thomas, Pierce, and Handwerger each had their protected speech violated by the university when they were arrested and punished under a policy that was changed without due notice. The night before a planned nationwide pro-Palestine protest, administrators revised their expressive policies to prohibit unapproved structures. The change was posted online the morning of the protest but administrators didn’t notify the student body or protest organizers of the change. Then, just hours later, pamphlets with the change were distributed at the protest and police arrested attendees for trespassing when, citing the old rule, some protestors refused to take down their structures. All three students were banned from university property for a year. | -1.0 | Read More |
Deplatformings
| Year | School | Target | Controversy Explanation | Score Impact | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Indiana University | Chris Geidner | Geidner was scheduled to be one of the keynote speakers at an LGBTQ+ Health Care Conference but was then informed by the university that the conference was canceled after President Trump issued executive orders restricting the use of federal funds on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. | -3.0 | Read More |
| 2025 | University of Notre Dame | Eman Abdelhadi | Abdelhadi, an assistant professor at the University of Chicago and former faculty fellow at the University of Notre Dame, was scheduled to deliver a keynote address on Palestine at a student-organized conference at Notre Dame. However, approximately a week before the event, the Dean of the Keough School of Global Affairs informed Abdelhadi that her participation was canceled. The dean cited the university’s inability to provide security due to the conference coinciding with two other annual events on campus, and also stated, “We were unaware of your planned lecture, and since this conference overlaps with two other annual events on campus, we cannot provide security at short notice. For this reason, we respectfully request that you do not participate in the conference.” Abdelhadi responded by expressing skepticism about the university’s rationale, noting that she had been invited to speak in January, providing ample notice. She questioned the necessity of heightened security for her lecture and criticized the university’s decision as a form of censorship. | -3.0 | Read More |
| 2024 | Indiana University | Jim Banks/Chaya Raichick | The College Republicans invited Raichick and Representative Banks to campus. On the day before the event a local Antifa group, Red Orchestra_AFA, posted on X: “Indiana and fishers Indiana. Libs of TT homophobic bigot chaya raichik and far right bigot jim banks [sic] will be speaking at two locations. You know what to do.” On the day of the event, IU Alumni for Palestine posted an image on Instagram with an image of Raichick and Banks with their mouths covered and urged their supporters to stop “bigots on campus.” At the event, protesters reportedly “pushed” and harassed attendees there to listen to the speakers and chanted “how many kids has she (Raichick) killed today?” Protesters also shouted that Raichick had “blood [on her] hands” and accused both speakers of supporting “genocide” and that they are “killing children.” Several protesters were removed by police, the event then resumed and was completed successfully. | -1.0 | Read More |
| 2024 | Indiana University | Mosab Hassan Yousef | IU Hillel postponed Yousef’s talk, “The Truth About Hamas and Israel,” after multiple student groups, including the Palestine Solidarity Committee and the Middle Eastern Student Association, criticized the event and called Yousef “Islamophobic.” A counterprotest was organized and a flyer listed 30 buses leaving from eight different locations throughout the state. The university then informed Yousef that they were postponing the event because of “security threats involving the Muslim community and several white supremacist groups.” The event was not rescheduled. | -2.0 | Read More |
| 2024 | Indiana University | Samia Halaby: Centers of Energy | Administrators canceled a retrospective art exhibit of paintings by Samia Halaby, a Palestinian-American painter, at the university’s Eskenazi Museum of Art because employees of the art museum had concerns about Halaby’s comments on social media in support of Palestinian causes, in which she expressed outrage at the violence occurring in Gaza and compared Israel’s actions to genocide. | -2.0 | Read More |
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Rankings and Survey Results
Rankings and Survey Results
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