Harvard survey shows most students don’t feel comfortable sharing ‘controversial opinions’

A Harvard survey showed that many students in the class of 2024 did not feel comfortable sharing “controversial opinions” in class.

According to The Harvard Crimson, only one-third of Harvard’s last graduating class felt comfortable sharing their opinions about controversial topics in college. The Crimson found this from the university’s 2024 senior survey conducted in May last year.

The survey explained further that the latest results are a 13% decrease from the Class of 2023.

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The results of the survey were not released publicly but were included in part in a report by the Classroom Social Compact Committee, convened by Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Hopi E. Hoekstra last year in response to questions about the state of free speech on campus.

“The committee — co-chaired by Economics professor David I. Laibson ’88 and History professor Maya R. Jasanoff ’96 — wrote in their report that despite ‘near-universal support for the principle of free speech,’ there is disagreement about how Harvard ‘can support open expression in practice,’” the Crimson reported.

The country’s most prestigious and oldest university conducts the survey annually through their Office of Institutional Research and Analytics.

Last semester, Harvard’s Dean Rakesh Khurana, along with a committee of undergraduates, faculty, and administrators launched the College Intellectual Vitality Initiative intended to foster debate. The Crimson reported that Khurana clarified that the programming “was not a reaction to campus controversies.”

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Cambridge, MA – September 6: People march past Harvard Yard on the way to Harvard Square during this school year’s first Pro-Palestinian protest at Harvard University.  (John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Harvard has been among several colleges across the country rocked by campus protests amid the war in Gaza. Former Harvard President Claudine Gay faced severe blowback for her testimony during a congressional hearing on antisemitism on college campuses, an uproar that ultimately led to her stepping down as Harvard president in January 2024.

Reacting to the survey, Harvard alumnus Jonathan Haronouff said that many Jewish and Israeli students did not feel comfortable sharing their opinions in class.

“Doing so has led some Jewish students to be intimidated by their classmates and even their professors,” Haronouff told Fox News Digital.

“College campuses should be the safest of environments where students develop their ways of thinking and are open to new ideas,” Haronouff added. “But unfortunately, many Jewish students have felt afraid not just to express their opinions, but also to express their Judaism, whether that be by refraining from wearing yarmulkes, hanging mezuzahs on their doors or attending Jewish communal events.”

Dr. Claudine Gay, President of Harvard University testify before the House Education and Workforce Committee at the Rayburn House Office Building on December 05, 2023 in Washington, DC.  ((Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images))

The school has faced other controversies as well.

Harvard dealt with harsh backlash from conservatives after an investigation found that Gay plagiarized others’ work in her academic assignments. The findings prompted many to question her qualifications, while others defended the ex-president.

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Furthermore, the university abandoned the diversity, equity, and inclusion statements, sparking criticism from Harvard professors and high-profile donors.