January 18, 2012—Syracuse University's School of Education has effectively expelled a graduate student from its teaching program after he complained on Facebook about a racially charged comment made in his presence by a community leader. Syracuse told Matthew Werenczak that his only chance for reinstatement was to undergo a special course of diversity training and counseling for "anger management"—all because he expressed annoyance over a community leader's complaint that student teachers were coming from Syracuse rather than historically black colleges. After completing all requirements but still being denied readmission, Werenczak turned to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) for help.

This is not the first time Syracuse has sought to punish a student for online speech. In the fall of 2010, Syracuse University College of Law student Len Audaer was threatened with expulsion and faced a months-long investigation for his role in a fake-news parody blog about life in law school. In January 2011, FIRE named Syracuse one of the worst universities in the nation for free speech in The Huffington Post. Syracuse dropped all charges against Audaer in February 2011.

Continue reading FIRE's press release here>>

Update, January 19, 2012: Syracuse Drops Expulsion Hours After FIRE Press Release

Syracuse University's School of Education has readmitted a graduate student it had expelled from its teaching program after he complained on Facebook about a racially charged comment made in his presence by a community leader. Syracuse had told Matthew Werenczak that his only chance for reinstatement was to undergo a special course of diversity training and counseling for "anger management"—all because he expressed annoyance over a community leader's complaint that student teachers were coming from Syracuse rather than historically black colleges. Within hours of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) bringing his case to the public, Werenczak was readmitted.

"Syracuse kicked a student out of school for complaining on Facebook about comments he thought were racist, and only reversed its decision in the face of public outrage," said FIRE President Greg Lukianoff. "It's long past time for Syracuse to live up to its promises of free speech and stop treating its students as second-class citizens."

Continue reading FIRE's press release here>>

Contact Syracuse Chancellor Nancy Cantor and ask her to affirm Syracuse's commitment to free speech and due process today!