Earlier this month, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) ranked Claremont McKenna College second on its 2027 College Free Speech Rankings, a report that rates the free speech climate on college campuses nationwide. CMC received a passing “B-” grade from FIRE, while the other 5Cs received failing grades.
Of the 261 colleges surveyed, Pitzer College ranked 160th, Scripps College ranked 167th, Harvey Mudd College ranked 184th and Pomona College ranked 226th. While these Claremont Colleges saw increases in their rankings compared to last year, CMC dropped by one rank, losing its first-place spot to the University of Chicago.
FIRE evaluates educational institutions on their free speech climates based on student surveys and the institutions’ free speech policies, including whether or not they have adopted the Chicago Statement for Free Speech. According to a FIRE press release, 121 of the 261 — or 46 percent — of colleges and universities evaluated this year received a failing grade.
Over 150 students participated in FIRE’s CMC survey, which included questions about political violence, self-expression and protest. Sixty-two percent of CMC respondents said it is either “very clear” or “extremely clear” that the college administration protects free speech on campus.
Multiple students described an emphasis on open dialogue at CMC. Eli Jobrack Lundy CM ’27, 5C Democrats president, noted important discussions often occur outside the classroom in places like The Hub.
“Even just on a day-to-day basis, [students are] participating in or overhearing really difficult conversations about foreign policy or economic policy, you know, various societal questions,” Jobrack Lundy said.
Some students also noted that the Open Academy contributes to a campus environment of free speech. The Open Academy aims to give 5C students opportunities to engage in constructive dialogue. The program invites guest speakers to the Marian Miner Cook Athenaeum and hosts community events to discuss controversial sociopolitical issues.
Ioannis Evrigenis, a government and ethics professor at CMC, has been director of the Open Academy since last summer. He emphasized the importance of free speech on college campuses.
“[Freedom of speech] is an essential element of what you would need for any kind of serious education, certainly a liberal arts education,” Evrigenis said. “So, if the aim of a liberal arts education is to cultivate a free person in every sense of the term, free speech would be an indispensable part of it.”
According to the press release, the “most difficult topics” for students to discuss on campus this year were the “Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Donald Trump, Charlie Kirk, and abortion.” Evrigenis said he is concerned about how self-policing around these topics may affect students at the Claremont Colleges.
“I’m very concerned about self-censorship and the fact that people don’t feel safe expressing their opinion, especially around controversial issues,” Evrigenis said. “It’s a very tough nut to crack.”
CMC received a $300,000 grant from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations (AVDF) for the Open Academy last year. Evrigenis said the AVDF grant will fund the development of a new Open Academy curriculum over the next three years, with a faculty committee designing stand-alone course modules that can be used in any classroom, regardless of subject. The courses are intended to promote constructive dialogue and will eventually be available across the 5Cs.
Open Academy Student Manager Shiv Parihar CM ’28 spoke about the institution’s positive impact on CMC, noting that the Athenaeum often features a diverse range of speakers representing different views.
“We have really focused on getting people real, actual practice in dialogue,” Parihar said. “[It] is really, really useful for people to talk to speakers that they don’t agree with.”
Jobrack Lundy also spoke about the importance of political dialogue between people of differing views.
“I think broadly, there is a lot of value in free speech on campus and in encouraging students who are very passionate politically to engage with people who are just completely either passionate in the opposite direction, or just are not as interested, at least talk to them and engage,” Jobrack Lundy said. “I have learned a lot from my conservative peers.”
Although Parihar said he agrees with CMC’s ranking, he said he was skeptical of how FIRE ranked other colleges’ free speech climates — Pomona’s in particular.
“Pomona’s ranking was low, way lower than it should be,” Parihar said.
A Pomona spokesperson underscored the college’s commitment to free speech in an email to TSL.
“Pomona College believes that free speech is critical to its mission as an educational institution,” the spokesperson wrote. “As outlined in the college’s Speech Code, speech and other forms of expression are protected and Pomona’s disciplinary policies are based on disruptive or intrusive conduct, not one’s viewpoint.”
Veronica Mnatsakanian PZ ’30 said that Pitzer was rated unfairly in the FIRE rankings.
“I was honestly really surprised,” Mnatsakanian said. “When you apply [to Pitzer], you kind of get the sense that the whole school is about freedom of speech, because you have the free wall and I feel like everyone’s very opinionated and open about what they want. So, I feel like we deserve a higher score.”
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