Dr. Anne Conaway, assistant professor of mass communication, will share her concerns about the potentially receding rights to freedom of expression held by students in academia as part of Bemidji State University’s Honors Council Lecture Series.

Conaway’s lecture, “An Analysis of First Amendment Protection of Student Expression, Mid-1900s-2012,” will take place at 7 p.m. March 21 in Hagg Sauer 107 on the Bemidji State campus. Honors Council Lectures are open to the public free of charge.

She will share her position as a staunch defender of freedom of expression rights, particularly in post-secondary education environments, where students and professors should be free to inquire, to question, and to deliberate freely.

“Fear breeds repression,” she says, quoting Justice Louis Brandeis. “That repression breeds hate; that hate menaces stable government. The path of safety lies in the opportunity to discuss freely the supposed grievances and proposed remedies.”

Conaway holds a doctorate in communication and society from the University of Oregon, specializing in media law and ethics, and a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She worked at the Arkansas Bar Association for five years as its publications director. She has had two articles published in top-tier journals; two articles published in regional journals; and five conference papers accepted for presentation, winning awards for three. Conaway also worked as an assistant editor for the University of Oregon’s CASCADE magazine. She has one son, Finn.

The Honors Council Lecture Series is hosted by the Bemidji State University Honors Council. The council is the advisory group to the honors program comprised of 12 faculty members from each of the University’s colleges. Student representatives are also elected to the council by their cohorts for one-year terms.

For more information about the Honors Council Lecture Series, please contact the honors program at (218) 755-3984.

About Bemidji State University
Bemidji State University, located in northern Minnesota’s lake district, occupies a wooded campus along the shore of Lake Bemidji. Enrolling more than 5,000 students, the University offers more than 50 undergraduate majors and nine graduate programs encompassing arts, sciences and select professional programs. The University is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system and has a faculty and staff of more than 550. University signature themes include environmental stewardship, civic engagement and global and multi-cultural understanding.

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