ACRL Legislative Agenda 2023-2024 - 1. Upholding Intellectual Freedom

Upholding Intellectual Freedom Background Intellectual freedom is a core value of the library profession, and libraries are integral to the provision of spaces and information resources that support their users’ active and free pursuit of the widest variety of information and ideas. [...] In 2015, the Obama Administration asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to rule in favor of net neutrality by reclassifying broadband as a common carrier under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 and Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. [...] The rollback of Obama-era net neutrality protections may lead to additional layers of economic influence making it more difficult for students and the public to access educational resources, with increased costs being passed on to both the consumer and educational institutions. [...] The grant money can be used in some of the following ways: the provision of funding for professional development around the open textbook process, the creation or adaptation of open textbooks, the development of supplemental material, or the facilitation of research surrounding open textbooks and OER material correlated to student success and cost savings. [...] As part of the commitment to embedding information literacy and access to quality resources into the student experience and strategies for teaching and learning, librarians are working with their academic colleagues to create such resources and to offer them freely for others.