USC earned an ‘F’ grade in the Muslim Public Affairs Council’s (MPAC) first Academic Freedom Report Card.
MPAC determined the grade based on its evaluation of administrative responses to student protests, involvement of police or security forces, failure to hold serious negotiations with protestors and students’ rights to protest and advocate for Palestine.
Mass protests on USC’s campus last April resulted in 93 arrests, including nearly 50 students, according to the report card.
Based on universities’ responses to protests last year, MPAC Policy Communications Manager Misaal Irfan said, the council’s main goal was to document and make “actionable steps that universities, students and faculty can take to fight this kind of attack on academic freedom.”
“Not just for anyone that’s vocal on Palestine, but anyone that’s generally speaking up against the many crises outside of this conflict,” Irfan continued.
MPAC is a national policy and advocacy group formed in 1988, working in government engagement, policy and protecting freedom of speech. The group formed its Bureau of Academic Freedom as a “firefighter-type response” to the 2024 student-led protests and encampments, as well as responses from various universities, Irfan said.
USC ranked 16 in MPAC’s evaluation of 22 universities across the U.S.
“USC received a ‘D’ grade in both police involvement and impact on academic freedom,” Irfan said. “Although we did see a hampering of free speech, there were some moments where students were able to actually have access to some sort of negotiation with professors and administration.”
Irfan said the report card cited USC’s cancellation of the valedictorian’s commencement speech last year and the installation of security gates and checkpoints, which are no longer active.
For USC’s rating on academic freedom, Irfan cited the school’s cancellation of a Jewish Voice for Peace Sukkot celebration in 2024. Irfan also noted that MPAC found that students “were prevented from participating in a way where they were able to speak freely” in certain classes.
Interim President Beong-Soo Kim responded to criticism of academic freedom at USC in an email statement, noting that the university launched its Open Dialogue Project on Oct. 13.
“Universities depend and thrive on the free exchange of ideas — where different perspectives can be shared openly and respectfully,” Kim said. “At USC, academic freedom and open discourse aren’t just ideals; they’re central to who we are and how we live our values as a community.”
The University’s Freedom of Expression website clarifies the school’s resources and policies on academic freedom, civil discourse and more.
The report card was inspired by the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) Antisemitism Report Card. In 2025, the ADL gave USC a ‘C’ grade. The Antisemitism Report Card graded Campus Conduct and Climate Concerns as a high concern, though it said the school is meeting expectations when it comes to Publicly Disclosed Administrative Actions. The school received a score of ‘excellent’ for its Jewish Life on Campus.
MPAC’s Academic Freedom Report highlighted patterns across the universities it studied, which include militarized responses, refusal to negotiate with protestors, suppression of pro-Palestinian speech and coordination of federal crackdown.
Based on its findings, MPAC concluded with a list of recommendations for University administrations, faculty, students and federal policymakers.
UC Riverside was the only university that received an ‘A’ grade. UC Berkeley ranked two out of 22 and UCLA ranked 20.
“We don’t want to just give this recommendation of ‘Don’t hurt free speech’; that doesn’t mean much,” Irfan said.
“So our actionable recommendation is, do not sign on to contracts with defense organizations or private contractors that bring to your campus that use violent, militarized responses,” Irfan continued. “Provide transparency about university assessments.”