Furman Free Speech Round-Up (April)
Celebrating you, our readers, and examining Furman's admissions statistics.
Welcome to our April newsletter.
The Furman Free Speech Alliance is a group of alumni, parents, and friends concerned about Furman University’s deteriorating campus climate for free speech, academic freedom, and viewpoint diversity.
Each month, we update you on what’s happening at Furman and what actions we’re taking to defend free speech on campus.
Looking Back:
The Furman Free Speech Alliance exists to bring together people who love Furman and want to see it flourish. We believe Furman can be one of the best schools in the Southeast — if not the country. But we know that’s impossible without robust protection for freedom of speech and a deep commitment to academic excellence. That’s why we call Furman back to these principles time and time again.
This past month, we’ve been particularly grateful for all the Furman parents and alumni who share that belief and have supported our mission. Since our initial funding to launch a year ago, we’ve received donations from 16 donors totaling almost $80,000. We are especially grateful to our largest donor, the Beth and Ravenel Curry Foundation, for renewing their support for our work to make Furman a better place.
In the year ahead, we’ll be using these funds to:
Increase the quantity and improve the quality of the content we produce for our readers.
Host additional free-speech events on campus for students, parents, and alumni.
Expand our network of alumni who love Furman.
All of this is only possible because of readers like you. And so the number one thing we need to succeed is – you guessed it – more readers. If you believe in our mission, please consider sharing our newsletter with five other Paladins today.
One Fact You Should Know:
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Furman’s near-peer competitors Davidson and Wofford had a much higher percentage of admitted students who enrolled in 2023-24, with 49% and 21% respectively. Are we falling behind?
Looking Ahead:
This month, high school seniors across the country are making college decisions. May 1st – the typical deadline for freshmen to enroll for the fall semester – is fast approaching.
We are excited to welcome this new class of students to Furman and hope that one day, as alumni, they’ll become part of our FFSA community. If trends hold, though, fewer of these accepted students than ever will choose to call Furman home.
According to Furman’s common data set, in 2023-24 (the most recent year statistics are available), only 14% of the students that our alma mater admitted decided to enroll. This is a significant drop from previous years. From 2014, when President Davis took the helm at Furman, to 2020, when Covid-19 rocked colleges around the country Furman’s percentage of students admitted who enrolled was consistently around 21%.
In 2019-20, it was 22%.
In 2018-19, it was 21%.
In 2017-18, it was 23%.
In 2016-17, it was 21%.
In 2015-16, it was 21%.
In 2014-15, it was 23%
Since 2020, however, this percentage has taken a major hit.
In 2020-21, it was 15%.
In 2021-22, it was 13%.
In 2022-23, it was 13%.
And again, in 2023-24, it was 14%.
This matters because fluctuations in class size can make it difficult for a college to plan for the future. According to College Initiative, “Enrolling too few students can cause budget shortfalls, without the tuition income they need, which leads to tough decisions.” After four years of struggling to attract admitted students, Furman may be facing these tough decisions now.
We want to help. We believe that in the coming years, universities that have a distinct commitment to free speech and academic excellence will be more attractive to prospective students than schools that tout their inclusive environment and personalized pathways. We believe Furman can become such a university, and we want to work with the administration to help make that shift.
Free speech and academic excellence must not be some values among many that the university stands for. They should be the chief values and guiding principles.
We also want to work with prospective students and parents -- as we have before -- to help them understand Furman’s strengths, weaknesses, and ultimately why we all decided to go there. Sometimes we’re critical of Furman, but at the end of the day, we want to help people understand what makes Furman a wonderful place to be, and we hope that people will feel more comfortable choosing Furman when they learn about groups like FFSA.
In the Network:
Last month, Furman was mentioned in an article in the Chronicle of Higher Education detailing how the Trump administration is planning to hike the college endowment tax (you heard it here first). President Davis is reportedly concerned about the prospect of Furman’s endowment being taxed. Let’s remind her again that the number one thing she can do to avoid such a fate is to axe Furman’s needless, wasteful, and discriminatory DEI programs.