College professors have a reputation for sharing personal beliefs with their students. But some say this reputation can be intimidating for freshmen entering philosophy or religion courses.

David French, advocate for freedom in higher education, spoke for the Christian Faculty Forum on Wednesday.

The forum discussed the rights and restraints of religious professors and focused on professors’ freedom to express their beliefs on issues of public concern, including issues such as religion and politics.

French, a graduate of Harvard Law School, focused his speech on the legalities behind what a professor can and cannot say. According to French, professors of public universities are employed by the the government, which restricts their freedom of speech in some arenas.

He told the group, “when clothed in your official capacity, speaking on behalf of an institution, you can’t support one point of view over another.”

But how do professors still manage to express their personal views in class?

If the professor’s view relates to the subject matter, he can reveal it in class without pushing it on the students, French said. He said an example would be a Catholic philosophy professor telling his students he views the subject through the lens of Catholicism, but telling students to look at it however they want to.

French said religious beliefs are equivalent to race and gender – a professor is must remain neutral. An example, he said, would be a student opposing Christianity getting a better grade than a student who is for it.

A professor’s job is “to create a marketplace of ideas,” French said.

They must respect all views because that is what they are hired to do.

Kenneth Honerkamp, associate professor of religion, said “we have such a wealth of ideas, there is really no need for personal views.” He said he could understand why someone in his department would have the option to reveal personal issues, but in a lot of fields he did not see much room for personal philosophies and beliefs.

Brandon Joiner, a junior biochemistry major from Cairo, said he did not mind professors’ opinions.

“It’s sort of biased, but them giving their opinion is the same as you giving your own,” he said.