Academic freedom may be defined as the freedom to conduct research, teach, speak, and publish subject to the norms and standards of scholarly inquiry, without interference or penalty, wherever the search for truth and understanding may lead. By facilitating critical thinking and open discourse, academic freedom provides the foundation for the continued intellectual and social value of the School as a place of unfettered debate and the free exchange of ideas.
Academic freedom carries with it a concomitant responsibility of scholars to resist corrupting influences on their research and teaching, to transcend partisanship and prejudice, and to foster intellectually vigorous norms and standards of scholarly inquiry and teaching. The Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences of Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute maintains and encourages freedom of inquiry, discourse, teaching, research, and publication, and protects all members of the scientific staff and student body against external and internal influences that might restrict the exercise of these freedoms.