The College Free Speech Rankings The College Free Speech Rankings are based on a composite score of ten sub-components. Six of these assess student perceptions of different aspects of the speech climate on their campus: •Comfort Expressing Ideas •Tolerance for Liberal Speakers •Tolerance for Conservative Speakers •Acceptability of Disruptive Conduct •Administrative Support for Free Expression •Openness to Discussion of Specific Political Topics Two additional constructs, “Mean Tolerance” and “Tolerance Difference,” were computed from the “Tolerance for Liberal/Conservative Speaker” subcomponents. “Tolerance Difference” was calculated by subtracting “Tolerance for Conservative Speakers” from “Tolerance for Liberal Speakers” and then taking the absolute value (so that a bias on either side would be treated the same). The other four assess administrative behavior in regards to free expression on campus: •Scholars supported by the administration during a free expression controversy from 2019 to present. •Scholars sanctioned during a free expression controversy from 2019 to present.[1] •Successful disinvitations from 2019 to present.[2] •FIRE’s rating of the school’s speech code policies.[3] The overall score for each school is standardized so that the average score is 50 and the standard deviation is 10. Scores are then adjusted according to each school’s FIRE speech code rating. A full explanation of the methodology and scoring is provided in the appendix. A school’s overall score can range from 0 to 100. Full Report In 2020, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), College Pulse, and RealClearEducation published the first-ever comprehensive student assessment of free speech on 55 American college campuses: the College Free Speech Rankings. For the first time, prospective college students and their parents could systematically compare current students’ understandings of the level of tolerance for free speech on campus. In 2022, FIRE surveyed and ranked 203 schools.[4] Stanford University has an average speech climate, ranking 106th overall with an overall score of 45.94. The student body itself is predominantly liberal, with 64% of students describing their political beliefs as “slightly,” “somewhat,” or “very” liberal. In contrast, 16% of students described themselves as “slightly,” “somewhat,” or “very” conservative, and just 9% described themselves as moderate. The liberal to conservative student ratio was 4:1. In other words, for every conservative student on campus there are four liberal students. How Comfortable are Students Expressing Their Views on Controversial Topics? “If I feel a professor was leaning toward a certain political ideology, I would hesitate to bring up a point that didn’t align with that professor’s in fear that they may let their personal feelings on the topic affect their evaluation of me.” “When I was taking a class on free speech there was a discussion on what that meant and I had an opinion that went against others but I chose to stay silent because I felt like there would be judgment if I said what I wanted to.” Compared to students nationally, students at Stanford were less comfortable expressing disagreement with their professor and expressing themselves on social media. When asked if they felt “somewhat” or “very” comfortable disagreeing with their professor in a written assignment, 53% of Stanford students said this compared to 59% of students nationally. Fewer than two-in-five Stanford students (38%) said they felt comfortable publicly disagreeing with a professor on a controversial topic, and just 30% felt this way about expressing an unpopular opinion to their peers on a social media account tied to their name, compared to 40% nationally for both contexts. When it came to expressing views to their peers in campus settings, roughly three-fifths of Stanford students (61%) said they felt “very” or “somewhat” comfortable expressing their views on a controversial political topic to other students during a discussion in a common campus space, such as a quad, dining hall, or lounge. One-in-five Stanford students reported that they self-censored “fairly” or “very” often – compared to 22% of students nationally – and 72% said they were worried “a lot” or “a little” about damaging their reputation because someone misunderstood something they have said or done – compared to 63% of students nationally. Overall, Stanford University ranked 141st on Comfort Expressing Ideas. What Topics are Difficult to Have Conversations About? “I think there is a general vibe that makes it difficult to express oneself without being ostracized.” “Any insinuation that covid restrictions are sometimes contradictory makes people think you're an anti-masker. Any suggestion for rationality in a conversation about race-relations makes you a racist.” The Israeli/Palestinian conflict was identified by almost half (49%) of Stanford students surveyed as a topic that was difficult to have an open and honest conversation about. Police misconduct (40%) was also identified by a notable portion of students as difficult to discuss. Overall, Stanford University ranked 38th on Openness. Which Speakers are Controversial? “This could refer to any instance of disagreeing with liberal views. Because the school's population is majority liberal, even showing interest in attending a Ben Shapiro talk was frowned upon.” Stanford students demonstrated a fairly large ideological bias when asked about allowing controversial speakers on campus. A majority of students said that all five controversial liberal speakers should be allowed on campus, with the percentage of students saying this ranging from 72% (for a speaker who has promoted the idea that “The Second Amendment should be repealed so that guns can be confiscated.”) to 89% (“Undocumented immigrants should be given the right to vote”). In contrast, allowing all four controversial conservative speakers was staunchly opposed, with percentages in opposition ranging from 54% (“Abortion should be completely illegal.”) to 76% (“Transgender people have a mental disorder.”). Overall, Stanford University ranked 22nd on Tolerance for Liberal Speakers, 65th on Tolerance for Conservative Speakers, 13th on Mean Tolerance, and 151st on Tolerance Difference. What Kinds of Disruptive Conduct are Acceptable? “When students set up outside of a Shapiro speech I knew I’d start a fight if I tried to explain free speech to them.” The students at Stanford University, when compared to students nationally, tended to be more supportive of disruptive conduct to stop a campus speech. Over two-in-three Stanford students (69%) said shouting down a speaker or trying to prevent them from speaking on campus was acceptable to some degree, compared to 62% of students nationally; 45% said it was acceptable to some degree to block other students from attending a campus speech, compared to 37% nationally; and one-in-four (25%) said that using violence to stop a campus speech was acceptable to some degree, compared to 20% of students nationally. Overall, Stanford University ranked 128th on Disruptive Conduct. How is the Administration Perceived? “Someone threw a rock at my friend standing beside me when we were having a public, civil, outdoors conversation about a Constitutional amendment. The rock was large enough to have easily caused serious or even lethal bodily harm to the student. The incident was reported to the university administration, but no action nor statement was publicly taken. That moment really solidified within me the unilateral polarization that the campus represents, both stretching from the lowest level of students up to the highest office of the university's presidency, the lattermost often bearing larger semblances with the stereotypical cowardice of a horrible monarch.” Students perceived the administration’s stance on free speech as clear, with 79% saying it was “extremely,” “very,” or “somewhat” clear that the administration protects free speech on campus. An almost identical percentage, 75%, said that it is “extremely,” “very,” or “somewhat” likely that the administration would defend a speaker’s rights if a speech controversy occurred on campus. Overall, Stanford University ranked 41st on Administrative Support for Free Speech. A Yellow Light School With Plenty of Controversy The speech policies at Stanford University received a yellow light rating from FIRE. When it came to campus speech controversies Stanford University was certainly not a stranger to them. A total of 18 scholars were targeted for sanction between 2019 and July 1, 2022, the highest total for any institution in FIRE’s Scholars Under Fire database. Of these 18 attempts, two did result in sanctions that Stanford was penalized for. Stanford was also penalized for the disinvitation of Joe Lonsdale in 2019. How Can Stanford University Improve? First and foremost, Stanford University can improve their ranking if the administration takes a clear and strong stance in support of free expression. This can be done by making clear statements in support of free expression, continuing to defend scholars if a controversy over their expression erupts, or by revising its speech code policies. These policies include some of Stanford’s sexual harassment policies, student engagement policies, protest and discrimination policies, and policies regarding tolerance, respect, and civility. A strong administrative display of amending one or more of these policies so that they earn a yellow or green light rating would clarify the administration’s stance on free speech and provide a boost in next year’s rankings. Topline Results for Stanford University Are your current courses all online, mostly online, mostly in person, all in person, or an equal mix of online and in person? 14% All online 18% Mostly online 34% Mostly in person 21% All in person 14% Equal mix of online and in-person How comfortable would you feel doing the following on your campus? [Presented in randomized order] Publicly disagreeing with a professor about a controversial topic. 13% Very comfortable 25% Somewhat comfortable 31% Somewhat uncomfortable 31% Very uncomfortable Expressing disagreement with one of your professors about a controversial topic in a written assignment. 18% Very comfortable 35% Somewhat comfortable 31% Somewhat uncomfortable 17% Very uncomfortable Expressing your views on a controversial political topic during an in-class discussion. 16% Very comfortable 37% Somewhat comfortable 32% Somewhat uncomfortable 15% Very uncomfortable Expressing your views on a controversial political topic to other students during a discussion in a common campus space such as a quad, dining hall, or lounge. 20% Very comfortable 41% Somewhat comfortable 33% Somewhat uncomfortable 6% Very uncomfortable Expressing an unpopular opinion to your fellow students on a social media account tied to your name. 9% Very comfortable 21% Somewhat comfortable 39% Somewhat uncomfortable 32% Very uncomfortable Student groups often invite speakers to campus to express their views on a range of topics. Regardless of your own views on the topic, should your school ALLOW or NOT ALLOW a speaker on campus who promotes the following idea? [Presented in randomized order] Transgender people have a mental disorder. 13% Definitely should allow this speaker 11% Probably should allow this this speaker 19% Probably should not allow this speaker 57% Definitely should not allow this speaker Abortion should be completely illegal. 15% Definitely should allow this speaker 31% Probably should allow this this speaker 33% Probably should not allow this speaker 21% Definitely should not allow this speaker Black Lives Matter is a hate group. 14% Definitely should allow this speaker 17% Probably should allow this this speaker 25% Probably should not allow this speaker 44% Definitely should not allow this speaker The 2020 Presidential election was stolen. 13% Definitely should allow this speaker 18% Probably should allow this speaker 35% Probably should not allow this speaker 34% Definitely should not allow this speaker The Second Amendment should be repealed so that guns can be confiscated. 22% Definitely should allow this speaker 50% Probably should allow this this speaker 22% Probably should not allow this speaker 6% Definitely should not allow this speaker Undocumented immigrants should be given the right to vote. 46% Definitely should allow this speaker 43% Probably should allow this this speaker 10% Probably should not allow this speaker 1% Definitely should not allow this speaker Getting rid of inequality is more important than protecting the so-called “right” to free speech. 23% Definitely should allow this speaker 53% Probably should allow this this speaker 17% Probably should not allow this speaker 7% Definitely should not allow this speaker White people are collectively responsible for structural racism and use it to protect their privilege. 40% Definitely should allow this speaker 42% Probably should allow this this speaker 16% Probably should not allow this speaker 2% Definitely should not allow this speaker Religious liberty is used as an excuse to discriminate against gays and lesbians. 30% Definitely should allow this speaker 47% Probably should allow this this speaker 13% Probably should not allow this speaker 10% Definitely should not allow this speaker How acceptable would you say it is for students to engage in the following action to protest a campus speaker? [Presented in randomized order] Shouting down a speaker to prevent them from speaking on campus. 6% Always acceptable 27% Sometimes acceptable 36% Rarely acceptable 31% Never acceptable Blocking other students from attending a campus speech. 2% Always acceptable 7% Sometimes acceptable 36% Rarely acceptable 55% Never acceptable Using violence to stop a campus speech. 1% Always acceptable 5% Sometimes acceptable 20% Rarely acceptable 75% Never acceptable How clear is it to you that your college administration protects free speech on campus? 6% Extremely clear 25% Very clear 47% Somewhat clear 16% Not very clear 6% Not at all clear If a controversy over offensive speech were to occur on your campus, how likely is it that the administration would defend the speaker’s right to express their views? 10% Extremely likely 24% Very likely 41% Somewhat likely 21% Not very likely 5% Not at all likely On your campus, how often have you felt that you could not express your opinion on a subject because of how students, a professor, or the administration would respond? 14% Never 25% Rarely 41% Occasionally 11% Fairly often 9% Very often How worried are you about damaging your reputation because someone misunderstands something you have said or done? 25% Worried a lot 47% Worried a little 21% Not very worried 7% Not at all worried How much pressure do you feel to avoid discussing controversial topics in your classes? 16% No pressure at all 33% Slight pressure 33% Some pressure 11% A good deal of pressure 6% A great deal of pressure [Next two questions presented in random order] How would you describe the climate on your campus towards people who do not share your political beliefs? 13% Very supportive 27% Somewhat supportive 45% Somewhat hostile 16% Very hostile How would you describe the climate on your campus towards people who share your political beliefs? 29% Very supportive 41% Somewhat supportive 19% Somewhat hostile 11% Very hostile Where do you think the political views of the average student on campus are on the following scale? 24% Very liberal 43% Somewhat liberal 23% Slightly liberal 7% Moderate, middle-of-the-road 1% Slightly conservative 0% Somewhat conservative 0% Very conservative 1% Haven’t thought much about this 1% Something else Where do you think the political views of the average faculty member on campus are on the following scale? 12% Very liberal 41% Somewhat liberal 28% Slightly liberal 8% Moderate, middle-of-the-road 8% Slightly conservative 11% Somewhat conservative 1% Very conservative 1% Haven’t thought much about this 1% Something else Some students say it can be difficult to have conversations about certain issues on campus. Which of the following issues, if any, would you say are difficult to have an open and honest conversation about on your campus? [Percentage selecting each option] 31% Abortion 28% Affirmative action 23% China 13% Climate change 33% COVID-19 vaccine mandates 28% Economic inequality 26% Freedom of speech 25% Gender inequality 36% Gun control 24% Immigration 49% The Israeli/Palestinian conflict 34% Mask mandates 40% Police misconduct 33% Racial inequality 36% Religion 34% Sexual assault 35% Transgender issues 8% None of the above What campus changes would make you feel that you can express yourself? [Percentage selecting each option] 25% If there were more people of my race. 12% If there were more people of different races than me. 8% If there were more people of my gender. 4% If there were more people of a different gender than me. 9% If there were more people of my religion. 7% If there were more people of different religions than me. 22% If there were more people with my political views. 17% If there were more people with different political views from me. 40% If there were more tolerance of views that some consider hateful. 24% If there were less tolerance for views that some consider hateful. 18% None of the above In politics today, do you consider yourself a Republican, Democrat, or something else? 22% Strong Democrat 23% Weak Democrat 16% Independent, lean Democrat 14% Independent 5% Independent, lean Republican 7% Weak Republican 2% Strong Republican 10% Something else Using the following scale, how would you describe your political beliefs? 25% Very liberal 28% Somewhat liberal 11% Slightly liberal 9% Moderate, middle-of-the-road 7% Slightly conservative 7% Somewhat conservative 2% Very conservative 8% I do not identify as a liberal or a conservative 3% Haven’t thought much about this [If “I do not identify as a liberal or a conservative” is selected]: Which of the following best describes your political beliefs? 3% Democratic Socialist 2% Libertarian 4% Something else [write-in] Methodology The College Free Speech Survey was developed by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, RealClearEducation, and College Pulse. College Pulse administered the survey. No donors to the project took part in the design or conduct of the survey. The survey was fielded from January 13 to May 31, 2022. These data come from a sample of 44,847 undergraduates who were currently enrolled full-time in four-year degree programs at 208 colleges and universities in the United States. The margin of error for the U.S. undergraduate population is +/- 1 percentage point, and the margin of error for college student sub-demographics ranges from 2 to 5 percentage points. The initial sample was drawn from College Pulse’s American College Student Panel™, which includes more than 630,000 verified undergraduate students and recent alumni at more than 1,500 different two- and four-year colleges and universities in all 50 states. Panel members are recruited by a number of methods to help ensure student diversity in the panel population, including web advertising, permission-based email campaigns, and partnerships with university-affiliated organizations. To ensure the panel reflects the diverse backgrounds and experiences of the American college population, College Pulse recruits panelists from a wide variety of institutions. The panel includes students attending large public universities, small private colleges, online universities, historically Black colleges such as Howard University, women only colleges such as Smith College, and religiously-affiliated colleges such as Brigham Young University. College Pulse uses a two-stage validation process to ensure that all its surveys include only students currently enrolled in two-year or four-year colleges or universities. Students are required to provide an .edu email address to join the panel and, for this survey, had to acknowledge that they were currently enrolled full-time in a four-year degree program. All invitations to complete surveys are sent using the student’s .edu email address or through notification in the College Pulse app that is available on iOS and Android platforms. College Pulse applies a post-stratification adjustment based on demographic distributions from multiple data sources, including the 2017 Current Population Survey (CPS), the 2016 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS), and the 2019-20 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). The post-stratification weight rebalances the sample based on a number of important benchmark attributes, such as race, gender, class year, voter registration status, and financial aid status. The sample weighting is accomplished using an iterative proportional fitting (IFP) process that simultaneously balances the distributions of all variables. Weights are trimmed to prevent individual interviews from having too much influence on the final results. The use of these weights in statistical analysis ensures that the demographic characteristics of the sample closely approximate the demographic characteristics of the target populations. Even with these adjustments, surveys may be subject to error or bias due to question wording, context, and order effects. For further information, please see https://collegepulse.com/methodology. College Free Speech Rankings The College Free Speech Rankings are based on a composite score of ten sub-components. Six of these assessed student perceptions of different aspects of the speech climate on their campus. The other four assessed administrative behavior in regards to free expression on campus. Student Perceptions The student perception sub-components included: •Comfort Expressing Ideas: Students were asked about how comfortable they felt expressing their views on controversial topics in five different campus settings (e.g., in class, in the dining hall). Options ranged from “very uncomfortable” to “very comfortable.” They were also asked about how often they felt they could not express their opinion because of how other students, faculty, or the administration would respond (options ranged from “never” to “very often”); if they were worried about damaging their reputation because someone misunderstands something they have said or done (options ranged from “worried a lot” to “not at all worried”); and, if they felt pressure to avoid discussing controversial topics in their classes (options ranged from “no pressure at all” to “a great deal of pressure”). Responses were coded so that higher scores indicated greater comfort expressing ideas. The maximum number of points was 34. •Tolerance for Liberal Speakers: Students were asked whether four speakers espousing views offensive to conservatives (e.g., “Undocumented immigrants should be given the right to vote”) should be allowed on campus, regardless of whether they personally agreed with the speaker’s message. Options ranged from “definitely should not allow this speaker” to “definitely should allow this speaker,” and responses were coded so that higher scores indicated more tolerance of the speaker (i.e., they should be allowed on campus). The maximum number of points was 16. •Tolerance for Conservative Speakers: Students were also asked whether four speakers espousing views offensive to liberals (e.g., “Black Lives Matter is a hate group”) should be allowed on campus, regardless of whether they personally agreed with the speaker’s message. Scoring was done in the same manner as the Tolerance for Liberal Speakers sub-component, thus the maximum number of points was 16. •Disruptive Conduct: Students were asked how acceptable or unacceptable it is to engage in different methods of protest against a campus speaker. These included “Shouting down a speaker or trying to prevent them from speaking on campus,” “Blocking other students from attending a campus speech,” and “Using violence to stop a campus speech.” Options ranged from “always acceptable” to “never acceptable,” and were coded so that higher scores were indicative of less acceptance of disruptive conduct. The maximum number of points was 12. •Administrative Support: Students were asked about how clear their campus administration’s stance on free speech was and how likely the administration would be to defend a speaker's right to express their views if a controversy over speech occurred on campus. For the administrative stance question, response options ranged from “not at all clear” to “extremely clear”; for the administrative controversy question, response options ranged from “not at all likely” to “extremely likely.” Options were coded so that higher scores were indicative of greater clarity and greater likelihood of defending a speaker’s rights. The maximum number of points was 10. •Openness: Finally, students were asked which topics (e.g., abortion, freedom of speech, gun control, racial inequality) were difficult to have open conversations about on campus. Students also could select an option stating that none of these issues were difficult to discuss. These options were coded so that higher scores were indicative of fewer issues being selected. Seventeen issues were asked about, so the maximum number of points was 17. Two additional constructs, Mean Tolerance and Tolerance Difference, were computed from the Tolerance for Liberal/Conservative Speaker sub-components. Tolerance Difference was calculated by subtracting Tolerance for Conservative Speakers from Tolerance for Liberal Speakers and then taking the absolute value. Administrative Behavior The administrative behavior sub-components included: •Supported Scholars 2019 to 2022: The number of scholars whose speech rights were supported by the administration at a school during a free expression controversy over a four-year time period as recorded by FIRE’s Scholar’s Under Fire Database.[5] This support was unequivocal; if an administration condemned the speech, apologized for the scholar’s expression, or sanctioned the scholar, despite issuing a statement of support, it was not included in a school’s total. •Sanctioned Scholars 2019 to 2022: The number of scholars sanctioned (e.g., placed under investigation; suspended; terminated) at a school over a four-year time period as recorded by FIRE’s Scholar’s Under Fire Database.[6] •Successful Disinvitations 2019 to 2022: The number of successful disinvitations that occurred at a school over a four-year time period as recorded by FIRE’s Campus Disinvitation Database.[7] •FIRE Speech Code Rating: FIRE rates the written policies governing student speech at more than 475 institutions of higher education in the United States. Three substantive ratings are possible: “Red,” “Yellow,” and “Green” (termed “red light,” “yellow light,” and “green light,” respectively). A “red light” rating indicates that the institution has at least one policy that both clearly and substantially restricts freedom of speech. Colleges with “yellow light” ratings have policies that restrict a more limited amount of protected expression or, by virtue of their vague wording, could too easily be used to restrict protected expression. The policies of an institution with a “green light” rating do not seriously threaten speech, although this rating does not indicate whether a college actively supports free expression. Finally, a fourth rating, “warning,” is assigned to a private college or university when its policies clearly and consistently state that it prioritizes other values over a commitment to freedom of speech. “Warning” schools, therefore, were not ranked, and their overall scores are presented separately in this report.[8] Overall Score To create an overall score for each college, we sum the student sub-components of Comfort Expressing Ideas, Mean Tolerance, Disruptive Conduct, Administrative Support, and Openness. Then we subtract from this sum the Tolerance Difference. By including Mean Tolerance (as opposed to Tolerance for Liberal Speakers and Tolerance for Conservative Speakers) and subtracting Tolerance Difference, we are adjusting each school’s score to account for the possibility that ideologically homogeneous student bodies may result in a campus that appears to have a strong culture of free expression, but is actually hostile to the views of an ideological minority – whose views students may almost never encounter on campus. To account for how the administration handles speech controversies on campus, we incorporated three administrative behavior sub-components. We gave a bonus point to each school’s score when the administration successfully supported (i.e., did not sanction and/or offer conflicting messaging) a scholar during a free expression controversy. We decreased this bonus by a quarter of a point each year, so we awarded a full point for support given in 2022, three quarters of a point for support given in 2021, half a point for support given in 2020, and one quarter of a point for support given in 2019. We also applied penalties when the administration sanctioned a scholar or when a speaker was disinvited from campus. Each time a scholar was sanctioned (e.g., investigated, suspended, terminated) we subtracted one point from a school’s score. If the administration terminated a scholar, we subtracted two points, and if that scholar was tenured, we subtracted three points. When the sanction did not result in termination, we decreased the penalty by a quarter of a point each year, so a full point was subtracted for a sanction in 2022, while three quarters of a point was subtracted for a sanction in 2021, half a point was subtracted for sanction in 2020, and one quarter of a point for sanction in 2019. Finally, each time a successful disinvitation, we subtracted one point from a school’s score.[9] After we applied the bonuses and penalties, we standardized each school’s score so that the average score was 50.00 and the standard deviation was 10.00. Following standardization, we added one standard deviation to the final score of colleges whose speech codes received a Green rating, we subtracted half a standard deviation from the final score of colleges that received a Yellow rating, and we subtracted one standard deviation from the final score of schools that received a Red or Warning rating. Overall Score = (50 + (ZRaw Overall Score)(10)) + FIRE Rating ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] The Scholars Under Fire Database includes both supported and sanctioned scholars. It can be found on FIRE’s website at https://www.thefire.org/research/publications/miscellaneous-publications/scholars-under-fire/. For 2022, the cutoff date for inclusion was July 1, 2022. [2] The Campus Disinvitation Database can be found on FIRE’s website at https://www.thefire.org/research/disinvitation-database/. For 2022, the cutoff date for inclusion was July 1, 2022. [3] The Spotlight Database can be found on FIRE’s website at https://www.thefire.org/resources/spotlight/. [4] A total of 208 schools were surveyed, however 5 of them received a “warning” rating from FIRE for their speech policies. An overall score was calculated for these schools but they were not assigned a ranking. [5] Scholars Under Fire Database: https://www.thefire.org/research/publications/miscellaneous-publications/scholars-under-fire/ [6] Scholars Under Fire Database: https://www.thefire.org/research/publications/miscellaneous-publications/scholars-under-fire/ [7] Campus Disinvitation Database: https://www.thefire.org/research/disinvitation-database/ [8] The Spotlight Database is on FIRE’s website at https://www.thefire.org/resources/spotlight/. [9] In the 2023 College Free Speech Rankings, penalties for terminations and successful disinvitations will begin to decay in the same manner that the penalty for a sanctioned scholar decays.