{"id":2451648,"date":"2025-06-25T08:35:01","date_gmt":"2025-06-25T12:35:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/governor-swaps-three-trustees-at-troubled-indiana-university\/"},"modified":"2025-06-25T08:37:46","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T12:37:46","slug":"governor-swaps-three-trustees-at-troubled-indiana-university","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/governor-swaps-three-trustees-at-troubled-indiana-university\/","title":{"rendered":"Governor Swaps Three Trustees At Troubled Indiana University"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgovernor-swaps-three-trustees-at-troubled-indiana-university%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2451648&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Governor Mike Braun recently appointed three new alumni too Indiana University&#8217;s Board of Trustees, replacing members whose terms ended unexpectedly.the new trustees are James Bopp Jr., a First amendment lawyer, Brian eagle, a businessman and attorney, and Sage Steele, a former ESPN anchor.This decision comes amid a growing distrust among Republicans towards higher education, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/democratic-malcontents-eye-biden-harris-alternatives-but-few-names-emerge\/\" title=\"Democratic malcontents eye Biden...Harris alternatives, but few names emerge\">recent polls indicating<\/a> a notable decline in confidence compared to years past. <\/p>\n<p>Bopp noted concerns about intolerance towards divergent views at IU, which is reflected in the university&#8217;s poor ranking for free speech. The appointments follow new bylaws that allow the governor to appoint all nine board members, a shift that has eliminated elected trustees for the first time in over a century. The previous members who were replaced had opposed restrictions on protests at the university.<\/p>\n<p>The situation at IU reflects broader national debates regarding free speech on college campuses, notably regarding political expression. Recent protests, particularly pro-Palestinian demonstrations, have raised tensions and led to multiple arrests, further complicating the university&#8217;s environment. As the new trustees take their positions, thay aim to address what they perceive as a deterioration in the educational mission and foster a more inclusive dialog at the university.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Gov. Mike Braun <a href=\"https:\/\/events.in.gov\/event\/release-governor-braun-makes-appointments-to-iu-board-of-trustees-various-boards-and-commissions?utm_campaign=widget&amp;utm_medium=widget&amp;utm_source=State+of+Indiana\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> this month that three new Indiana University (IU) alumni are replacing three previous members from the university&rsquo;s Board of Trustees (BOT) whose tenures abruptly ended with a <a href=\"https:\/\/indianacapitalchronicle.com\/2025\/06\/02\/braun-reverses-course-removes-elected-iu-trustees-for-his-appointees\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">one-sentence letter<\/a> from Braun. The new trustees are First Amendment lawyer James Bopp Jr., attorney and businessman Brian Eagle, and former ESPN anchor Sage Steele.<\/p>\n<p>When The Federalist asked why Braun replaced the previous members and reappointed Chairman W. Quinn Buckner, a spokesman for Braun mirrored his X <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GovBraun\/status\/1929616892622180816\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">post<\/a>, saying the governor is &ldquo;confident&rdquo; that the new trustees &ldquo;will help guide IU back in the right direction as a premier flagship university in our state.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The governor&rsquo;s new appointments come as Republicans increasingly lose distrust in higher education, with 50 percent having &ldquo;little or no confidence&rdquo; compared to 11 percent in 2015, according to a 2024 Gallup <a href=\"https:\/\/news.gallup.com\/poll\/646880\/confidence-higher-education-closely-divided.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">poll<\/a>. Thirty-two percent of all Americans say they have &ldquo;little or no confidence&rdquo; in higher education. Bopp told The Federalist that he has noticed Indiana University has a strong &ldquo;degree of intolerance and outright hatred for people with different views.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>A lot of the distrust comes from the &ldquo;perception that colleges and trustees have political agendas,&rdquo; Armand Alacbay, a vice president at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA), told The Federalist.<\/p>\n<p>U.S. colleges and universities have increasingly churned out students who know little about their history, heritage, culture, duties, and rights, while college tuition has <a href=\"https:\/\/mjperry.blogspot.com\/2010\/06\/higher-education-bubble-its-about-to.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">increased<\/a> by a factor of ten in inflation-adjusted dollars since 1978. Republican voters&rsquo; frustration about the politicization and low quality of U.S. <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >higher education fueled massive electoral victories<\/a> for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as he <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/06\/04\/florida-narrowly-dodges-uf-president-who-dedicated-his-career-to-illegal-bigotry\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">prioritized replacing trustees<\/a> and cleaning curricular house at state universities.<\/p>\n<h2>IU Among Nation&rsquo;s Worst for Free Speech<\/h2>\n<p>In 2024, Indiana&rsquo;s previous governor, Eric Holcomb, signed <a href=\"https:\/\/iga.in.gov\/legislative\/2024\/bills\/senate\/202\/details\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">S.B. 202<\/a>, which created &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/secret-service-director-grilled-on-reforms-after-trump-assassination-attempts-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Secret Service director grilled on reforms after Trump assassination attempts ... Washington Examiner\">disciplinary action&#038;rdquo<\/a>; for any state faculty member who hinders &ldquo;free inquiry, free expression, and intellectual diversity.&rdquo; The Foundation of Individual Rights and Expression ranked IU 243 out of 251 in its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thefire.org\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/09\/2025%20College%20Free%20Speech%20Rankings%20Report%20FINAL.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2025 Free Speech Rankings<\/a>, giving the institution a score of 24.67 out of 100 for campus free speech (just eight slots away from where Harvard is ranked at last).<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s a segment in the community [at IU] who are just absolutely intolerant that there would even be a conservative voice at the university,&rdquo; Bopp told The Federalist.<\/p>\n<p>Many students made negative comments on the Indiana Daily Student newspaper&rsquo;s Instagram post featuring a story about Bopp. &ldquo;He sounds like a perfectly fascist voice to support the guv&rsquo;ner and [IU&rsquo;s president],&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/idsnews\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> Brian Forist, a professor who teaches parks, recreation, and the outdoors at Indiana University, according to his Instagram and <a href=\"https:\/\/news.iu.edu\/live\/profiles\/861-brian-forist\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">IU News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;What is the scandal about a conservative Republican governor appointing conservatives to a position?&rdquo; Bopp said.<\/p>\n<p>University trustees are key to the institution&rsquo;s health, Alacbay said, so long as they monitor their institution&rsquo;s activities closely. The purpose of a board of trustees is &ldquo;to protect the mission of the institution, and that is the pursuit of truth and a dissemination of knowledge. It&rsquo;s education, full stop,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<h2>Governor Controls a Board Majority<\/h2>\n<p>Under previous IU BOT <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20250602120041\/https:\/\/trustees.iu.edu\/about-the-board\/policies-resolutions\/bylaws.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">bylaws<\/a>,&nbsp;Indiana&rsquo;s governor appointed six IU trustees, while alumni elected another three. But a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.indianahouserepublicans.com\/clientuploads\/2025\/HB_1001_CCR\/CC100101.pdf?_t=1745446340\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">budget <\/a>passed in April modified the bylaws to allow Indiana&rsquo;s governor to appoint all nine members of the board, with five of them needing to be alumni.<\/p>\n<p>The current BOT does not have any elected trustees &ldquo;for the first time in more than a century,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DKaQ3VayvGB\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according <\/a>to the Indiana Daily Student. The trustees who were replaced, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.idsnews.com\/article\/2025\/03\/vivian-winston-trustee-reelection-iu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Vivian Winston<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/news.iu.edu\/live\/news\/31779-alumni-re-elect-donna-b-spears-as-trustee\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Donna Spears<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/news.iu.edu\/live\/news\/36744-alumna-jill-maurer-burnett-elected-to-iu-board-of-trus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jill Burnett<\/a>, were the last remaining elected officials.<\/p>\n<p>Eagle told The Federalist that Braun appointed him, in part, &ldquo;to be a business voice.&rdquo; The lawyer hopes to contribute by &ldquo;ensur[ing] that we are being excellent stewards of&nbsp;Indiana University&rsquo;s Tradition of Excellence.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Two of the three trustees Braun removed voted against limiting pro-Palestinian student protests on campus in 2024. Vivian Winston and Donna Spears voted &ldquo;no&rdquo; on an &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/policies.iu.edu\/policies\/ua-10-expressive-activity\/index.html?_gl=1*1pqil3j*_gcl_au*Mjk0NjUzOTg1LjE3MjE2NTg5MjI.*_ga*MTE0NDE4NTc4OS4xNjk0MTA4MjE4*_ga_61CH0D2DQW*MTcyMjI3OTE5Ny4yNTcuMC4xNzIyMjc5MTk3LjYwLjAuMA..#scope\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Expressive Activity Policy<\/a>&rdquo; to limit overnight camping during protests and prohibit protesting from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.idsnews.com\/article\/2024\/07\/new-iu-expressive-activity-policy-approved-will-take-effect-thursday\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according<\/a> to the Indiana Daily Student.<\/p>\n<p>Kyle Seibert, who is still on the board, also voted &ldquo;no&rdquo; to the protest limits. Spears did not respond to The Federalist&rsquo;s request for comment. Following a lawsuit against the board, a judge <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aclu-in.org\/sites\/default\/files\/pidecision.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">blocked<\/a> the policy on May 29, citing supposed First Amendment violations.<\/p>\n<h2>57 Arrests at Pro-Palestinian Protests<\/h2>\n<p>During pro-Palestinian protests at IU in 2024, 57 people, including some faculty, were arrested, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2025\/06\/05\/us\/republicans-indiana-public-universities.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">according<\/a> to The New York Times. The Times also reported that the university responded quickly to the protests with snipers on university roofs.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Hatred is running rampant and these schools are doing nothing about it!&rdquo; Sage Steele, another BOT member appointed by Braun, said in an X <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/sagesteele\/status\/1933186297440391308\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">post<\/a> on June 12, referencing ongoing antisemitic activity at well-known universities.<\/p>\n<p>Steele has long dealt with pushback for her conservative opinions. As an ESPN anchor, she received backlash for expressing her opinions about Covid-19 mandates, questioning former President Barack Obama&rsquo;s choice to identify as black, and telling &ldquo;women in sports media &hellip; to take responsibility for how they present themselves,&rdquo; Fox News <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/sports\/sage-steele-opens-up-espn-exit-much-bigger-me\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a> in 2023.<\/p>\n<p>After resolving a lawsuit with ESPN, she left the company.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><span><\/p>\n<blockquote data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Life update. <br \/>Having successfully settled my case with ESPN\/Disney, I have decided to leave so I can exercise my first amendment rights more freely. &nbsp;I am grateful for so many wonderful experiences over the past 16 years and am excited for my next chapter!<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/SteeleStrong?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#SteeleStrong<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Sage Steele (@sagesteele) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sagesteele\/status\/1691437577797337088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 15, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><\/span> <\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Steele did not respond to The Federalist&rsquo;s request for comment.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Abigail Nichols is a correspondent for The Federalist. She was previously the opinion editor for the University of South Florida&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-here-are-the-10-worst-colleges-for-free-speech\/\" title=\"Report: Here Are The 10 Worst Colleges For ...\">student newspaper<\/a>, The Oracle. She is now working as the business manager at the University of North Florida&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/media-downplay-motives-of-alien-charged-with-attacking-jews\/\" title=\"Media Downplay Motives Of Alien Charged With Attacking Jews\">student-run media outlet<\/a>, Spinnaker Media, while obtaining a Master&#8217;s Degree in Social work.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gov. Mike Braun appointed three new IU alumni to the Board of Trustees<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3849,"featured_media":2451649,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Copy-of-Untitled-2025-06-25T071413.879.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[4106,5152,4173,57862,57861],"class_list":["post-2451648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-administration","tag-education","tag-governor","tag-indiana-university","tag-trustees"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Copy-of-Untitled-2025-06-25T071413.879.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2451648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3849"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2451648"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2451648\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2451652,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2451648\/revisions\/2451652"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2451649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2451648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2451648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2451648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}