The Limits of Academic Freedom and the Need for Viewpoint Diversity: Internal and External Pressures

The Limits of Academic Freedom and the Need for Viewpoint Diversity: Internal and External Pressures

The Fika Crew welcomes Jonathan Thigpen, PharmD, Professor and Assistant Dean at Samford University's McWhorter School of Pharmacy, to discuss First Amendment rights, academic freedom, and viewpoint diversity.  Jonathan walks us through the 1915 American Association of University Professors (AAUP) declaration on academic freedom, which continues to anchor most faculty handbooks. We discuss the current landscape in American Universities where internal forces are calling for reforms to address self-censorship before external forces mandate restrictions.  While its not always clear where the boundaries are, academic freedom can't be used to justify skipping department meetings or refusing to use active learning strategies in your instruction (sorry!). Intro and Fika Snack Sharing: 0:00 - 3:46 Academic Freedom Discussion: 3:47 Resources Heterodox Academy - Heterodox Out Loud Podcast:  Episode 23 - The Classroom Legislative Battle with Keith Wittington [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJnTR5-jIao%20] American Association of University Professors (AAUP) - Summary of Some Critical AAUP Statements [https://www.aaup.org/summary-some-critical-aaup-statements%20], including the "1915 Declaration of Principles on Academic Freedom and Academic Tenure [https://www.aaup.org/NR/rdonlyres/A6520A9D-0A9A-47B3-B550-C006B5B224E7/0/1915Declaration.pdf]." Website:  Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) [https://www.fire.org/] (with lots of resources about First Amendment rights and Academic Freedom) Website: Heterodox Academy [https://heterodoxacademy.org/] (with lots of resources on Viewpoint Diversity and Academic Freedom) Website:  Greater Good Science Center [https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/] (with lots of resources related to Intellectual Humility and Positive Psychology) van der Leeuw RM, van Loon KA, et al. Stand Up and Educate Ourselves on Academic Freedom [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41694784/]. J Grad Med Educ. 2026 Feb;18(1):5-7. Dahlborg E, Castillo IA, Tengelin E. When Academic Freedom Becomes Dangerous: Nursing in an Age of Censorship [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40569032/]. Nurs Inq. 2025 Jul;32(3):e70044. Diehl C, Revers M, Traunmüller R, Weidmann NB, Wuttke A. Students' motives for restricting academic freedom: Viewpoint discrimination and prosocial concerns [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41264259/]. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2025 Nov 25;122(47):e2503804122. _______________________ The Pharmacy Fika podcast is a positive and compassionate “place” (a virtual community) where pharmacy and other health professions educators gather to discuss teaching, learning, scholarship, and academic life… plus the snacks that support their best work. So grab your favorite beverage and listen to the Pharmacy Fika podcast with your colleagues. The Co-Hosts are: * Stuart T. Haines (Executive Producer), University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy – sthaines@olemiss.edu [sthaines@olemiss.edu]                * Tina Brock, University of Melbourne Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences - tina.brock@unimelb.edu.au [tina.brock@unimleb.edu.au] * Jeff Cain, University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy - jeff.cain@uky.edu [jeff.cain@uky.edu]  * Kristin Janke, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy - janke006@umn.edu [janke006@umn.edu] Disclaimer (inspired by Whad’Ya Know? [https://whadyaknow.net/]): All opinions expressed on the Pharmacy Fika podcast are well-reasoned and insightful. Needless to say, they are ours and our guests alone, and not those of our employing institutions. Even though we don’t accept advertising and don’t have any sponsors, we seem to mention Trader Joe’s snacks and various water-based drinks a LOT. Not sure what fika is all about?  Watch this brief video:  How a Swedish coffee break can boost your wellbeing and performance. [https://youtu.be/I9xzgV7z1Bg] Got a great idea for a discussion topic?  Drop us a line (pharmacyfika@gmail.com) or leave us a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika [https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika]

Objective Structured Clinical Exams (OSCEs) - When is the Juice Worth the Squeeze?

OSCEs—those beloved (and sometimes dreaded) Objective Structured Clinical Examinations—have become a cornerstone of pharmacy education. But are they always worth the enormous investment of time, money, and faculty energy? In this episode, the Fika Crew digs into a thought-provoking paper by Gortney, Meny, and Dunn [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajpe.2026.101938] that takes a critical eye to how and when OSCEs should be used. It’s the kind of rich, nuanced conversation that only happens when you bring together a few friends who care deeply about getting assessment right. So, grab a snack and your favorite beverage. 👏  Congratulations to Jeff Cain on receiving the prestigious Chalmers Distinguished Pharmacy Educator Award!  🎉 Intro and Fika Snack Sharing: 0:00 - 3:17 OSCE Discussion: 3:18 Resources Gortney JS, Meny LM, Dunn BL. A critical eye on OSCE use: a framework for evaluating impact, efficiency, and sustainability [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajpe.2026.101938]. Am J Pharm Educ 2026;90(3):101938. Lim A, Krishnan S, Singh H, Furletti S, Sarkar M, Stewart D, et al. Linking assessment to real life practice—comparing work based assessments and objective structured clinical examinations using mystery shopping. [https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-023-10284-1] Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract. 2023;29(3):859-878. Lim A, Ling YL, Wilby KJ, Mak V. What's been happening with OSCEs in pharmacy education over the past 20 years? A bibliometric review and content analysis. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38171979/] Curr Pharm Teach Learn 2024; 16(3): 212-220. Sourial M, Hagler JC. A pilot study using artificial intelligence to enhance efficiency, accuracy, and objectivity in grading pharmacy objective structured clinical examinations. [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajpe.2025.101455] Am J Pharm Educ. 2025;89(8):101455. Sturpe DA.  Objective structured clinical exams in Doctor of Pharmacy programs in the United States.  [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S000294592304130X] Am J Pharm Educ. 2010;74(8):148. Brock T, Deloatch KM, McDermott J, et al. Objective structured clinical examinations as an assessment tool in pharmacy curricula [http://chrome-extension//efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://triggered.edinburgh.clockss.org/ServeContent?url=http%3A%2F%2Ftandfonline.stanford.clockss.org%2Ftoc%2Fwjpt%2F9%2F..%2F..%2F..%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1300%2FJ060v09n02_01]. J Pharm Teach. 2002; 92 (2): 1-9. _______________________ The Pharmacy Fika podcast is a positive and compassionate “place” (a virtual community) where pharmacy and other health professions educators gather to discuss teaching, learning, scholarship, and academic life… plus the snacks that support their best work. So grab your favorite beverage and listen to the Pharmacy Fika podcast with your colleagues. The Co-Hosts are: * Stuart T. Haines (Executive Producer), University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy – sthaines@olemiss.edu [sthaines@olemiss.edu]                * Tina Brock, University of Melbourne Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences - tina.brock@unimelb.edu.au [tina.brock@unimleb.edu.au] * Jeff Cain, University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy - jeff.cain@uky.edu [jeff.cain@uky.edu]  * Kristin Janke, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy - janke006@umn.edu [janke006@umn.edu] Disclaimer (inspired by Whad’Ya Know? [https://whadyaknow.net/]): All opinions expressed on the Pharmacy Fika podcast are well-reasoned and insightful. Needless to say, they are ours and our guests alone, and not those of our employing institutions. Even though we don’t accept advertising and don’t have any sponsors, we seem to mention Trader Joe’s snacks and various water-based drinks a LOT. Not sure what fika is all about?  Watch this brief video:  How a Swedish coffee break can boost your wellbeing and performance. [https://youtu.be/I9xzgV7z1Bg] Got a great idea for a discussion topic?  Drop us a line (pharmacyfika@gmail.com) or leave us a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika [https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika]

Sabbatical Stories: Reclaiming Space for Reflection, Learning, and New Directions

The Fika Crew welcomes Zubin Austin, Ph.D. (University of Toronto), who recently completed his sabbatical, and Hayley Blackburn, Pharm.D. (University of Montana), who is right in the middle of hers, to explore the why, when, and how of academic sabbaticals. Co-host Kristin adds her own experience to the mix. Here's one takeaway: plan your sabbatical activities — then trim that list by 25%. 🌏 ✈️ Australia,  Ireland, the UK, France, Oaxaca, Greenland — yes, Greenland! — all make appearances.  Sadly, not Fiji.   Intro and Fika Snack Sharing: 0:00 - 3:46 Sabbatical Discussion: 3:47   Resources Sibbald T and Handford V, eds. The Academic Sabbatical: A Voyage of Discovery [https://www.amazon.com/Academic-Sabbatical-Voyage-Discovery/dp/0776633198/]. University of Ottawa Press, 2022. ISBN: 9780776633190 Page M. Who took the Sabbath out of sabbatical? [https://www.aaup.org/article/who-took-sabbath-out-sabbatical] Academe Magazine, American Association of University Professors. Accessed February 20, 2026.  Burkeman O.  Four thousand weeks: Time Management for Mortals [https://www.amazon.com/Four-Thousand-Weeks-Management-Mortals/dp/0374159122].  New York: Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, 2021. Berg M and Seeber BK.  The Slow Professor: Challenging the Culture of Speed in the Academy, Tenth Anniversary Edition. [https://utppublishing.com/doi/book/10.3138/9781487559465]  University of Toronto Press, 2025. ISBN: 9781487559489  Gardner SK. Faculty learning and professional growth in the sabbatical leave [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34720384/]. Innov High Educ. 2022;47(3):435-451.  Yarmohammadian MH, Davidson P, Yeh CH. Sabbatical as a part of the academic excellence journey: a narrative qualitative study [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30271804/]. J Educ Health Promot. 2018;7:119.  Blackard JT. Tips for a successful global health sabbatical [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31074600/]. Ann Glob Health. 2019;85(1):7.  Philbrick AM, Pittenger AL. Practice faculty also need sabbatical leaves [https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S000294592410993X]. Am J Pharm Educ. 2024;88(10):101274.   _______________________ The Pharmacy Fika podcast is a positive and compassionate “place” (a virtual community) where pharmacy and other health professions educators gather to discuss teaching, learning, scholarship, and academic life… plus the snacks that support their best work. So grab your favorite beverage and listen to the Pharmacy Fika podcast with your colleagues. The Co-Hosts are: * Stuart T. Haines (Executive Producer), University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy – sthaines@olemiss.edu [sthaines@olemiss.edu]                * Tina Brock, University of Melbourne Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences - tina.brock@unimelb.edu.au [tina.brock@unimleb.edu.au] * Jeff Cain, University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy - jeff.cain@uky.edu [jeff.cain@uky.edu]  * Kristin Janke, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy - janke006@umn.edu [janke006@umn.edu] Disclaimer (inspired by Whad’Ya Know? [https://whadyaknow.net/]): All opinions expressed on the Pharmacy Fika podcast are well-reasoned and insightful. Needless to say, they are ours and our guests alone, and not those of our employing institutions. Even though we don’t accept advertising and don’t have any sponsors, we seem to mention Trader Joe’s snacks and various water-based drinks a LOT. Not sure what fika is all about?  Watch this brief video:  How a Swedish coffee break can boost your wellbeing and performance. [https://youtu.be/I9xzgV7z1Bg] Got a great idea for a discussion topic?  Drop us a line (pharmacyfika@gmail.com) or leave us a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika [https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika]

Let's Go Bowling! Reflections on Effective and Sustained Collaborations

The Fika Crew welcomes David Steeb, PharmD, MPH - Founding Dean of the College of Global Population Health at the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis - to talk about collaboration at the institutional and individual levels.  How and why are they created?  Why are some collaborations sustained and others never seem to get past the initial exploration stage?  In this epidose, we don't have all the answers (well, frankly, we never do), but we have plenty of questions!   Intro and Fika Snack Sharing: 0:00 - 4:18 And check out the Australian Open Donut [https://www.instagram.com/p/DTZlWQEkkBH/%20]!  Collaboration: 4:19 Resources Gray B.  Collaborating: Finding Common Ground for Multiparty Problems [https://www.amazon.com/Collaborating-Finding-Common-Multiparty-Problems/dp/1555421598].  San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1991. Gray B, Wood DJ.  Collaborative Alliances: Moving from Practice to Theory [https://doi.org/10.1177/0021886391271001%20].  J Applied Behav Sci 1991; 27 (1): 3-22. Wood DJ, Gray B.  Toward a Comprehensive Theory of Collaboration [https://doi.org/10.1177/0021886391272001].  J Applied Behav Sci 1991; 27 (2): 139-162. Partnership Brokers Association.  Resources for individuals and organizations [https://www.partnershipbrokers.org/resources/] to "broker" partnerships.   _______________________ The Pharmacy Fika podcast is a positive and compassionate “place” (a virtual community) where pharmacy and other health professions educators gather to discuss teaching, learning, scholarship, and academic life… plus the snacks that support their best work. So grab your favorite beverage and listen to the Pharmacy Fika podcast with your colleagues. The Co-Hosts are: * Stuart T. Haines (Executive Producer), University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy – sthaines@olemiss.edu [sthaines@olemiss.edu]                * Tina Brock, University of Melbourne Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences - tina.brock@unimelb.edu.au [tina.brock@unimleb.edu.au] * Jeff Cain, University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy - jeff.cain@uky.edu [jeff.cain@uky.edu]  * Kristin Janke, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy - janke006@umn.edu [janke006@umn.edu] Disclaimer (inspired by Whad’Ya Know? [https://whadyaknow.net/]): All opinions expressed on the Pharmacy Fika podcast are well-reasoned and insightful. Needless to say, they are ours and our guests alone, and not those of our employing institutions. Even though we don’t accept advertising and don’t have any sponsors, we seem to mention Trader Joe’s snacks and various water-based drinks a LOT. Not sure what fika is all about?  Watch this brief video:  How a Swedish coffee break can boost your wellbeing and performance. [https://youtu.be/I9xzgV7z1Bg] Got a great idea for a discussion topic?  Drop us a line (pharmacyfika@gmail.com) or leave us a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika [https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika]

Preferment: Achieving Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose After Full-Time Employment

Just prior to cranberry season, the Fika Crew met with Lucinda Maine, PhD. - CEO Emerita, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy - to chat about her preferment (aka retirement) journey.  Tina also shares her fascination with candied cranberry videos.  If you are curious, be sure to watch Thyme to Cook with Kristi. I Tried the Viral Candied Cranberry. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=982wD-2EnFw] November 20, 2025. [YouTube Video] Preferment is a modern concept reframing retirement as a proactive, fulfulling stage of life focused on doing what you prefer, rather than simply ending work; it's about pursuing meaningful activities, passions, and purpose with freedom and flexibility, shifting from "retiring from" to "aspiring to" a life aligned with your values, using wisdom and energy for continued growth, contribution, and joy. It emphasizes a planned transition that integrates purpose, relationships, health, and finances, often through gradual changes.   Intro and Fika Snack Sharing: 0:00 - 4:27 Preferment : 4:28   Resources Silver MP, Wong JV, Barrett K, et al.  A scope review and synthesis of the literature on retirement among academic health professionals [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s44250-025-00221-x].  Disocver Health Systems 2025; 4: Article 45.  Goodall J and Abrams D. The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times [https://www.amazon.com/Book-Hope-Survival-Trying-Global-ebook/dp/B08QGN3VX4].  New York: Celadon Books, 2021.   And in case you missed it from our last epidose, this book is relevant to those considering or in preferment too: Le Cunff A.  Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obessed World [https://www.amazon.com/Tiny-Experiments-Freely-Goal-Obsessed-World/dp/0593715136/].  New York: Avery, 2025. _______________________ The Pharmacy Fika podcast is a positive and compassionate “place” (a virtual community) where pharmacy and other health professions educators gather to discuss teaching, learning, scholarship, and academic life… plus the snacks that support their best work. So grab your favorite beverage and listen to the Pharmacy Fika podcast with your colleagues. The Co-Hosts are: * Stuart T. Haines (Executive Producer), University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy – sthaines@olemiss.edu [sthaines@olemiss.edu]                * Tina Brock, University of Melbourne Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences - tina.brock@unimelb.edu.au [tina.brock@unimleb.edu.au] * Jeff Cain, University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy - jeff.cain@uky.edu [jeff.cain@uky.edu]  * Kristin Janke, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy - janke006@umn.edu [janke006@umn.edu] Disclaimer (inspired by Whad’Ya Know? [https://whadyaknow.net/]): All opinions expressed on the Pharmacy Fika podcast are well-reasoned and insightful. Needless to say, they are ours and our guests alone, and not those of our employing institutions. Even though we don’t accept advertising and don’t have any sponsors, we seem to mention Trader Joe’s snacks and various water-based drinks a LOT. Not sure what fika is all about?  Watch this brief video:  How a Swedish coffee break can boost your wellbeing and performance. [https://youtu.be/I9xzgV7z1Bg] Got a great idea for a discussion topic?  Drop us a line (pharmacyfika@gmail.com) or leave us a voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika [https://www.speakpipe.com/PharmacyFika]