At most universities today, the “marketplace of ideas” is a relic of the past. As someone who has made a career out of interviewing students and speaking at college campuses across the country, I have seen how dogmatic and ideological campuses can be. I had events cancelled by administrators, I have been kicked off of public campuses just for asking questions, and I have had my speech suppressed by radical protestors who were allowed to come into events and disrupted them.

I lost my faith in American higher education. The whole system seemed geared to allow the loudest voices triumph, not the best ideas. Informed debate and civil discussion were rare, indoctrination dominated college campuses, and dissent and free inquiry were punished.

So, when I was invited to lead New College of Florida’s speaker series, “The Socratic Stage,” I was excited. New College fosters an environment where tough questions, unpopular ideas, and controversial speech are welcome. But no beliefs are unquestioned: if you believe in something, you better be ready to defend it. New College of Florida is a place where classical education of the past rooted in goodness, truth, and beauty is heralded and celebrated, and nowhere are those ideas more present than on our Socratic Stage.

This semester alone, we have hosted three incredible events, with more to come. Our first event was a discussion on American media and bias with Dr. Scott Atlas joined by prominent journalists and media figures; then a discussion on Covid, climate, and the politicization of science with Roger Pielke Jr.; followed by a debate on psychedelics and control with alumnus Rick Doblin and bestselling author Tom O’Neill. None of these conversations were safe, none of them were sanitized, and none of them were restricted. But, all of them were necessary.

New College’s Socratic Stage is not merely an events series, but a declaration that the American tradition of open discourse isn’t dead as long as people are brave enough to practice it. As Director of Public Policy Events, Speakers aren’t chosen to flatter anyone’s preconceived narratives; not my own, not the administration’s, not the media’s. Speakers are chosen because young people deserve the chance to encounter unfiltered ideas and debate, not one-sided dogma and indoctrination.

If higher education is supposed to prepare students for life, then shielding them from controversial ideas is negligence. It produces “adults” who panic when confronted with opposing viewpoints, citizens who outsource their thinking to institutions and artificial intelligence, and a society of obedient followers rather than critical thinkers.

The Socratic Stage is our answer to the intellectual decay gripping higher education. It’s our rebellion against the ideologues, bureaucrats, and indoctrinators that dominate America’s universities. It is, quite simply, what a university is supposed to be.

In a world of guardrails and political correctness, we are proud to be a campus of no “safe-spaces,” where freedom of speech is paramount. Students need honesty, debate, and courage, and we are bringing them exactly that at New College of Florida.

And if that troubles you, then you are exactly who we want at our next Socratic Stage.

Will Witt is the Director of Public Policy Events at New College of Florida.