Speaker Policy

The University of St. Thomas is committed to the Catholic intellectual tradition and the dialogue between faith and reason. By instructing students in analytical and logical thinking, we assist in the preparation of UST graduates for important roles in civic leadership and in their quest for truth. Our community is guided by the Basilian values of goodness, discipline, and knowledge. We are also committed to the vision and norms for education as set out in Ex corde ecclesiae, and we seek to act in accord with the statement of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops concerning Catholics in political life. To serve these objectives, members of the University community must be free to engage the full range of views on a variety of subjects and must also strive to maintain clarity about the identity of the University. Speakers may be invited to campus and events produced on campus that promote the University’s values, as well as to events that involve the expression of ideas or opinions that are contrary to Catholic doctrines and teachings. From time to time, speakers or events can be problematic because they compromise our Catholic identity or offend our core values. In such cases, the following considerations, modifications, or reasons for prohibition will apply.