Protecting the First Amendment, Kind Of

 As a public employee, I received a note from my employer stating that I would need to comply with their command that I understand the limits of free speech at my job and complete a training module to that end. Given that I work at a post-secondary institution, I do not have a problem with additional learning and set aside the required 15-20 minutes to complete the module so that I will be "in compliance" of whatever I am in compliance of--basic knowledge of the US consitution's Bill of Rights, I suppose. While it makes sense to me to meet the legal compliances that are required of me, like complying with FERPA so I'm not data mining student information or completing anti-harassment training to do my part to keep the workplace less creepy, I do object to the idea that my employer's boss is afraid that we are not doing free speech right and that we all have to take a crash course to keep ourselves operationally efficient in that respect.

For the record, I am fond of the 1st Amendment and exercise it frequently. I am not a constitutional scholar but have not yelled "fire" in a theater ever in my life. I know that my free speech has limitations. Apparently, one of the limits is that I have to be tested on my understanding and certify that I do understand. Comically, I also had to take a quiz consisting of 3 questions and needed to have a score of at least 80% to be in compliance. I am not a mathematician, but I do know that a 3 item quiz cannot bear a score of at least 80% unless you answer all the items correctly.  But, somehow, I don't think that was the point--and from an assessment vantage point, we are going to look really good and overperforming in our compliance as most, I expect will score 100%.

I completed the training in 15 minutes. I'm not sure how my taxpaying neighbors will feel about me being a newly minted expert on the 1st Amendment. I'm pretty sure that they will be counting the cost of me and my public employee counterparts who took it and wonder why they had to foot the bill for something that most of us already studied in middle school or high school social studies. Rightfully, they may feel duped by lawmakers and bureaucrats who score political points by double charging them for such things.