Readers write
Public display of syllabuses is good for transparency
After teaching more than 30 years at the postsecondary level in the Florida system, during which I served more than 20 years as a curriculum and faculty peer evaluator for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, I find Mr. Diguette’s commentary incomprehensible (“Georgia sends a chilling message: Professors can’t be trusted,” AJC, Sept. 1.)
Every syllabus must be public; every student, every parent and every instruction manager must have access to syllabuses that comprise an institution’s curricula. If for any reason an instructor finds the requirement for transparency odious, that instructor probably doesn’t belong in a classroom. The heart of academic freedom is academic clarity and transparency. Fear of political fallout reflects a much different concern for the instructor than compulsory revelation of content on a syllabus.
ELAINE KROMHOUT, MORGANTON
CDC leaders who resigned deserve a big ‘thank you’
Congratulations and thank you to the CDC leaders who demonstrated character by resigning.
They showed truth matters; there are scientific facts. They will not betray themselves, the American people or the world by misrepresenting science.
While Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may have his own opinion, it is unfortunate he was appointed by someone who has endured similar scientific academic rigor — none. It is tragic that DeKalb police Officer, and fellow Marine, David Rose died defending America’s scientific Alamo.
DANIEL F. KIRK, KENNESAW
Decades of environmental progress at risk of being undone
The Clean Air Act of 1963 and the Clean Water Act of 1972 were landmark achievements. They prompt the question: Are we better off today than we were 60 years ago?
The answer, by most measures, is yes. In the past 25 years alone, fine particle pollution has dropped by 41%, and since 1970 airborne lead has decreased by 99%. These improvements have led to fewer respiratory illnesses, reduced heart disease and lower rates of premature death. Children now can grow up healthier, with better cognitive outcomes. And all this progress occurred while our gross domestic product quadrupled — a clear sign that economic growth and environmental stewardship can coexist.
Rivers that once caught fire because of industrial waste are now clean enough for recreation and wildlife restoration. These gains were hard-won, and they matter.
Yet today, they’re under threat. President Donald Trump’s policies — dismantling alternative energy initiatives, reviving coal, rolling back vehicle emission standards and weakening the Environmental Protection Agency’s enforcement powers — risk undoing decades of progress. If these trends continue, we might find ourselves back in the environmental mess of the 1960s.
We could lose the very protections that made this progress possible.
JOEL CONWAY, DORAVILLE
