Obama's alma mater under fire after conservative economics professor let go

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Occidental College in Los Angeles is facing allegations of ideological bias after the school decided not to renew the contract for an economic professor with conservative views.

Daron Djerdjian had taught various economics classes at Occidental or "Oxy" since 2010 and his classes were highly rated by students online, economist Mark Skousen wrote in a new op-ed for The Wall Street Journal. 

Skousen, who also serves as adjunct faculty for an academic institute started by Djerdjian in June, said that Occidental did not renew the untenured Djerdjian's contract for this school year, despite being the "only free-market professor" on campus.

The private liberal arts college, which is home to several famous alumni, including former President Obama, touts its commitment to diversity and equity in its mission statement. Skousen questioned if the college was "putting those values into practice" by letting the conservative professor go.

"For all its talk about diversity, equity and inclusion, Occidental College, the only small liberal-arts college in Los Angeles, doesn’t seem keen on putting those values into practice," he continued in his op-ed. "Late last year the economics department opted not to renew the contract of an untenured professor whose libertarian and conservative views went against the grain. So much for its public commitment to diversity of political views."

Students and faculty criticized the school for not renewing the contract of an economics professor who espoused conservative and libertarian viewpoints. (Izabela Habur)

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Students and faculty were also reportedly dismayed by the university's action.

When news of his contract not being renewed got around campus, around 400 students and alumni signed a petition via e-mail asking the school to keep him on, according to a campus newspaper report from February.

"This will be a colossal loss to his past, present and prospective students, as well as to the marketplace of ideas at Occidental College and the world at large," the students reportedly wrote in the petition.

Students who helped organize the petition said that the professor offered more conservative views than other economics professors on campus, and they appreciated getting a wider range of viewpoints in the field.

"No other professor teaches free-market economics," Rayna Singh, a junior who had Djerdjian as her advisor, said. 

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Occidental College denied making decisions for faculty opponents based on political affiliations. (iStock)

Two full-time faculty members who spoke anonymously with Skousen also defended the former Oxy professor.

One faculty member called Djerdjian's sacking "politically motivated." 

Another defended the school's rights to not renew his contract but said the decision would hurt Oxy students because they"will no longer be exposed to an entirely different free-market perspective that is both stimulating and valuable."

Skousen claimed the school's economics department — which had once valued diversity of thought — had transformed in recent years.

"The economics department is now largely staffed by graduates of University of California schools who place more emphasis on fair trade than free trade and market failure than government failure, and are more likely to quote Keynesian Joseph Stiglitz than Milton Friedman," he wrote. "Sadly, political diversity is dying at Oxy and is being replaced by less tolerant wokeness."

Fox News Digital reached out to Djerdjian for comment, but did not hear back.

A spokesperson for Occidental College provided the following statement:

"In the pursuit of academic excellence and discourse, Occidental College values political and other forms of diversity, and the Economics Department remains committed to ensuring students are exposed to diverse perspectives in its curricula. The College does not comment on individual personnel matters. The College makes decisions regarding faculty appointments based on curricular need, student demand, and other relevant criteria, without reference to political or other affiliations. These academic factors change from year to year, which is why non-tenure track faculty appointments can change over time. Non-tenure track faculty are generally eligible for reappointment if and when there is curricular need."