stating that "Racism, anti-Semitism, bigotry, and violence...are the antithesis of [our] values and have no place on our campus." The message also states that the university will "protect and promote the right to free and open inquiry". As president, Daniels has made the defense of free expression a priority by becoming the first public institution to adopt the Chicago principles for free speech and inquiry and one of roughly two dozen universities to receive the highest rating from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. Tuition freezes and cost reductions The total cost of attending Purdue has fallen since Daniels assumed Purdue's presidency, however Purdue’s tuition revenue per student increased modestly despite the freeze, partially because the number of foreign and out-of-state students increased. Tuition at Purdue, prior to Daniels' arrival, had increased every year since 1976. Two months after Daniels assumed his role as president, Purdue announced it would freeze tuition for two years, eventually extending the freeze for ten years, through 2023. As a result, multiple graduating classes will leave Purdue having never experienced a tuition increase. Annual student borrowing is down a third and the Purdue loan default rate is 2.2% versus 7.1% for the average borrower from a four-year public university and 5.1% for Purdue borrowers prior to the tuition freeze. The university claims that students and families will have saved over a billion dollars over the course of the ten years. No student fees have been approved since the tuition freeze was enacted, although a mandatory student wellness fee that students lobbied for prior to Daniels' arrival at Purdue was allowed to take effect but was later reduced under Daniels' direction. Daniels announced the first tuition freeze before the state had determined Purdue's funding for the next biennium. Amidst questions about the timing, Daniels argued that he didn't need to wait because "it doesn't matter what the General Assembly does. This is the right thing to do and we are going to do it" The first tuition freeze required the university to find $40 million in savings or new revenue. In order to make up for the lost revenue from tuition freezes, Daniels and the Purdue Board of Trustees focused on finding operating efficiencies such as consolidating information technology data centers, investing cash reserves, and switching to a consumer-driven health plan for employees. Daniels also reduced meal plan rates for students by 10 percent, froze