Today’s elite, research university model has crowded out higher ed’s older purposes: teaching and forming citizens. Increasingly dependent on federal research funding, universities have both handed the White House leverage in its attacks on their autonomy and lost public legitimacy. To counter this, the author argues, elite universities should incentivize teaching focused on the civic function, build close connections with their communities, and diversify their financial dependence, a model that exists in America’s public universities. Read this article
Education, immigration, and free markets supported by the rule of law are the pillers of America’s global pre-eminence, the author argues. For education, he highlights America’s emphasis on mass education and the symbiosis among universities, federal funding agencies, and private sector commercialization. Describing how these are being systematically undermined by the White House, he predicts that Trump’s most important legacy will be the damage he’s doing to our economic engines and, with it, the shriveling of America’s global standing. Read this article
The results of AAC&U’s survey of employer views on higher ed are heartening considered against recent reports of the public’s declining trust. For one, employer confidence in higher ed is strong, 70% vs. roughly half that by the public at large. More startling, employers strongly support campuses that protect open inquiry and diverse perspectives and value graduates’ ability to engage constructively across disagreement. In short, they reaffirm that the outcomes of a liberal education are what students need to thrive in today’s economy and civil life. Read this summaryorRead the full report
Surely upsetting people on both sides of the debate, the author surveys the accommodations colleges offer for students with a disability designation. She explores reasons that the share of students qualifying has increased as much as fivefold in a decade, particularly at elite universities. Patterns suggest that, as the reward for saying you have a disability vs. the stigma has radically changed, “the ADA [that] was supposed to make college more equitable [has] instead…become another way for the most privileged students to press their advantage.” Read this article
Higher ed’s reputation suffers from media and public frenzy over soaring college costs and the declining ROI to a college education. “Remedying these is going to be very difficult because (1) the return to college hasn’t declined, and (2) the cost of college hasn’t risen for years. It’s tough to fix problems that don’t exist.” Using clear data, the author plumbs the misconceptions underlying this—acknowledging real affordability costs facing some students but reminding us that we can best address these with policy discussions that begin with accurate information. Read this article
The AKA Review will be taking a break for the holidays and
will resumeonJanuary 16, 2026.
