I have devoted a long career to teaching and leading in higher education with the strong belief that my efforts were serving the public good. During the presidential campaign, I was shocked to hear a vice presidential candidate call people like me “the enemy.” And it was dismaying to realize that this negative attitude toward higher education was okay with American voters.
And yet in the midst of depression I celebrated one point of reassurance: Our electoral process was conducted smoothly, without protests or violence. I was inspired by Liz Cheney’s statement on X Wednesday:
Our nation’s democratic system functioned last night and we have a new President-elect. All Americans are bound, whether we like the outcome or not, to accept the results of our elections. We now have a special responsibility, as citizens of the greatest nation on earth, to do everything we can to support and defend our Constitution, preserve the rule of law, and ensure that our institutions hold over these coming four years. Citizens across this country, our courts, members of the press and those serving in our federal, state and local governments must now be the guardrails of democracy.
I want to add universities to Cheney’s “guardrails of democracy.” Whether universities are under attack or supported by political leaders, we must be guided by the north star of our core values. These clear-eyed values in the form of policy recommendations are well articulated in an open letter that Ted Mitchell, President of the American Council on Education (ACE), addressed to both presidential candidates. I quote ACE’s list of recommendations in the context of higher education’s sustained role in serving the nation.
Making college affordable
Not every citizen will choose college, but everyone should have a choice, undeterred by financial concerns. Government has a necessary role in making post-secondary education accessible. Students should be able to select career / vocational training, but they should also have the opportunity to combine that with broad-based education in the liberal arts.
Supporting students
Every student needs access to physical and mental health services and relief from food insecurity.
Advancing research
Universities do more than communicate information. In labs and in libraries, professors, often working with students, create new knowledge contributing to societal progress.
Campus safety and free speech
Students deserve a safe place to study. But safety does not imply avoidance of challenging ideas, which may create the intellectual discomfort necessary for growth. Free speech and academic freedom must be protected. Civic engagement must be emphasized.
Higher education tax policy
Universities must retain special tax status in order to create more financial aid opportunities and support the institutions’ mission for the public good.
Support for international students
Offering opportunities for U.S. students to study side-by-side with classmates from all over the world enriches their experience. Attracting global talent contributes to this nation’s economic growth and innovation.
Whatever the politics, university leaders, with a special emphasis on those in Philadelphia, must be undeterred in supporting these ideas. But there are also lessons to be learned from the public response to higher education. Members of the working class in Philadelphia and in other cities have indicated in surveys and interviews an unfortunate resentment toward higher education.
Stop the snobbism
Support Governor Shapiro and other political leaders who have eliminated the requirement for a bachelor’s degree from many government jobs. Higher education should be an opportunity, not an obstacle.
Show respect for community colleges by forming real partnerships between elite institutions (like Penn) and the Community College of Philadelphia.
Help prepare kids at Philadelphia neighborhood schools to qualify for elite institutions (again, I’m looking at you, Penn).
Treat members of the Philadelphia community as partners from whom to learn, not merely as subjects to be studied and taught.
Improve communication
Invest resources in communicating with the general public about universities’ essential service to the public good.
Engage faculty members and students in working on problem-solving in the community.
Listen more actively to what citizens are saying—and feeling—about the universities and colleges in their midst.
The November 5 election has posed immense challenges to US higher education. Rather than bemoaning our fate, higher education leaders must continue the principled struggle to sustain colleges and universities as defenders and enactors of the Constitution of the United States.
Correction: An earlier version of this piece misspelled former Rep. Liz Cheney’s name.
Elaine Maimon, Ph.D., is an Advisor at the American Council on Education. She is the author of Leading Academic Change: Vision, Strategy, Transformation. Her long career in higher education has encompassed top executive positions at public universities as well as distinction as a scholar in rhetoric/composition. Her co-authored book, Writing In The Arts and Sciences, has been designated as a landmark text. She is a Distinguished Fellow of the Association for Writing Across the Curriculum.
