Peter Berkowitz
RealClear Politics
Excerpt: It is dawning on some who run our elite colleges and universities – and the intellectuals whom they read – that their institutions desperately need reform. But the administrators and intellectuals assiduously avoid the core matter, which is the transformation of liberal education into progressive indoctrination.
David Brooks recognizes that America’s progressive elites have lost their way. And he correctly identifies the nation’s top universities as a chief cause. But the New York Times columnist and contributing writer at The Atlantic misdiagnoses the disease and advances a remedy that would make matters worse.
AEI Event
Excerpt: On January 27, author Ilya Shapiro joined AEI’s Jeffrey A. Rosen to discuss Mr. Shapiro’s new book, Lawless: The Miseducation of America’s Elites. In his opening remarks, Mr. Shapiro reflected on the “four years of hell” and “purgatory” he experienced as Georgetown Law investigated whether his tweet about President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court pick violated the university’s anti-harassment and anti-discrimination policies.
During the event’s discussion portion, Mr. Shapiro defined the key terms “lawless” and “miseducation” in his book’s title, noting that “lawless” refers to law schools’ departure from teaching the law and respecting its legitimacy, and that “miseducation” refers to how the bureaucratic culture in law schools influences students.
American Association of University Professors Statement
Excerpt: As Donald Trump assumes the presidency for a second time, the outlook for higher education is dire. The new administration's agenda for higher education has been thoroughly prepared by a series of statewide legal assaults on public colleges and universities in North Carolina, Florida, Texas and elsewhere, as well as by the high-profile congressional witch hunt that within the past year brought down the presidents of three Ivy League institutions.
In such a crisis, it becomes the obligation of the university as an institution to oppose such measures and actively to defend its interests and its values.” This is undoubtedly such a time.