For at least a decade, Americans have wrestled with growing questions and doubts about their institutions of higher education and the value of a traditional four-year degree. The declining confidence has been driven by concerns over escalating costs and growing student indebtedness, uneven job prospects, and on-campus political polarization. These concerns have fed into calls by the current administration for changes to accreditation procedures and transparency in admissions processes, especially among elite institutions.
There are indications, however, that the downward trend in Americans’ trust in higher education and its outcomes is not irreversible. Universities are challenging themselves to ask hard questions and take actions to repair the breach. “Academic introspection must begin with a clear-eyed appraisal of our failures around democratic education,” Prof. Jonathan Zimmerman of the University of Pennsylvania observed in The Chronicle of Higher Education last week.
On the affordability front, private universities have continued to expand free tuition for lower- and middle-income students. Earlier this year, for instance, Dartmouth College raised the family income threshold to $175,000 a year, while Yale University upped its cap to $200,000. And, when it comes to the public’s return-on-investment concerns, it helps that prospects for new graduates are brighter than they were a year ago. On Monday, the National Association of Colleges and Employers reported that employers expect to increase new graduate hiring by 5.6% and internship opportunities by nearly 4% over a year ago.
But beyond dollars and cents, university leadership and faculty are engaging in honest and humble inquiry that acknowledges and addresses public concerns, which might be the most effective way to rebuild confidence. And, in doing so, they are modeling the very traits they seek to instill in the students as they prepare for work and civic life – genuine listening, reflection, transparency, and flexibility.
Last week, when announcing the public release of a special report on restoring trust in higher education, Yale University President Maurie McInnis highlighted the need to “take responsibility for our role in the erosion of public trust.”
“For higher education to serve the public good, we need … the American people to believe fully in [its] power and purpose,” she wrote, noting that “Trust is dynamic, and the work that earns it is continuous.”
In assessing the report’s recommendations – which include prioritizing academic achievement, pushing back against grade inflation, and enhancing open debate on campus – The Wall Street Journal praised Yale for “the lack of defensiveness and arrogance that has been the typical academic response to criticism.”
Dartmouth College President Sian Beilock is a proponent of a similar approach, as universities face government funding cuts and sanctions. “Reflection does not mean capitulation,” she wrote to the college community last year. “We owe it to our country,” she said, to search for “solutions that protect our fierce independence … while improving who we are and what we offer.”
“That spirit of self reflection,” Dr. Beilock said, “gives us an opportunity to look at ourselves and ask where we can be truer to our own ideals.”
