Should Universities Take a Stand on Public Issues? How Effectively Are Universities Governed?
Harvard and many of our most respected universities are going through a period of unprecedented turmoil. In a recent Harvard Magazine article entitled “Why Americans Love to Hate Harvard,” former Harvard President Derek Bok described the “rising tide of antagonism to higher education.” Why is this happening? Public hostility and mistrust of higher education undoubtedly […]
John C. Wilcox is Chairman Emeritus at Morrow Sodali. This post is based on his recent talk at Harvard’s 60th Reunion.
Harvard and many of our most respected universities are going through a period of unprecedented turmoil. In a recent Harvard Magazine article entitled “Why Americans Love to Hate Harvard,” former Harvard President Derek Bok described the “rising tide of antagonism to higher education.”
Why is this happening? Public hostility and mistrust of higher education undoubtedly reflects escalating social and political divisions within the U.S., but some of the fault rests within the universities themselves.
President Bok recommends an improved focus on “civil education” and a more balanced curriculum representing conservative as well as progressive ideas. I believe that in addition to teaching reforms and campus culture, Harvard and other universities need to address problems of ineffective governance, opaque decision-making and poor communication.
