Commencements Show the UNC System’s Struggles with Political Neutrality
In 2017, the North Carolina legislature passed House Bill 527 (now State Law 2017-196) to foster open inquiry in the state’s public colleges and universities. One of the provisions ordered…
Identity Politics Versus Basic Logic: Should Colleges Offer Affirmative Action for the Female Majority?
Academic postmodernism is no stranger to the idea that classical Enlightenment values such as reason, equal treatment, and individual agency should be cast aside for the sake of racial and…
Keeping Journalists in the Dark: ‘Citation Cartels’ Limit Public Knowledge
The public relies on journalists to learn about and share academic research. Public knowledge can be undermined, however, when academics try to influence what research journalists cover or limit the…
From Indoctrination to Education: Salvaging the University
Editor’s note: This article is an excerpt from Coming Home: Reclaiming America’s Conservative Soul (ISBN: 9781641770569), to be published by Encounter Books on May 14. The promise of higher education…
Administrative Hardball at the University of Tulsa
On April 11, the administration of the University of Tulsa shocked faculty, students, and alumni by announcing the elimination of 40 percent of the school’s academic programs. Undergraduate and graduate…
Political Science Needs Intellectual Diversity, But Few Realize It
Political science is the study of homo politicus, what Plato considered the most quintessential of human behaviors. Over the centuries, it has generated a library of observations, theories, and findings…
A Lame Case for Diversity
Abigail Stewart and Virginia Valian are senior psychologists at the University of Michigan and Hunter College, respectively. As an opponent of group preferences and double standards to achieve diversity among…
Caveat Magister: Even Medical Professors Must Not Say Politically Incorrect Things
How far has the United States gone down the road of punishing people for uttering politically incorrect thoughts? Very far indeed, as an incident at the University of Louisville shows.…
The End of Being a Duke Professor and What It Means for the Future of Higher Education
The end of the spring semester marks the 20th anniversary of my professorship at Duke, first as an assistant professor and then as an associate professor of the practice at…
How NC State Became Free-Speech Friendly
Free speech on North Carolina’s campuses has come a long way in the last decade. North Carolina State University is the most recent school to earn a “green light” from…