Kevin Guskiewicz Archives — The James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal

Did You Know? The Fight Over Renaming Buildings at North Carolina Colleges

Jul 23, 2020 · Kathryn Goodwin · No Comments

On June 17, the Board of Trustees at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill voted to end the moratorium on renaming campus buildings associated with white supremacy or slavery. An online petition sparked that change. Michael Rashaad Galloway, a recent alumnus, started the petition that gained over 9,500 signatures. Since the reversal, the … Continue reading “Did You Know? The Fight Over Renaming Buildings at North Carolina Colleges”

UNC-Chapel Hill Officially Teaches What to Think, Not How to Think

Jul 6, 2020 · Shannon Watkins · No Comments

When the University of North Carolina leadership and the state’s legislators capitulated to the frenzied mob that toppled a statue of a Confederate Army soldier at the entrance to the UNC-Chapel Hill Campus in 2018, they likely thought they were putting an unpleasant issue to rest. After all, the continual protests, riots, and confrontations over … Continue reading “UNC-Chapel Hill Officially Teaches What to Think, Not How to Think”

A Conversation with the Chancellor of UNC-Chapel Hill

Mar 30, 2020 · Shannon Watkins · No Comments

On December 13th, 2019, Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz became the 12th chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to his appointment, he had been serving as interim chancellor after Carol Folt abruptly resigned in January 2019. Guskiewicz took leadership during a time of upheaval on UNC-Chapel Hill’s campus. Before resigning, Folt ordered … Continue reading “A Conversation with the Chancellor of UNC-Chapel Hill”

Universities Appease China, Ignore Human Rights Abuses Aug 5, 2020
Long the vanguard of liberal change, the American university now leads the appeasement of a hardened authoritarian China. The interest in promoting a broader community of scholars has given way to a toxic combination of business interests, the inability of college leaders to recognize their failure in influencing Chinese education, and their unwillingness to see … Continue reading “Universities Appease China, Ignore Human Rights Abuses”
Across Colleges of All Types, Student Anxiety Is a Growing Issue Aug 3, 2020
College admissions is a different field than it was 20 or even 10 years ago. High school guidance counselors still help hundreds of students make a plan for after graduation. Students still try to get into the best college they can. But they are now more cost-conscious, their families hire private college counselors, and they … Continue reading “Across Colleges of All Types, Student Anxiety Is a Growing Issue”
UCLA’s Discrimination Office Targeting Professor Threatens Academic Freedom Jul 31, 2020
When a political science lecturer at UCLA read to his class Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” and showed clips from a documentary on racism, he found himself in hot water. The reason: Both the letter and the documentary included the N-word. Many students complained, which in turn pitted UCLA against the … Continue reading “UCLA’s Discrimination Office Targeting Professor Threatens Academic Freedom”

Universities Appease China, Ignore Human Rights Abuses Aug 5, 2020
Long the vanguard of liberal change, the American university now leads the appeasement of a hardened authoritarian China. The interest in promoting a broader community of scholars has given way to a toxic combination of business interests, the inability of college leaders to recognize their failure in influencing Chinese education, and their unwillingness to see … Continue reading “Universities Appease China, Ignore Human Rights Abuses”
If All Men are Created Equal, Why Do We Need Grades? Jul 29, 2020
I just finished a fascinating book, The Recovery of the West, by polymath Englishman Michael Roberts. Roberts became famous as a poet, but was trained as a scientist and spent much of his life as a teacher. Brief history of grading The book was published in 1941. A teacher in a typical English school at … Continue reading “If All Men are Created Equal, Why Do We Need Grades?”
Fall Uncertainty: College Leaders Have Left Students, Professors in the Dark Jul 27, 2020
Colleges across the country are preparing for potential spikes in coronavirus cases in the fall. As some students return to campus, schools are making plans to protect the health of students, faculty, and campus workers. Universities want to shorten face-to-face exposure on campus during the fall and winter. By starting the semester early, as many … Continue reading “Fall Uncertainty: College Leaders Have Left Students, Professors in the Dark”

Universities Appease China, Ignore Human Rights Abuses Aug 5, 2020
Long the vanguard of liberal change, the American university now leads the appeasement of a hardened authoritarian China. The interest in promoting a broader community of scholars has given way to a toxic combination of business interests, the inability of college leaders to recognize their failure in influencing Chinese education, and their unwillingness to see … Continue reading “Universities Appease China, Ignore Human Rights Abuses”
Across Colleges of All Types, Student Anxiety Is a Growing Issue Aug 3, 2020
College admissions is a different field than it was 20 or even 10 years ago. High school guidance counselors still help hundreds of students make a plan for after graduation. Students still try to get into the best college they can. But they are now more cost-conscious, their families hire private college counselors, and they … Continue reading “Across Colleges of All Types, Student Anxiety Is a Growing Issue”
UCLA’s Discrimination Office Targeting Professor Threatens Academic Freedom Jul 31, 2020
When a political science lecturer at UCLA read to his class Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” and showed clips from a documentary on racism, he found himself in hot water. The reason: Both the letter and the documentary included the N-word. Many students complained, which in turn pitted UCLA against the … Continue reading “UCLA’s Discrimination Office Targeting Professor Threatens Academic Freedom”