Recently, Title IX has been in the news because of the Biden administration’s promised (and, as of yesterday, delivered) rejection of much-needed Trump-era reforms. As we are approaching the 50th anniversary of the statute, introduced as part of the Education Amendments of 1972, it is worth revisiting the history of Title IX and reviewing its … Continue reading “Remembering Title IX Abuses”
Carl Dobsky’s brilliant, fiery painting “Birds of Paradise” has been the focus of attention at his recent exhibitions, because it accurately and effectively captures the zeitgeist of contemporary American life. The painting is set in the backyard of a bourgeois Los Angeles home, where a laughing group of partying Angelinos drink red wine from large … Continue reading “Birds of Paradise: The Moral Poverty of Faculty Freedom Fighters”
Alarming rates of depression and anxiety in college students are drawing headlines. A recent study reports that 41% of college students show symptoms of depression, and nearly three-fourths have experienced “overwhelming anxiety.” Whatever one thinks of statistics like these (and I question them), college students have reason to be fearful and sad because they’re surrounded … Continue reading “Why Johnny Can’t Relax”
When persons of means contemplate death, the question of where to leave their financial assets becomes acute. If they are higher education graduates, their former campuses have “advancement teams” ready to answer questions, provide forms, and urge investments in their institutions. Sometimes they will appeal to altruism, sometimes ideology, and sometimes ego. Would you like … Continue reading “Don’t Write a Blank Check to Your Alma Mater”
To what extent can a selective educational institution advantage certain racial groups in admissions decisions without discriminating against other groups simultaneously? How can said institutions balance external demands for fairness and group representation with their core mission to educate students sufficiently? How much influence should an institution itself wield, compared with other stakeholders (including the … Continue reading “Self-Identified “Compelling Interests” are Not a License to Discriminate”
From the earliest days of his administration, President Biden has been under pressure from activist groups and many fellow Democrats to take action to relieve students of their college loan debts. For example, a coalition of 105 organizations urged him to unilaterally cancel most or all of the more than $1.6 trillion that students owe. … Continue reading “The Debate Over Canceling Student Loan Debt”
The institutions of the West have lost much of their power to conserve the past for future generations. Lately, this has manifested within higher ed as a short-term outlook that reacts to world events, steering students and academics alike away from studying the culture and history of countries deemed problematic. Due to the imperialistic actions … Continue reading “Disappearing Russia”
Last month, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) released a report accusing the North Carolina General Assembly and the UNC Board of Governors of “political interference” at UNC-Chapel Hill and across the UNC System. As the Martin Center predicted in October, the report is a clear hit job on people and policies that its … Continue reading “The UNC Board of Governors Has Always Been Political”
On March 11, UNC-Chapel Hill announced the appointment of a new dean for the Hussman School of Journalism and Media. Raul Reis, whose hiring was approved by the board of trustees, will officially begin his duties on July 1. Nikole Hannah-Jones and Ideological Panic at UNC An important backdrop to Reis’s appointment is the unsuccessful … Continue reading “Pressure to Conform: UNC Journalism School May Implement Top-Down Woke Agenda”
The academic intelligentsia’s obsession with the term “Latinx” is confusing yet enduring. Although roughly 40 percent of Latino voters find the term, meant as a non-gendered alternative to the masculine “Latino” and the feminine “Latina,” to be offensive, it is part of the everyday lexicon of academics and education journalists. On a purely linguistic level, … Continue reading ““Latinx” Is Failed Academic Activism”