Checks and Balances in American Higher Ed
A potential pathway to viewpoint diversity
A few days ago, the Chronicle of Higher Education published our new co-authored article on utilizing the principles of “checks and balances” to improve the lopsided ideological balance in American higher ed. In it, we proposed specific changes in procedures, such as involving more parties in hiring decisions.
‘‘Check and balances” is a hot topic now as Trump attempts to supersede Congress and challenge the courts with his executive decisions and other actions. I hope the Constitution holds and prevents this potential abuse of power.
This idea should be utilized in academia, where faculty have utilized their power over the years to ensconce like-minded people as their colleagues. People that would challenge their view, like conservatives, have often been excluded. (I consider myself a political moderate with independent views, some leaning left, others leaning right, which makes me a conservative in academia). I recruited three other authors to get their experiences and perspectives in making this major argument, and they were extraordinarily helpful.
The article can be viewed here, but if it is paywalled for you, let me know, and I can email you a copy.
We hope that administrators, trustees, and faculty who are interested in strengthening higher ed in the long run take up the recommendations in our article. We think this is a better way than the overreach of the Trump administration, and better than state micromanaging of curriculum and other policies through legislation or executive action.
Higher Ed needs to fix itself by setting up ways to improve its research and teaching in the search for truth, instead of being a political partisan, as it has increasingly become.
Stock image from unsplash.com
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