Trending Topic
Government overreach violating academic freedom and institutional autonomy poses an existential threat to American higher education.
The quality, integrity, diversity, and vitality of American higher education depend on the freedom of each college or university “to determine for itself on academic grounds who may teach, what may be taught, how it shall be taught, and who may be admitted to study.” Well established by longstanding legal precedents, these “four essential freedoms” are embodied in the principles of academic freedom and institutional autonomy. Government overreach and political interference in higher education violate these fundamental principles and erode these essential freedoms.
How might colleges and universities respond to the Trump administration's new actions and policies? This episode of the Future Trends Forum approached that question by focusing on presidential leadership and the “Call for Constructive Engagement,” which has been signed by more than 660 leaders of America’s colleges, universities, and scholarly societies. The guests were Jonathan Alger, president of American University and chair of the AAC&U Board of Directors, and Lynn Pasquerella, president of AAC&U.
Public Statement\
The administration has continued to seek ways to impose its own ideologically driven vision for higher education through unilateral executive action and the coercive use of public funding.
Public Statement\
More than fifty higher education organizations express broad opposition to recent actions by the administration that jeopardize the longstanding partnership between the federal government and colleges and universities.
Public Statement\
Speaking with one voice against unprecedented government overreach and political interference endangering higher education, leaders of America’s colleges, universities, and scholarly societies call for constructive engagement
Public Statement\
The Trump administration’s actions target a vital agency that has for the past 60 years made the humanities accessible to all Americans and supported cutting-edge research and scholarship.
Public Statement\
As college and university leaders continue to grapple with the challenges posed by the ongoing campus protests, those challenges are being compounded and widened by unprecedented political interference in higher education.
Public Statement\
The American Association of Colleges and Universities, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the Phi Beta Kappa Society affirm our support for free inquiry and expression at the Smithsonian Institution.
Pledge
AAC&U joined the AFT, the NEA, the AAUP, and the Network for Public Education in this pledge to fight back against political assaults on public education, academic freedom, and vulnerable students.
Open Letter\
AAC&U joins 61 organizations and presidents in calling for coalitions focused on preserving the foundational qualities of higher ed and its link to the American promises of democracy and freedom for all.
Public Statement\
The decision by the US Supreme Court to prohibit the use of race as a factor in college admissions constitutes a major setback for higher education and for our democracy.
Public Statement\
This joint statement explains that legislative restrictions on freedom of inquiry and expression violate the institutional autonomy on which the quality and integrity of our system of higher education depends.
Open Letter\
Signed by AAC&U and more than 90 other organizations, this higher education community letter stresses the importance of free and open academic inquiry on our campuses.
Public Statement\
More than 145 organizations signed on to this statement by AAC&U, PEN America, American Association of University Professors, and the American Historical Association.
On this episode of the Title IX and Civil Rights podcast, AAC&U's president discusses navigating diversity, equity, and inclusion in higher education under the Trump Administration’s interpretation of Civil Rights laws and the opportunity this moment presents for colleges and universities to redefine educational equity.
Focusing on civil rights, research, policy, and immigration, The Chronicle of Higher Education is tracking executive orders, statements, and agency actions affecting higher education as well as legal challenges to them.
Inside Higher Ed is tracking bills related to higher education that have been introduced in the US Congress.
The Chronicle of Higher Education is tracking legislation that would prohibit DEI offices or staff; ban mandatory diversity training; prohibit the use of diversity statements in hiring and promotion; or prohibit use of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in admissions or employment.
Updated weekly by PEN America, the index tracks legislation that would restrict the freedom to learn and teach.
This research report presents findings from a national survey of faculty conducted by AAC&U in partnership with the AAUP and NORC at the University of Chicago.
Organized by the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, this panel discussion marking the Trump administration’s first 100 days in office focused on the impact of the administration’s executive, administrative, and investigative attacks on civil society. AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella was among the panelists.
Developed by the American Council on Education and PEN America, this resource guide helps higher ed leaders make the case against politically imposed restrictions on what is taught and how.
This report from PEN American finds that more than half of US college and university students now study in a state with at least one law or policy restricting what can be taught or how campuses can operate.
Supported by the Columbia Journalism School, CollegeWatch is a weekly newsletter covering the Trump Administration's assault on higher education.
AAC&U in the News
A leading advocate for higher education, AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella speaks out publicly against government overreach and in defense of academic freedom, institutional autonomy, and liberal education. For recent news stories featuring President Pasquerella and our work more broadly, visit our “AAC&U in the News” page.
Liberal Education Article
The cuts to the National Science Foundation will disproportionately hurt HBCUs
Liberal Education Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella on how we can counter despair and find a way forward, together.
Fortune
Former college and university presidents call on the Trump administration to halt its attack on higher ed and on boards of trustees to avoid concessions on core principles and to encourage their presidents to speak out.
Liberal Education Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella on why universities must take action for democracy in our politically charged times.
Liberal Education Magazine
Three presidents discuss the challenges, responsibilities, and opportunities colleges and universities face under a second Trump presidency.
Liberal Education Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella on why American higher education must reaffirm its democratic purposes.
Liberal Education Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella on authoritarianism, attacks on DEI, and the weaponization of antisemitism.
Academe Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella on the attacks on DEI programs as a threat to the democratic purposes of higher education.
LearningWell Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella on the negative impact of eliminating race-conscious admissions.
Liberal Education Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella and Phi Beta Kappa Secretary and CEO Frederick Lawrence on how political restrictions are undermining higher education.
Liberal Education Magazine
AAC&U President Lynn Pasquerella on what we can learn from the past to defend academic freedom today.