History: origins of the neutrality idea

Our guest today has taken a long look at an out-of-fashion principle in higher learning – institutional neutrality. Basically it’s the importance of letting students and faculty say what they want, and not have the administration put its thumb on the scale. In that he sees a whole world of problems facing post-secondary education today, from public and political support to an ongoing court case.

Simon Lewsen is a magazine journalist who teaches part-time at the University of Toronto. His new story in Maclean’s is called “The Battle for the Soul of the University”. 

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