Slate Daily Feed What Next | Who’s Winning the War on Higher Education?
Sep 16, 2025
Sarah Brown, Senior Editor at the Chronicle of Higher Education, shares insights into the turbulent landscape of colleges under political pressure. She examines claims of radicalization in higher education and how this narrative is shaped by right-wing figures. The conversation reveals the resilience of institutions like Columbia and Penn amid backlash over policies on gender identity. Additionally, Brown discusses the implications of federal funding changes and highlights the challenges faced by university leaders in navigating this contentious environment.
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Federal Pressure Is Reshaping Campus Speech
- The Trump administration is using funding and oversight threats to push cultural and curricular changes at colleges.
- That pressure creates a chilling effect that makes teaching race and gender topics feel suffocating for many professors.
Elite Schools Making Concessions
- Columbia, Penn, and Brown adopted the administration's
Harvard's Case Sets A National Precedent
- Harvard is simultaneously suing and negotiating with the administration over funding and anti-Semitism claims.
- Harvard's choices will set a tone that could push other institutions toward settlement or resistance.