Bruce Joshua Miller and Ned Stuckey-French have written a splendid piece in the Chronicle of Higher Education that provides further perspective on the recent events at the University of Missouri, most specifically their connection with broader disturbing trends in higher education. The entire piece deserves a reading, but here are some pertinent excerpts: Timothy Wolfe…
“For the life of me, I don’t know why we have stigmatized vocational education. Welders make more money than philosophers. We need more welders and less philosophers.” That was Sen. Marco Rubio at last night’s Republican presidential debate. Let’s ignore that Rubio apparently doesn’t know when to use “less” and when to use “fewer.” (I’m…
Anyone who thought that minority student complaints about racism at the University of Missouri, which led to the resignations on Monday of system President Timothy Wolfe and Columbia campus Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin, were exaggerated should check out this account of developments over the past two days from the campus newspaper, The Maneater. “Many students…
Yesterday’s stunning events at the University of Missouri must be viewed in the context of a much broader movement, led by minority students, to confront persistent racism at many college and university campuses. Even as the movement at Missouri was gathering steam, a similar conflict was brewing at one of the nation’s oldest and most…
I’ve been watching with dismay the coverage of the incident yesterday where University of Missouri professor Melissa Click asked, “Who wants to help me get this reporter out of here? I need some muscle over here.” To me, she seems to have moved from supporting the student protesters (which I applaud) who had created a tent…
“Academe Blog” readers should be well-acquainted with the actions that Adams State University in Alamosa, CO has taken against former adjunct professor Danny Ledonne as Martin Kich has already started a multi-part series of blog posts on the subject. [If you need a quick refresher, try here and here.] I have been in touch with…
We shouldn’t send bureaucrats and accountants to manage our wars. When we do (as happened in Iraq and even Vietnam), disaster follows. Military victory comes at the hands of those who know how to fight. Those who rise through military ranks learn, in addition, the needs and possibilities of their organizations. They neither place unrealistic…
According to today’s News-Gazette, the University of Illinois trustees are scheduled to vote this Thursday on a settlement with Professor Steven Salaita. Interim Chancellor Barbara Wilson informed the Senate Executive Committee of the news late this afternoon. Click here for the agenda of Thursday’s trustees’ meeting. Item #21–“Authorize Settlement (Salaita v. Kennedy et al.)”–is at the bottom of page…
R. Bowen Loftin, the chancellor of the University of Missouri’s flagship campus at Columbia, will resign, the University of Missouri System’s Board of Curators announced just hours after the system’s president stepped down amid intense student and other protests over racial tensions. Loftin will become the system’s director for research facility development. Although most of…