The author recently asked a colleague of color in higher education whether she has ever been encouraged to join committees that focus on drafting policies surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices or whether she has any interest in supporting such initiatives during her tenure as a student affairs professional. "I don't get…

This article offers three teachers' reflections on how they have learned from students.

Since the 2007-09 Great Recession and continuing through the current pandemic, college students' anxiety over their future employment prospects has been rampant. As a result, one of the most common questions students and their parents ask campus career counselors, faculty advisors, and other educators is "What can be done with a degree in the…

Over the past few years, the author has received numerous letters, phone calls, and emails from friends, academic colleagues, and members of the community inquiring why, having been a scholar for more than forty years, he now spends so much time writing op-eds. The author explains his urge to write op-eds and how this urge to write essays for the…

Non-tenure-track (NTT) faculty--typically contingent faculty hired on fixed-term contracts--know that budgets tightened during the pandemic likely mean fewer jobs, with little or no hope of professional advancement. Cost-conscious administrators often resist extending benefits to such instructors or look to trim those already in place, leaving…

This article discusses the Faculty Mentoring Cohort (FMC), a pilot program designed to bolster new faculty retention at St. Mary's College of Maryland (SMCM), a teaching-focused, public honors college in the rural southern Chesapeake region. The FMC matches two established faculty members with two newly hired instructors to create between five and…

Decades ago, on the first day of a freshman composition class with readings centered on the theme of war, the author asked students to respond to the following writing prompt: "Define an enemy." More than half of the students defined an enemy as "someone who doesn't agree with you" (or closely related wording). Having expected…

There is nothing new about attacks on college and university faculty for what is deemed unacceptable political expression. The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) was founded more than one hundred years ago in response to exactly these kinds of attacks. This article discusses good and bad examples of responses to the targeted…

At the Philadelphia-area manufacturer GGBearings, employees representing every corner of the plant--from the company president to machinists, engineers, and finance staff members--have assembled in the conference room. The balanced mix of men and women varies in age, race, and background. Some are in uniform, others in business-casual dress. A few…

The collaboration between the career services office and the general education faculty at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia began with storytelling. In fall 2014, while teaching a course on how people create and use narratives, Meriel Tulante (one of the authors of this article) approached Tracy DePedro, Jefferson's director of career…

An expert on extremism, far-right movements, and youth radicalization, Cynthia Miller-Idriss is the director of research at American University's Center for University Excellence, where she runs the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL). PERIL addresses issues of youth polarization and extremist radicalization through…

One purpose of classroom discussions is not to try to change people's views but to better understand why classmates believe whatever they believe. One of the best ways to achieve such deeper understanding is to hear the basis for other people's beliefs. In this light, the author modeled this behavior for students, which required revealing personal…

Frederick M. Lawrence, secretary and CEO of the Phi Beta Kappa Society and distinguished lecturer at Georgetown University Law Center, articulates the concept of nonpartisan advocacy as a way of emphasizing that Phi Beta Kappa's values are to be found beyond the realm of partisan politics and offers possibilities for finding common ground in both…

Achieving learning outcomes during a semester- or quarter-long course is no guarantee that students "got it"--that students have learned how to learn or that they have successfully bridged the gap between theory and practice. Higher education has developed diverse pedagogical approaches to expand the notion of teaching. Over the past…

An urgent crisis is before us. A huge gap has appeared between how the public perceives higher education and what academics and researchers at colleges and universities know to be true. It is imperative that scholars and educators take the lead in closing this dangerous--and highly politicized--gap. This article discusses the politicization of…