What do universities owe society? With Ron Daniels
In recent years, the relationship between higher education and the American public has become strained, causing many to call for widespread reform. In exchange for significant public funding, what are higher education institutions obligated to provide the American people? Former Tennessee Governors Phil Bredesen and Bill Haslam welcome Ron Daniels, president of Johns Hopkins University, to discuss the existing social contract in American higher education, along with the ways universities can live up to expectations. In this episode, the former governors explore the framework from Ron Daniels’ 2021 book, What Universities Owe Democracy, as a possible foundation for reform.
This episode was recorded in front of a live audience at Middle Tennessee State University during an event with the Tennessee Higher Education Commission.
Subscribe and follow You Might be Right wherever you get your audio content – including Apple Podcasts and Spotify – to never miss an episode, or sign up for our email list to receive new episodes straight to your inbox each week here.
“But universities don’t jump to the top of the list”
Ron Daniels began the conversation by explaining the guiding principles and inspiration for his book What Universities Owe Democracy. Daniels revealed the fundamental problem is higher education’s failure to explain its necessity to the American people.
“…. So, despite the fact that we often invoke this idea that we’re essential for democracy, we don’t really argue through what that case is,” said Daniels.
To fill this gap, Daniels wrote his book laying out four pillars for higher education: fueling social mobility, educating democratic citizens, creating knowledge, and providing space for intellectual diversity.
“The social compact is with our fellow Americans”
To further the discussion, Daniels made an important note; the social compact in higher education is between universities and their responsibilities to the American public.
“And as we know, democracy, and an ability to function effectively in democracy, isn’t inherited in the gene pool,” said Daniels.
As a result, Daniels emphasized the necessity for higher education to teach students about American government and democratic values.
However, Daniels shared that beyond teaching about democracy, universities must also prepare students to be effective participants in government. He sees debate and intellectual heterogeneity as critical areas for universities to engage.
“So for me, the magic of the university is that our accountability to the public emanates from our capacity to really be intentional about creating that space for vigorous debate where people can say things and know that their job, their standing in the institution is not put on jeopardy by virtue of their claims to truth,” said Daniels.
“What can higher ed do to restore that trust?”
After laying out his four pillars, Daniels recognized that universities have room to grow.
“So, I think it’s a sense that this is a moment with growing distrust, alienation, openness to autocratic leadership, just all these things seem to coalesce in a way to say, this issue of educating for democracy is something that we can’t take lightly,” said Daniels.
The Johns Hopkins University president described that expanding accessibility to higher education is an important way universities can regain Americans’ trust.
“…it’s not just the Pell eligible population, but we’re well into the middle class and upper middle class, you’re coming tuition free,” said Daniels. “That’s a great simple story that, I’m hoping again, will restore the confidence that these places are available and within reach, even without the financial circumstances.”
Daniels also sees value in reforming the way higher education models democracy and debate.
“And that starts literally from the first moments that the students come on a campus with, basically, educating them, training them, modeling for them, this idea that difficult contentious discussions, disagreements are part and parcel of what it means to be at a university,” explained Daniels.
“And if that doesn’t send a tingle down your spine, you need to get your heart checked.”
Daniels ended the discussion by reflecting on higher education’s meaningful purpose.
“And you look out in tens of thousands of families, and you see for a lot of the families… But there’s so many families that this is the first, and you can’t help but feel, in that moment, the nobility, the power of the institution,” described Daniels.
While progress and reform are necessary, higher education is crucial to American democracy when the social contract is maintained.
“We have things that we have to work on, but the critique is so shrill and overstated right now compared to the reality of what we do, how we connect with our communities and what we do for the next generation Americans that come into our institutions,” concluded Daniels.
Join the conversation on Twitter by following @UTBakerSchool, @PhilBredesen, and @BillHaslam.
Subscribe and follow You Might be Right wherever you get your audio content – including Apple Podcasts and Spotify – to never miss an episode, or sign up for our email list to receive new episodes straight to your inbox each week here.
