#universities in the US

Book Reviews

“Lawyerization” of Universities in the USA – Louis H. Guard and Joyce P. Jacobsen on the ‘New Era of Higher Education’

Higher education has never been free from controversies, nor from political pressures. 2024 saw a renewed surge in public interest in how universities operate, as students and staff openly took positions on the Gaza war. Thus, alongside heated discussions about geopolitics, stakeholders and the broader public debated the role of universities and how to respond when they are perceived to fall short. In this context, some questions arise: What are the limits of academic freedom? What does it mean for a university to guarantee a space safe from discrimination? Who is to decide or act (and how?) on these issues? While the book All the Campus Lawyers is not a direct reply to these questions, it explores how regulatory scrutiny of higher education plays out in a democracy, intersecting with broader social and political issues – and hence emerges as a timely contribution to the discussions on the nature and future of higher education.

28.02.2025

Podcasts

Finding the Pragmatist Middle Ground – Michael S. Roth on Being a Student and Student Activism Today

In this conversation at the Review of Democracy, Michael S. Roth sketches the main ways of being a student since ancient times; reflects on the process of learning “to be free”; explores the reasons behind the politicization of universities in the United States; considers what might be new about the adversarial relationship between students and university administrators these days; and sketches what “safe enough spaces” might look like in our turbulent times.

17.06.2024