A panel of University of Wisconsin-Madison faculty called for higher institutions to rebuild public trust during a panel Dec. 3, sharing both hopeful and pessimistic sentiments about the Trump administration's threat to higher education.
History professor Giuliana Chamedes said the ability of students, faculty and staff to speak up has been “central” to restoring democracy and academic freedom. She referenced similarities between the Trump administration’s policies and historical attacks on higher education from fascist regimes, highlighting higher education’s historical ability to overcome persecution.
French professor Jan Mierkowski was not so hopeful, believing the current Trump administration puts American universities at risk of abandoning the pursuit of truth, which he believes is the primary goal of a university.
“The pursuit of truth is always an interpersonal collective venture,” he said. “If we lose this strategic goal of the university, there will be no more universities.”
The panelists’ opening remarks largely expressed a need for interdisciplinary solidarity.
“We need to figure out ways to collaborate on research that is fundable,” said Erica Halverson, chair of the Theater Department and professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. “As that landscape is changing, we need to figure out how to share those kinds of resources in ways that allow us to solve problems effectively.”
Miernowski echoed this sentiment, arguing for solidarity between faculty across academic specializations.
The conversation continued to follow the argument that higher education institutions should work to regain the trust they’ve lost in the wake of increasing political polarization.
Chamedes argued the “corporatization” of universities is one of the causes of that lost trust, adding that disciplinary standards don’t often provide financial incentives for experts to share the importance of their research with the general public.
Anna Andrzejewski, professor of Modern American Architecture, speculated that another factor could be perceived job insecurity for some disciplines after college. “Speaking from the humanities perspective, I don’t think we explain what we offer terribly well,” she said. “We teach about the Renaissance, about South Asia, but we also teach skills through that material that are vital.”
Miernowski emphasized the need for academics to “deprofessionalize,” saying the Trump administration has conditioned the general public to believe universities are buying them into an education. To combat this, she said universities need to address society’s needs.
Other panelists concurred, adding that universities and their faculty should make additional efforts to connect with civilians. Andrzejewski suggested panels similar to Wednesday’s should become a frequent occurrence in community spaces across the state to promote public transparency about university incentives.
Chamedes said outreach should be expanded to current K-12 students as well, and in her experience, outreach programs and partnerships with local high schools have changed students’ perceptions of college.
Halverson agreed, saying more emphasis, resources and collaborative interdisciplinary partnerships should be enforced to better prepare future teachers in the School of Education. She said “committed, transformational practice that changes the way young people in this country participate in our society,” can’t be expected from teachers who have the “hardest” jobs in society and are still being paid minimally.
