CONSIDER THIS Perspective: What’s Killing Higher Ed?
BY DANIEL DOUGHERTY, ASSOCIATE DEAN AND DIRECTOR OF THE HONORS PROGRAM
O
n October 7, 2015, the Pennoni Honors College hosted a panel discussion and dinner on the topic
“What’s Killing Higher Ed?”. Speakers included Mary Nguyen Barry, a policy analyst with the education think tank Education Reform Now, and Leonard Waks, Professor Emeritus of Education-
al Leadership at Temple University and President of the John Dewey Society. I moderated the panel featuring Kristen
“ The question isn’t what’s killing higher education, but rather what is the soul of higher education and what is its very essence?”
the soul of higher education and what is its very essence? Let’s not get caught in the trap of ungrounded idealism, either — I know how budgets work and understand the financial, political, and personal reality of our educational enterprise. I’m not suggesting we ignore such issues and concerns, but I think we are asking the wrong questions and therefore coming up with the wrong solutions.
Betts, Clinical Professor, Drexel School of Education and a rare gathering of
The discussion we had at our conference
Drexel’s deans, including Joseph B.
was a good start, but just a start. Like
Hughes, Dean of the College of Engi-
Primarily, in evaluating higher education
essentially all big questions, the one we
neering; Frank Linnehan, Dean of the
we are too attached to terms influenced
posed deserves a critical review. We must
LeBow School of Business; Donna M.
by neo-liberalism: investment, return,
analyze and puzzle through the various
Murasko, Dean of the College of Arts
value-added, profit, efficiency, revenue,
ways to come up with the solutions which
and Sciences; and Nancy Butler Songer,
cost-cutting, consumers. But these terms
fit best. This is done through more of
Dean of the School of Education.
emerged from an economic philosophy
what I would call a “soul searching” re-
instead of a philosophical or pedagogi-
garding the purpose, structure, and very
Given the resurgence of attention on
cal one and don’t neatly correlate to the
essence of the role that higher education
higher education after the latest
status of higher education. Our orien-
plays in the world today.
recession — especially with regard to
tation and language have moved too far
cost, quality, and student loan debt —
away from the humanistic tradition in
We should be asking: Is there an inher-
this gathering was a timely discussion
which the modern university was born:
ent value to attaining knowledge in a
of many causes thought to be “killing” a
revelation, exploration, (human) poten-
systematic, structured, and rational way
university education.
tial, discovery, knowledge. These are the
that allows for further and deeper explo-
values with which we should evaluate the
ration of what we can know? If so, what
success of a university education.
are the best approaches that an institu-
The discussion (and the work I did to prepare for the panel) fortified in me
tion should take to support such efforts?
the perspective that we lack the concep-
Frank Linnehan, Dean of the LeBow
What role should students, faculty, and
tual framework to deal with the issues
College of Business, made the point during
administrators have in those institu-
affecting higher education. Whether the
the panel: “We don’t know what the output
tions? How do we teach and learn so as
focus is the quality of the curriculum, the
should be … how do you value success?
to shape our best selves — as citizens,
“decline” of the liberal arts, the purpose of
The question becomes, ‘What should we
productive members of society, and hu-
a university education, or the cost of that
be doing to help people find who they are
man beings? If we keep these questions
university, I realized that the language and
and what they want to be, and to be happy
in view, then we are more likely to come
orientation that we use are inadequate to
with their lives?’” The question isn’t what’s
up with answers that will vitalize the
the problems and challenges we face.
killing higher education, but rather what is
future of higher education. DREXEL.EDU/PENNONI
7