US Universities Diagnose Their Own Trust Crisis

Confidence in American higher education has plummeted from nearly 60% ten years ago to just 42% last year, with 70% of the public feeling it is on the wrong track. In light of this, reports were published this spring by Yale, Vanderbilt, Washington University in St. Louis, and the AAC&U. The AAC&U attributes this decline to outside influences and proposes vague reforms. Meanwhile, the Vanderbilt-WashU report claims that commitments to social justice hinder academic objectivity. Yale's introspective report points to administrators for not achieving conflicting objectives, highlighting three main issues: misleading pricing, unclear admissions processes, and grade inflation. Yale President Maurie McInnis recognized the university's shortcomings and refined its mission. Notably, none of the reports address Donald Trump's effect on Republican perceptions of colleges.