The stifling intolerance and lack of intellectual diversity are a crushing reality in higher education today. There are few remaining conservatives or libertarians on law school faculties, which have been purged of dissenting voices through a biased hiring and promotion system. Despite years of complaints and declining public trust in higher education, faculty members continue to reinforce bias and orthodoxy in our schools. There is no better example than Fordham University School of Law professor John Pfaff, who recently called for “repercussions” for professors who do not “recant” their view that birthright citizenship is not protected by the 14th Amendment.
Category: Academia
A University of California advisory board suspended the much-celebrated planned review of the system’s admissions policies to bring back standardized testing requirements for undergraduate applicants. The decision of the academic senate’s Board of Admissions and Relations with Schools is not surprising to many of us who have been critical of the system in abandoning objective standards for admissions. Continue reading “University of California Suspends Move to Restore Standardized Testing”
According to the latest Gallup poll, only 38% of U.S. adults have a “great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in higher education. One of the Gallup experts told Fox News that one of the key reasons for the continued slide in public trust is “the perception that there’s a political agenda being taught.” That perception is well documented after most departments purged their ranks of any republican, conservative, or libertarian faculty members. At the same time, many faculty oppose the long-standing principle of institutional neutrality for universities, the subject of a recent debate that I had with the President of the American Association of University Professors. Continue reading “Gallup: Higher Education Hits Another Low in Public Trust as the Public Rejects Institutional Bias”
Below is my column in The Hill on the controversies involving far-left influencers rallying support for Iranian and anti-American interests. One figure, Calla Walsh, could face legal consequences for her participation in alleged Iranian propaganda videos. The question is whether she will be treated as a type of Tehran Rose by the U.S. government.
Here is the column: Continue reading “Tehran Rose: Will Far-Left Influencers Face Charges in Rallying America’s Enemies?”
The University of California (Berkeley) has ordered the return of new displays to native American tribes under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). That is hardly news except that the items were not human remains or relics, but corn, corn cobs, peas, beans, and other seeds. The university has decided that even such scientific samples are prohibited items of “cultural patronage.”
I have previously written about the “radical chic” in higher education of faculty members who espouse extremist views in departments purged of conservative, libertarian, or moderate voices. While it is virtually impossible to get departments to seriously consider a mainstream conservative or libertarian, schools like Princeton eagerly hire professors such as Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, who recently delighted a Chicago audience with an unhinged rant against the United States and the concept of a nation-state. Continue reading ““F**k the USA”: Professor Delights Chicago Crowd With Anti-American and Anti-Border Rant”
We have previously discussed how many professors seem to compete in finding new forms of racism in every facet of society and education. Astrophysics, math, runoffs, science, statistics, and meritocracy have all been denounced as racist. In this academic cottage industry, professors secure publications and speaking opportunities by identifying racism in the expressions, images, or entire fields. It was, therefore, only a matter of time before time itself was declared racist. Continue reading ““White Time”: Dutch Professor Argues that Time Itself is Racist”
I just returned from the University of Wyoming, where I debated the President of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) Todd Wolfson over the need for colleges and universities to maintain institutional neutrality. The debate was organized by the Steamboat Institute and was live-streamed. Given the interest in the debate and the polling results below, I am hopeful that we can prevail in this existential battle for higher education. Steamboat has now posted the debate in case you would like to hear the arguments on both sides of this issue.
Continue reading “The Turley-Wolfson Debate on Institutional Neutrality in Higher Education”
The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) has long been one of the most radical labor organizations in the country from its insistence on teachers being subsidized in political protests to members praising the former Communist regime in Venezuela. Now, with the Illinois Federation of Teachers, the CTU is demanding yet another massive public infusion of money despite the dismal performance of its members in actually improving scores for Chicago children. They are calling for a special session and billions in more funding. Continue reading “Chicago Teachers Seek Billions in Special Session for “What We Are Owed””
We have previously discussed academic journals canceling publications that challenge the orthodox views of mainstream scholars. The latest such example can be found in the Journal of the New Zealand College of Clinical Psychologists, which pulled the 2025 article of Arna Mitchell who questioned claims that psychology as a field is a tool of “white power.” The editors reportedly declared that such conclusions are “inconsistent” with the publication’s “values.” Continue reading “Psychology Journal Under Fire for Retracting Publication Challenging Claims of Racism”
For years, I have been writing about the decline of public education in the United States. The political power of teachers’ unions led to bloated budgets as schools pursued ideological agendas over educational advancements. Despite massive budgets, scores of students in major cities have continued to plummet or remain at the same dismal levels. Now, Arkansas has shown what is possible if officials put education first. Scores in the state have soared after the implementation of reforms that many of us have advocated for years. It also shows that state governments, not the federal government, are critical to reversing our slide in educational performance as the Administration moves toward eliminating the Department of Education.
Calling Kamala Harris. Both Democrats and Republicans have often criticized the former Vice President for her propensity to create “word salad” responses to questions. Hofstra University Professor Richard Himelfarb is now under investigation for leveling the same criticism against a colleague’s remarks in a faculty meeting. After Himelfarb used the common term to criticize a colleague, Professor Santiago Slabodsky, chair of the Jewish studies program, he was hit with a formal complaint. Slabodsky has refused to drop his complaint even after Himelfarb apologized, saying that the comment discriminated against his accent, native language, and Latino identity in violation of Title VII.
In culinary terms, the question is now whether the complaint will be tossed or Himelfarb chopped over a simple “word salad” reference.
There is an alarming media report about an effort by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) to target civics programs with the help of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. It is only the latest accusation of political bias at the AAUP under President Todd Wolfson. I will be debating Dr. Wolfson on the value of institutional neutrality on June 23. Continue reading ““Knock Them Out”: AAUP and Mellon Foundation Accused of Targeting Civics Centers”
There is an interesting controversy brewing in California after four California university professors threatened a political candidate, Richard Lucas, for criticizing them for their roles in the “Billionaire Tax” and sent him a “cease and desist” letter. David Gamage from the University of Missouri, Brian Galle and Emmanuel Saez from UC Berkeley, and Darien Shanske from UC Davis claimed that the public criticism violated anti-doxxing laws by sharing contact information. They are clearly wrong. One of the aggrieved professors, Brian Galle, teaches at Berkeley Law School called Lucas “a clown,” but insisted that sharing public information is unlawful.
It appears that being unrelentingly woke means that you need fewer dormitories. The University of Oregon is facing a major budget crisis and will cut $65 million from its budget and close dorms due to low enrollment. That growing crisis, however, did not stop Oregon from burning almost a million dollars fighting against free speech. It also did not induce its faculty to offer greater intellectual diversity and tolerance to prospective students. Oregon is a cautionary tale for a generation of academic social warriors, but also an opportunity for those who want to restore balance in higher education. Continue reading “Facing the Big Zero: The University of Oregon Grapples With a Budget Crisis After Years of Woke Excess”