We Are Higher Ed

Tell @wearehighered.bsky.social about what's happening on YOUR campus with the attacks on higher ed.

We hear a lot about the elite campuses but what about the rest?

And we hear when schools do egregious things, but not so much about where things are better.

www.wearehighered.org/campus-tracker

If you have to get permission to teach in your area of expertise from people who are definitionally not qualified to adjudicate your expertise then you are no longer working at a university.

You’re working at a state propaganda factory.

Penn State graduate students overwhelmingly vote in favor of unionizing The election took place last month.

1882 to 198! Solidarity, new comrades, and congrats to the Coalition of Graduate Employees.

Texas A&M Tightens Rules on Talking About Race and Gender in Classes

"The university system will ban advocacy of 'race or gender ideology, or topics related to sexual orientation or gender identity' without approval."

Indiana Professor Removed From Class Over White Supremacy Lesson

"The professor will no longer be able to teach a class on diversity after she showed students a diagram that included the 'Make America Great Again' slogan as an example of white supremacy."

The UC Regents finally released the “settlement agreement” the Trump administration proposed in August. It’s a doozy.

UC alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents, donors—and all citizens of California:

Now is the time to let the UC Regents know you do not want them to sign this bad deal.

@wearehighered.bsky.social

Here is the proposed agreement the Trump admin sent to UCLA, which administrators fought tooth and claw to keep secret ucop.edu/communicatio...

Knowledge is Worth Your Time Folks who hang out on Bluesky/Twitter may have caught bits and pieces of the discussions amongst academics about what to do about today's university students...

NEW WRITING:

It's aimed at students, with some specific examples for astro/physics folks, but I think other people may find it useful too. 🔭⚛️🧪

"Knowledge is worth your time because of how it shapes your mind. And the authoritarians may take many things from us, but they cannot take our minds."

Academic freedom should not be for sale The Editorial Board argues the University should join the league of universities rejecting Trump’s compact in favor of in institutional independence.

From the Daily Texan, the UT student newspaper: Academic freedom should not be for sale.

thedailytexan.com/2025/10/16/a...

Arts & Sciences Dean says WashU will not sign Trump’s higher ed compact as-is - Student Life Dean of WashU’s College of Arts & Sciences, Feng Sheng Hu, told faculty at a meeting on Tuesday that Chancellor Andrew D. Martin does not plan to sign the Trump administration’s compact for higher edu...

Arts & Sciences Dean says WashU will not sign Trump’s higher ed compact as-is - Student Life www.studlife.com/news/2025/10...

@wearehighered.bsky.social

@wearehighered.bsky.social

@wearehighered.bsky.social

The evidence is overwhelming: outrageous costs and prolonged indebtedness for students; poor outcomes, with too many students left unable to find meaningful work after graduating; some talented domestic students and scholars have been crowded out of enrollment and employment opportunities by international students; and a high degree of uniformity of thought among faculty members and administrators, which can result in a hostile environment for students with different ideas.

Most of this laundry list of "overwhelming evidence" is tendentious. Let's go through them.
1) A big driver of high costs at public universities has been a decrease in state appropriations. Many public schools have been forced to act on a public/private model as a result..../1

Apart from the massive invasion of academic freedom that this compact demands, MIT simply does not want a special leg up—it wants "open competition for excellence."

"In that free marketplace of ideas, the people of MIT gladly compete with the very best, without preferences."

A stunning rebuke.

A Compact for Control (opinion) No self-respecting institution of higher education should accept the Trump administration’s unconstitutional terms, Robert Post and Tom Ginsburg write.

A Compact for Control:
No self-respecting institution of higher education should accept the Trump administration’s unconstitutional terms, Robert Post and Tom Ginsburg write.
@yalelawschool-yls.bsky.social @uchicagolaw.bsky.social
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/view...

AAC&U Statement on the Trump Administration’s “Compact for… | AAC&U AAC&U Statement on the Trump Administration’s “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education”

@aacu.org has stepped up & called the Trump "compact" for higher ed what it is: "The compact is, in effect, an ultimatum...This is not constructive engagement." Big question is where is @aau.edu? If your university is part of AAU, write to your president & trustees now.
www.aacu.org/newsroom/aac...

@wearehighered.bsky.social

Friends @emanabdelhadi.bsky.social is doing well— she’s at home, released last night. I’ll let her speak on the ordeal when she’s ready but for now wanted to share this update.

Please call Cook County DA and ask them to drop charges against the group of protesters arrested in Chicago yesterday: (312) 603-1880

This is particularly for Illinois residents, but national calls couldn’t hurt.

Censorship is so 1984. Librarians Supporting Eash Other to Confront Book Bans. Tuesday, October 7, 2025. Law for Librarians, Intellectual Freedom Hotline,

Facing censorship challenges? You’re not alone.
Join us Oct 7 at noon CT for a free webinar on two ALA resources, Law for Librarians + Library Helplines, designed to help you push back.
Learn more and check out other free #BannedBooksWeek events at https://www.ala.org/bbooks/events

This is who @emanabdelhadi.bsky.social is. Brilliant. Fearless. I fucking hate typing this shit out: Free Eman.

Amplify amplify amplify please.

🚨🚨 My dear friend and fellow academic, the Palestinian American sociologist @emanabdelhadi.bsky.social has been taken by the Cook County Sheriff near Chicago. They have not mirandized her. Please signal boost. All eyes on Broadview for Eman and the community she was defending 🚨🚨

@wearehighered.bsky.social

@wearehighered.bsky.social

@wearehighered.bsky.social

@wearehighered.bsky.social

MU warns staff about social media, says employees 'do not have unlimited rights to speak' As controversy around free speech and personal social media use swirled in the wake of Charlie Kirk's death, Mizzou clarified its stance and expectations.

krcgtv.com/news/local/m...