Join us in person for our Fall Lecture & Reception in the McNeil Building.

‘Can this Marriage be Saved?’
The Challenging Future of Shared Governance

My talk considers the historical conditions that brought about shared governance in higher education and takes stock of the current challenges threatening that arrangement. The loss of federal funds and public trust, fiscal austerity policies, changes to teaching and research provoked by A.I., attempts to justify the costs of education by leaning into professional training that promises readiness for specific occupations, and the rise of corporate structures and values, all shift the delicate balance and undermine the trust need to make shared governance work. Will the universities of the future, most notably Penn, be able to sustain shared governance?