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For
immediate release A
New Kind of Diversity By
Congressman Joseph R. Pitts Our
children go to college to explore different sides of issues.
They go to learn how to distinguish the truth among varying points
of view. They go to learn how
to think. And to become
experts in their field of study. As
a result, colleges and universities play an important role in our culture. They educate
our youth, train future leaders, drive research, advance scientific and
medical knowledge, generate technological innovation, and shape the
attitudes that define our culture. One of the
most important debates happening in these institutions is whether they are
diverse enough. As a result of this debate, many colleges have made
significant strides in attracting diverse faculty in terms of race and
gender. But most schools that
have achieved a diverse faculty in terms or race or gender, have failed to
do so in terms of intellectual points of view.
According
to recent study of 150 academic departments at thirty-two prestigious
American colleges across the country done by the Center for the Study of
Popular Culture, “overall ratio of Democrats to Republicans we were able
to identify at the 32 schools was more than 10 to 1.”
Party affiliation does not necessarily mean that a person holds a
certain point of view. There
is plenty of intra-party disagreements. And this fact does not, in itself, prove that our colleges
are out to indoctrinate students with liberal ideology as some suggest.
But it
raises serious questions about the education students receive at
universities around the country. For
one, it suggests that thousands of students go through an entire
undergraduate experience and only get half the story from their
professors. As factories of
new ideas and future leaders, this fact can only hurt the educational
opportunities offered to American college students. This is
important for several reasons. First, a
professor’s point of view affects how he or she teaches class.
When all professors are singing from the same intellectual song
sheet, students are not forced to adapt to varying points of view and
different ideas. Once
students leave school they will be challenged to reconcile their ideas,
their personality, and their training with co-workers and neighbors who do
not agree with them. Because
they have are not offered this experience in college, they are not
adequately prepared for this challenge. Second, it
robs students of mentors. Most
recent high school graduates who enter college are in the beginning stages
of forming their opinions about the world.
While relationships between students and professors who disagree
are valuable and necessary, students at this vulnerable place in life
naturally gravitate towards professors who believe things that resonate
with them, and they should have more opportunities to do so. This reason
more than any other transcends race and gender.
It touches on how students relate with professors.
Without these mentors, many students may choose to abandon their
quest for truth or, worse, simply accede to their professors’ point of
view. In either case our universities are producing graduates who
might have the technical knowledge in their major, but limited in their
ability to think for themselves. Third, when
the faculty has members that disagree with each other that encourages
debate over ideas throughout the entire campus.
This makes for a dynamic learning environment and encourages
students to ask tough questions and dig for answers.
Without it, the intellectual atmosphere can become stale. Some of our
universities are the best in the world. I have no reservations in saying
that. But in order to
maintain that distinction, I believe it is time for colleges and
universities to take action to promote intellectual diversity on their
campuses. For that
reason, I have thrown my support behind a bill that encourages every
American university to adopt an Academic Bill of Rights. The
Academic Bill of Rights recognizes that political partisanship is
detrimental to the students’ academic experience.
It promotes
intellectual diversity and an environment that is hospitable to all points
of view. It would call
for an end to unequal funding of student organizations which host guest
speakers. But
the bill does not place quotas based on party affiliation or ideology and
does not dictate any academic curriculum.
It simply asks university administrators to promote diversity in
ideas in addition to race and gender. I
think this is an idea that universities can benefit from greatly.
It will attract more diverse faculty and give students a much
better experience. #
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