References and suggested readings:

• Alan Blinder. February 16, 2026. Epstein’s Ties With Academics Show the Seedy Side of College Fund-Raising. New York Times.
• William Callison and Quinn Slobodian. January 12, 2021. Coronapolitics from the Reichstag to the Capitol. Boston Review.
• Melinda Cooper. February 14, 226. Epstein Family Values. Equator.
• Luke Darby. August 19, 2019. Private jets, parties and eugenics: Jeffrey Epstein's bizarre world of scientists. The Guardian.
• Moira Donegan and Adrian Daub. February 10, 2026. “Episode 121–Moira's in the Epstein Files.” In Bed with the Right podcast.
• Charlie Eaton. 2022. Bankers in the Ivory Tower: The Troubling Rise of Financiers in Us Higher Education. University of Chicago Press.
• Francois Furstenberg. February 19, 2026. The Misuses of the University. Public Books.
• Virginia Heffernan. February 13, 2026. The billionaires' eugenics project: how Epstein infiltrated Harvard, muzzled the humanities and preached master-race science. The Nerve.
• Brian Herman. February 20, 2026. Individual donors provide only a small slice of university research funding – but Jeffrey Epstein’s ties with academics show why screening matters. The Conversation.
• Andy Hines, ed. 2025. University Keywords. Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Christopher Marquis. February 20, 2026. Why are so many academics in the Epstein files? It’s not just about money. The Guardian.
• Fred Turner. 2008. From Counterculture to Cyberculture: Stewart Brand, the Whole Earth Network, and the Rise of Digital Utopianism. University of Chicago Press.
• Ramon Antonio Vargas. February 3, 2026. Newly released files shed new light on Chomsky and Epstein relationship. The Guardian.

Support the show

Browse the American Campus bookshelf

Get in touch! Email Lauren at shephell@iu.edu. You can also anonymously request an episode or give feedback on the show.

Sort of.

References and suggested readings:

• Julie J. Park. 2026. Race, Class, and Affirmative Action: College Admissions in a New Era. Harvard Education Press.
• Class Action website: joinclassaction.edu
• Ingrid A. Nelson. 2024. Yet Another Costume Party Debacle: Why Racial Ignorance Persists on Elite College Campuses. University of Chicago Press.
• Belle Burden. 2026. Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage. The Dial Press.
• Julie J. Park’s website, faculty page, LinkedIn
• College Admissions Futures Co-Laborative

Support the show

Browse the American Campus bookshelf

Get in touch! Email Lauren at shephell@iu.edu. You can also anonymously request an episode or give feedback on the show.

A homegrown science.

References and suggested readings:

• Mark A. Torres. 2025. Long Island and the Legacy of Eugenics: Station of Intolerance. The History Press.
• Rebecca Brenner Graham. 2025. Dear Miss Perkins: A Story of Frances Perkins's Efforts to Aid Refugees from Nazi Germany. Citadel.
• Mark Torres’s website marktorresauthor.com
• Follow Mark on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook @MarkTorresAuthor1

Support the show

Browse the American Campus bookshelf

Get in touch! Email Lauren at shephell@iu.edu. You can also anonymously request an episode or give feedback on the show.