Episodes

  • Trump’s ‘Compact’ Is Freaking People Out

    Trump’s ‘Compact’ Is Freaking People Out
    Oct 8 2025
    After months of skirmishes with colleges, the Trump administration has proposed a treaty of sorts with nine high-profile institutions. By signing the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” participating colleges would essentially co-sign the president’s sprawling higher-education agenda. Under a draft agreement, signatories would explicitly ban considerations of race in admissions or in the awarding of scholarships, abolish departments that “belittle” conservative views, and strictly limit the percentage of international students enrolled in undergraduate programs. Many higher-education associations and analysts rushed to blast the proposal, which has been described as “horrifying” and reminiscent of a Mafia-style ultimatum. But what does this compact say about the historic relationship between the federal government and higher education, and how might that relationship be changing no matter what?Related Reading Trump’s Proposed ‘Compact’ Asks Colleges to Show They’re ‘Pursuing Federal Priorities’ (The Chronicle) Trump Says Signing a New ‘Compact’ Will Benefit Colleges’ Finances. It Could Also Do the Opposite. (The Chronicle) Trump’s Imperfect Compact Is a Perfect Opportunity (The Chronicle Review) A Deal That Would End Universities’ Independence (The Atlantic) GuestSarah Brown, senior editor at The Chronicle of Higher Education
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    40 mins
  • Princeton President Talks Kirk, Trump, ‘Civic Crisis’

    Princeton President Talks Kirk, Trump, ‘Civic Crisis’
    Oct 1 2025
    As president of Princeton University, Christopher Eisgruber is among the highest-profile college leaders to publicly criticize the Trump administration for its attacks on higher education. He is a defender of the sector, arguing that colleges are far better at upholding free speech and more welcoming of diverse viewpoints than critics would suggest. The recent killing of Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist, has energized a national debate about the state of free speech on college campuses — both for conservatives like Kirk, and for faculty who have been sanctioned for speaking ill of Kirk in the wake of his death. None of this, though, changes Eisgruber’s fundamental view that colleges, for the most part, are actually quite good at facilitating tough conversations at a particularly polarized moment. It’s an argument Eisgruber lays out methodically in a new book, Terms of Respect: How Colleges Get Free Speech Right.Related Reading Terms of Respect: How Colleges Get Free Speech Right, by Christopher Eisgruber (Basic Books) With Charlie Kirk’s Killing, a New Chapter of the Campus Speech Wars Has Begun (The Chronicle) The Elite-University Presidents Who Despise One Another (The Atlantic) At Yale, Painful Rifts Emerge Over Diversity and Free Speech (The Chronicle)
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    41 mins
  • The Research Trump Hates

    The Research Trump Hates
    Sep 24 2025
    The Trump administration is hitting universities where it hurts, terminating thousands of research grants in areas it deems wasteful or ideologically driven. Many scientists who study vaccine hesitancy, gender identity, and climate change, have either lost grant money or been put on notice that their federal funding could soon disappear. What does this mean for the U.S. academic-research enterprise, which seeks to cure diseases, understand societal problems, and even save the planet? And how might a highly politicized approach to doling out federal research money change the nature of science itself? Related Reading: The Scientists Who Got Ghosted by the NIH (The Chronicle) An NIH Grant Is Restored, With a Catch: Cut a Study on Trans Youth (The Chronicle) The NIH is Requiring Grantees to Follow Trump’s Anti-Trans Executive Order (The Chronicle) Their NIH Grants are Back. But Nothing is Back to Normal. (The Chronicle) Guest Stephanie M. Lee, senior writer at The Chronicle of Higher Education. For more on today’s episode, visit chronicle.com/collegematters. We aim to make transcripts available within a day of an episode’s publication.
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    35 mins
  • Chris Rufo Floats Calling in ‘Troops’

    Chris Rufo Floats Calling in ‘Troops’
    Sep 17 2025
    Christopher F. Rufo, a conservative activist, is on what he might call a winning streak. Long before it was fashionable to do so, Rufo, a senior fellow at the right-leaning Manhattan Institute, was leading the charge against diversity, equity, and inclusion programs on college campuses. Now, many universities — by law or by choice — are ditching DEI programs as fast as they can. Beyond that, Rufo has waged numerous online pressure campaigns against college leaders, leading to the resignations or scuttled appointments of those who’ve extolled the virtues of DEI. His airing of plagiarism allegations against Claudine Gay, the former president of Harvard University, contributed to her leadership downfall in 2024. But what is really behind Rufo’s philosophy? What would the “colorblind equality” he prescribes for colleges actually look like in practice? And how far does he think President Trump should go to upend higher education? 00:00 - 7:40: Rufo’s path to conservatism7:40 - 14:51: Politics of DEI14:51 - 19:48 : Race and admissions20:03 - 24:51: ‘Meritocracy’24:51 - 31:02: Do you think race matters?31:01 - 32:58: The Manhattan Institute32:58 - 35:25: Harvard’s Claudine Gay35:25 - 46:26: Sinking Santa Ono at U. of Florida46:26 - 50:32: Rufo’s influence / George Mason U.50:32 - 53:19: Calling in the troops Related Reading: They Have a Common Criticism of Higher Ed. And They’re Arguing. (The Chronicle) How a Conservative Activist Invented the Conflict Over Critical Race Theory (The New Yorker) An Inside Job at George Mason? (The Chronicle/ProPublica) Santa Ono Wanted a College Presidency. He Became a Pariah. (The Chronicle) Guest:Christopher F. Rufo, a senior fellow and director of the initiative on critical race theory at the Manhattan Institute For more on today’s episode, visit chronicle.com/collegematters. We aim to make transcripts available within a day of an episode’s publication
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    59 mins
  • The Meaning of Charlie Kirk

    The Meaning of Charlie Kirk
    Sep 11 2025
    The fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk, whose political movement targeted liberal faculty and pushed the boundaries of free speech, immediately took on powerful symbolic resonance as a pivotal event in higher education’s long-running culture wars. Kirk, who founded Turning Point USA, a provocative right-leaning group popular on college campuses, was killed on Wednesday during a campus speaking engagement at Utah Valley University. His death shocked the country, lending a dark gravity to already-contentious debates about political polarization, intolerance, and free expression on college campuses.Related Reading Making of a Martyr: Charlie Kirk’s Killing Silences a Conservative Voice. His Movement Could Grow Louder. (The Chronicle) Inside a Stealth Plan for Political Influence (The Chronicle) Was an Instructor's Firing a Violation Academic Freedom? Or an Example of 'Academic Responsibility' (The Chronicle) Charlie Kirk Was Practicing Politics the Right Way (The New York Times) GuestNell Gluckman, senior reporter at The Chronicle of Higher Education For more on today’s episode, visit chronicle.com/collegematters. We aim to make transcripts available within a day of an episode’s publication.
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    27 mins
  • College Matters Is Back

    College Matters Is Back
    Sep 3 2025
    Higher education is at the center of the biggest stories in the country today, and College Matters is back to make sense of it all. Tune in for new weekly episodes starting on September 11. Catch up on previous popular episodes: Is Reading Over for Gen Z Students? Why Faculty Hate Teaching Evaluations Mr. Varsity Blues Claps Back For more on today’s episode, visit chronicle.com/collegematters.
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    2 mins
  • Course Catalog: Bruce Springsteen’s American Vision

    Course Catalog: Bruce Springsteen’s American Vision
    Aug 5 2025
    For decades, Bruce Springsteen’s songs about fast cars, working-class dreamers, and loves lost and found have helped to define a quintessentially American notion of freedom and rebellion. But do the music and lyrics of “The Boss” speak to the college students of Gen Z? Louis P. Masur, a distinguished professor of American studies and history at Rutgers University, thinks they do. After years of teaching a course titled “Springsteen’s American Vision,” Masur says he is as convinced as ever that the rock icon’s songs are as timeless as Huck Finn and as durable as a “big old Buick.” Guest: Louis P. Masur, distinguished professor of American studies and history at Rutgers UniversityRelated reading Runaway Dream: Born to Run and Bruce Springsteen’s American Vision (Louis P. Masur) The Boss in the Classroom (Chronicle) For more on today’s episode, visit chronicle.com/collegematters. We aim to make transcripts available within a day of an episode’s publication.
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    31 mins
  • Course Catalog: Do Dogs Go to Heaven?

    Course Catalog: Do Dogs Go to Heaven?
    Jul 22 2025
    After the loss of a pet, many people wonder whether they'll ever see their beloved companions again. In her course, "Do All Dogs Go to Heaven?", Chelsea Jordan King, an assistant professor of Catholic studies at Sacred Heart University, presses her students to answers that provocative question. To do so, King encourages students — believers and nonbelievers alike — to use critical thinking and research to articulate and defend their positions. Along the way, students learn about the Roman Catholic Church's position on evolution, what makes human beings special, and how to better appreciate their natural surroundings. GuestChelsea Jordan King, assistant professor of Catholic studies at Sacred Heart University For more on today’s episode, visit chronicle.com/collegematters. We aim to make transcripts available within a day of an episode’s publication.
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    30 mins