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Francie Diep
Chronicle of Higher Education
The Department of Education published a letter Monday calling on “university presidents and board members” to sign on to seven broad principles that reflect the Trump administration’s priorities for higher education.
“Compact 2.0” tries a different approach. It’s less prescriptive, asking colleges how they will fulfill its goals, instead of suggesting specific policies. It appears to have incorporated feedback from at least some college leaders. In reporting on the document, The Chronicle got 10 minutes to interview Jonathan Pidluzny, the department’s deputy chief of staff for strategy and implementation.
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For the good of the Nation, university leadership must seize this occasion to drive essential reforms—a process some began by adopting positions of institutional neutrality and improving policies related to campus protests. Before the end of 2026, I call on every postsecondary institution to describe to the American public your commitments to rigorous teaching, pathbreaking research, and national service—commitments that make our universities a bedrock institution of the American republic.
Now the administration is back with Compact 2.0, formally titled "A National Call to Action to University Presidents and Governing Boards." It includes some rhetorical flourishes intended to make it seem less threatening to teaching, learning and research. But make no mistake: It once again asks colleges and universities to align themselves with a far-right agenda at the expense of students’ education and the public’s well-being.
On July 29, Vanderbilt University’s board of trustees announced the release of “The University And Its Purpose: A Declaration of First Principles.” Under the guidance of Chancellor Daniel Diermeier, this declaration marks an alarming threat to free expression and represents the worst attack yet by a Board of Trustees against academic values.
