It’s been several months since the Campaign for the Future of Higher Education held its kickoff news conference at the National Press Club, and some of you may have been wondering what’s been going on since then. As one of the coalition’s founding members, Steve has continued to talk with his colleagues across the country to keep the campaign moving forward. In today’s blog post, APSCUF assistant director of governmental relations Lauren Gutshall discusses the next steps for the Campaign for the Future of Higher Education.
Since successfully launching its campaign on May 17 in Washington, D.C., the Campaign for the Future of Higher Education (CFHE) has been focused on building support and momentum for its initiatives. The coalition of faculty organizations and academic leaders from across the nation seeks to provide a counter-narrative to the current higher education rhetoric, which emphasizes things like faculty productivity, degree outputs and business-model approaches. While the campaign was the brainchild of members of the California Faculty Association, APSCUF has been involved since its inception and is committed to promoting its ideals.
Last year CFHE developed seven key principles that define quality higher education and provide the foundation for the campaign’s work. To expand on and publicize these principles, CFHE is creating a “virtual think tank” to analyze data and refocus the public debate. The think tank will respond to national policy proposals, examine state and local issues and offer ideas to help frame the counter-narrative. The think tank would also be charged with responding to books, articles and strategies that promote initiatives that may harm educational quality.
CFHE has already assembled a wide array of supporters from those in the labor movement and education advocates. The campaign wants to bring in even more faculty groups and potential allies to help with the campaign, as well as reach out to outside groups and the news media.
At the next meeting in November (ed. note: the Faculty Staff Union at U-Mass Boston will host – brrrr!), the coalition will create a coordinating committee to prioritize needs, assign tasks and hone the scope of the think tank. The campaign is also asking for volunteers to devote time to the project and organizations to provide financial support to help fund events, webcasts and meetings.
APSCUF has a lot to offer as far as expertise within our membership, so please contact Steve if you are interested in volunteering your time and/or research for this nationwide effort.
— Lauren