The Uncertain Future of Higher Education
Andrew Delbanco, Alexander Hamilton Professor of American Studies
At a moment when colleges and universities find themselves under intense public scrutiny, political pressure, and cultural mistrust, Andrew Delbanco invites us to step back and ask what higher education is for and what is at stake if it loses its way. Professor Delbanco draws on history, current events, and decades of teaching to explore the forces reshaping universities today: attacks on academic freedom, declining public confidence, rising costs, and the growing tendency to view education narrowly as job training. At the heart of Delbanco’s argument is a powerful defense of the classroom as the core of the university. He reminds us that the capacity for doubt, self-questioning, and open inquiry are essential not only to education but to a healthy democratic society.
Andrew Delbanco is the Alexander Hamilton Professor of American Studies at Columbia University and president of the Teagle Foundation. A leading scholar of American literature and history, he is the award-winning author of The War Before the War and other influential books, and a recipient of the National Humanities Medal.
Fifteen-Minute Encore Program
Join EPIC for a fifteen-minute encore presentation by Ira Deutchman, EPIC member, Professor Emeritus of Film, and founder of the Upper West Side Cinema Center. In “The Future Is Here: The Upper West Side Cinema Center,” Professor Deutchman will share updates on the transformation of the former Metro Theater at 99th Street and Broadway into a nonprofit, five-screen art house cinema. This brief encore offers a look at how a neighborhood landmark is being reimagined as a vibrant cultural space for the Upper West Side.
Register for Zoom link
