Universities have not shifted their missions from knowledge production to activism. Activism produces knowledge, and universities have long acted to change the world regardless of how mission statements describe their purpose. There is no evidence that public distrust is driven by university missions or that people care about those missions as a cause of distrust. Criticism of faculty who focus on activism mischaracterizes their role and weakens the truth-seeking function of universities. If the public dislikes colleges for protecting activists’ free speech, the response should be persuasion rather than accommodating prejudice. Activist professors still consider themselves scholars, often pursuing scholarship in different forms.
"One of the primary drivers of distrust is the recent trend of universities shifting their mission from knowledge production to activism."
"There has been no shift in university missions toward activism. There is no conflict between "activism" and "knowledge production." Activists produce knowledge, too. And universities have always been activists in seeking to change the world, whether their mission statements (which are distinct from their missions) have stated this fact or not."
"Many faculty no longer consider themselves primarily scholars. They see themselves as activists or perhaps activist-scholars who are on campus primarily to advocate for social justice issues and to partner with students who want to do the same. Needless to say, this is not what many people thought the university was supposed to do."
"If the public hates colleges for protecting the free speech of activists, then we need to persuade people that they're wrong rather than bowing down to their prejudices. In reality, activist professors do consider themselves scholars, they just prefer a different kind of scholarship."
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