College administrators and faculty have to be much more aggressive in reclaiming the importance of a liberal education, particularly in the wake of sweeping legislative efforts in some states to restrict academic freedom and to outlaw the teaching of some subjects.
“There is a sense of urgency around achieving our shared objectives at a time when higher education and liberal education is under siege,” said Dr. Lynn Pasquerella, president of American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), which is holding their annual meeting in San Francisco this week, drawing more than 1,200 academics to one of higher education’s most important convenings. 
“What we have done in the past has not worked,” said Pasquerella, who has led the global membership organization since 2016. “We can’t be passive recipients to those who know better, who know that African American history is real history. We need to start controlling the narrative.”
Pasquerella’s comments come in the wake of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ decision to block a new Advancement Placement course for high school students on African American studies.
Earlier this month, DeSantis sent a letter to the College Board, which oversees AP coursework, to inform the nonprofit assessment organization that the Florida Department of Education’s Office of Articulation said the course is “inexplicably contrary to Florida law and significantly lacks educational value.”
Amid declining trust in public education, growing governmental inclusion, ongoing racial injustice, attendees expressed a greater commitment to protecting the “democratic purposes of higher education.”
