On this episode of Back to Biz, Katie Couric and Bozoma Saint John have an insightful conversation with the presidents of their respective alma maters: James Ryan of the University of Virginia, and Michael Roth of Wesleyan University. With the pandemic still raging, how are they preparing to bring students and faculty back into the classroom? How are they able to justify the steep tuition price tags if all the education happens online? How are their schools remaining financially solvent? And how are they and their students responding to the national racial unrest that has challenged the foundation of every American institution? Each university leader answers these thoughtful questions as thoroughly as possible in this incisive interview.
When it comes to coronavirus, each school is doing as much as can be expected: preparing virtual and in-person options, keeping an eye on the data, stepping up hygiene processes, and creating socially-distanced classrooms. Most importantly of all, they’re trying to cultivate an environment on campus that will encourage mask-wearing and compliance with social distancing policies, leaning not on the students’ “desire to obey authority, because there is none,” Michael laughs, but on their “sense of community, which is incredibly powerful.” But if non-compliance gets too out of hand, it will play a part in any decision to shut down the school again; “it’s one of the risk factors we’re considering,” James says. But they’re hopeful that students will comply, because even in these less-than-ideal circumstances, the students want to be on campus: “They want to see each other, even in these conditions,” Michael says.
As far as justifying the price tag of college in general, both are quick to defend their universities, pointing to robust financial aid packages; but the fact remains that students are drowning in debt to afford pricey college educations, and without the full campus experience, the price is harder to justify than ever. Will we start to see a lot of changes in how we view a college education in this country? For example, will vocational training be more important in a difficult economy than a traditional college degree? Michael thinks not. “I don’t think the way to prepare people for the future is to narrow their options,” he says. “Let young people learn how to conduct inquiry….cultivate an openness to ambiguity….so they’re more likely to listen to people they disagree with.” Hear the entire thought-provoking conversation on this episode of Back to Biz.
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