Higher education is mired in a PR crisis. Since the start of his second term, President Donald Trump has targeted the nation’s most elite institutions, including the Ivy League. The cracks first appeared during campus protests over the war in Gaza, throwing the leadership lapses and internal tensions of colleges and universities into clear view.
Last year, Yale University President Maurie McInnis asked a group of faculty to find out why the university has grown so unpopular in the public eye. Their 20 recommendations match what many critics have echoed for years, suggesting everything from tamping down on grade inflation to addressing opaque admissions standards.
