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Press ReleasesGeneral Education
Three Programs Join ACTA’s Oases of Excellence Network
March 12, 2025
ACTA is proud to recognize these programs and the faculty who lead them. Their work is restoring the legacy…
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Latest
StatementFreedom of Expression
ACTA President Michael Poliakoff’s Statement on Columbia University’s Settlement with the Trump Administration
March 24, 2025 by Michael B. Poliakoff
Columbia has said it will undertake a major, overdue cultural change. Implementation will not […]
PROMOTING ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE
Where the Humanities’ Death Knell Doesn’t Ring True
March 13, 2025 by Gabriella Hsu
According to countless recent headlines, American college students are struggling. Our “best and brightest” are no longer being asked to read or are incapable of doing so, and more and more students rely on AI to complete their assignments. Despairing reports of the “death of the humanities,” it seems, have not been greatly exaggerated.
Where the Humanities’ Death Knell Doesn’t Ring True
No U.S. History?
ACTA’s report, “No U.S. History? How College History Departments Leave the United States out of the Major,” found that 18 of the top 25 public universities did not have a wide-ranging American history requirement for students seeking a B.A. in history in the major or core curriculum.
Download PDFDEFENDING ACADEMIC FREEDOm
Model University Anti-Masking Policy
March 24, 2025
While free expression is of paramount value at any college or university, the intentional concealing of one’s identity of public raises serious concerns for campus safety. ACTA’s Model University Anti-Masking Policy protects members of the community from the use of masks to intimidate, while recognizing their legitimate use in common sense circumstances such as medical […]
Model University Anti-Masking PolicyThe ForumCivil Discourse
Bringing Debates to a Computer Science Classroom: Dr. David Wright
March 14, 2025 by Dr. Bryan Paul
Since 2018, the CD&D Alliance has collaborated with hundreds of brilliant higher education faculty who care deeply about their…
The ForumCivil Discourse
Student Fellow Spotlight: Lauren Fletcher
March 14, 2025 by Sadie Webb and Kayla Johnston
By Kayla Johnston and Sadie Webb In her final year at the University of North Carolina (UNC)–Greensboro, Lauren Fletcher…
ACTA Gold Standard for Freedom of Expression
ACTA now provides a blueprint to help higher education regain and live by this core principle. The ACTA Gold Standard for Freedom of Expression™ provides clear guidance for institutions to create a culture of free thought on their campuses.
Download PDFENSURING ACCOUNTABILITY
Model University Anti-Masking Policy
March 24, 2025
While free expression is of paramount value at any college or university, the intentional concealing of one’s identity of public raises serious concerns for campus safety. ACTA’s Model University Anti-Masking Policy protects members of the community from the use of masks to intimidate, while recognizing their legitimate use in common sense circumstances such as medical […]
Model University Anti-Masking PolicyStatementFreedom of Expression
ACTA President Michael Poliakoff’s Statement on Columbia University’s Settlement with the Trump Administration
March 24, 2025 by Michael B. Poliakoff
Columbia has said it will undertake a major, overdue cultural change. Implementation will not be easy: There are few institutions…
StatementCampus Protests
The Barnard Dilemma
March 11, 2025 by Michael B. Poliakoff
Last week’s storming and takeover of an academic building at Barnard College by 200 anti-Israel protesters—the second such time…
Governance for a New Era
Governance for a New Era is a blueprint for higher education governance. Signatories to the statement, a diverse group of 22 distinguished national leaders dedicated to ensuring America’s colleges and universities shed 20th century thinking and successfully meet 21st century challenges.
Download PDFIN THE
NEWS
Press ReleasesGeneral Education
Three Programs Join ACTA’s Oases of Excellence Network
March 12, 2025
ACTA is proud to recognize these programs and the faculty who lead them. Their work is restoring the legacy of higher education, one student at a time.
ACTA in the NewsHistorical Literacy
What We Can Learn from George Washington Today
RealClear Public Affairs | March 3, 2025 by Bradley Jackson
February 22nd marked the 293rd anniversary of George Washington’s birth. It seems that few Americans, however, really know the man or understand what makes him important.
ACTA in the News
Latest Trump guidance on race has schools scrambling amid ‘intense fear’
Washington Post | February 22, 2025 by Laura Meckler and Susan Svrluga
The letter from the Education Department was published on a Friday night, at the start of a three-day weekend, but it quickly flew through the inboxes of school officials across the country. The Trump administration was threatening to pull federal funding from any school district or college that …
ACTA in the NewsInstitutional Neutrality
AAUP: Academic Freedom Doesn’t Require Institutional Neutrality
Inside Higher Ed | February 13, 2025 by Ryan Quinn
Amid public campaigns urging universities to commit to “institutional neutrality,” the American Association of University Professors released a lengthy statement Wednesday saying that the term “conceals more than it reveals.” The statement, approved by the AAUP’s elected national council last mon…
HOW ACTA IS SUCCEEDING
370
institutions have been counseled by ACTA on matters of cost effectiveness, financial governance, and institutional spending. See ACTA’s one-of-a-kind higher education financial analysis tool: HowCollegesSpendMoney.com.
146
institutions and systems representing nearly four million students, encouraged by ACTA, reaffirmed their commitment to free speech on campus by adopting the Chicago Principles on Freedom of Expression or a policy of institutional neutrality.
256
institutions have improved their core curriculum requirements based on ACTA’s annual What Will They Learn?® initiative. Visit WhatWillTheyLearn.com
16,000+
students from 100+ Institutions have engaged in 400+ civil discourse debates, dialogues, and workshops through ACTA’s college debates program partnership with Braver Angels and Bridge USA.
1,452
news outlets in 2024 covered ACTA’s nationwide impact on academic excellence, academic freedom, and accountability in higher education.
275
million dollars in gifts to higher education have been guided through ACTA’s Fund for Academic Renewal. Visit AcademicRenewal.org.
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Launched in 1995, we are the only organization that works with alumni, donors, trustees, and education leaders across the United States to support liberal arts education, uphold high academic standards, safeguard the free exchange of ideas on campus, and ensure that the next generation receives an intellectually rich, high-quality college education at an affordable price.
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