ACTA believes that the strength of America’s higher education system rests in independent governing
boards. Trustees must be more than boosters and fundraisers, as they are responsible for the mission of the institution.
They must be active and engaged fiduciaries, reviewing and benchmarking the work of faculty and administrators.
ACTA’s HowCollegesSpendMoney.com is an innovative, free portal into a vast trove of information on spending at 1,500 public and private colleges and universities. Visitors can select specific colleges and instantly access eight years of their administrative and instructional spending patterns; compare them with other institutions in their peer groups; research student tuition, retention, and graduation rates; generate reports; and much more.
Through its Institute for Effective Governance ® , ACTA conducts board retreats specifically designed to help college and university trustees understand the fundamental issues that make governance in higher education a unique challenge. IEG’s seminars for governing boards leverage ACTA’s expertise as a national voice in higher education governance and they draw upon the knowledge of our extensive network of college and university leaders.
Trustees are public fiduciaries who are responsible for ensuring students receive a rigorous education at an intellectually diverse college campus, and that the institution stewards its resources faithfully. ACTA is committed to providing trustees with the necessary resources to navigate the fundamental issues that make governance in higher education a unique challenge.
ACTA in the NewsPresidential Compensation
The Detroit News | November 4, 2026 by Sarah Atwood
Donors paying a university president’s salary raise is nothing out of the ordinary, but the way Michigan State University President Kevin Guskiewicz is being paid is raising questions about potential conflicts of interest and who the president is actually accountable to. Experts in universi…
ACTA in the NewsArtificial Intelligence
The Washington Times | October 20, 2026 by Sean Salai
Artificial intelligence apparently is helping reverse decades of bureaucratic bloat at universities, whose nonteaching staff have increased faster than their faculty and student bodies, analysts say. The College and University Professional Association for Human Resources, a nonprofit group of hum…
It is great to know that we have a strong education leader like [ACTA] who not only joins the discussion but also works toward finding solutions. We are fortunate to work with you to create a stronger country for future generations.
Chris Christie, former Governor of New Jersey
ACTA carefully surveys students on issues of academic freedom and intellectual diversity using nationally recognized polling organizations. These studies, on both a national and state level, show an alarmingly high percentage of students who believe they must agree with their professors to get a good grade and who find the classroom a place of political indoctrination.
Strong policies that protect free expression create a ripple effect across the entire campus. And fortunately for trustees and other university leaders, forming and implementing these polices is not uncharted territory. ACTA has been a leader in advocating for the adoption of the Chicago Principles on Freedom of Expression or similar policies on college campuses. Written in the 2014-15 academic year by the University of Chicago, the Chicago Principles represent the gold standard for an institutional commitment to free speech. To date, over 72 institutions of higher learning have followed Chicago’s lead.
ACTA provides trustees with the tools they need to understand academic freedom and to take positive actions to protect and foster it. Our original research, including Guarding the Freedom to Speak, Freedom to Hear and Building a Culture of Free Expression on the American College Campus, educates trustees and university officials on today’s most prominent threats to academic freedom and provides tried-and-tested methods that have enabled colleges and universities to protect free speech on their campuses. Our landmark publication, Free to Teach, Free to Learn, Understanding and Maintaining Academic Freedom in Higher Education, reports on the dangerous decline of intellectual diversity on college campuses and features key documents that shaped the modern concept of academic freedom, coupled with commentary from a wide and bipartisan roster of distinguished educators, attorneys, and policymakers.
ACTA believes that the most powerful lines of defense standing between the preservation of academic freedom and the proliferation of ideological homogeneity on campus are faculty and administrators who challenge students with new ideas and urge them to offer contrasting views. Our Heroes of Intellectual Freedom initiative celebrates the courageous university personnel who refuse to toe the line of speech codes and safe spaces. The stand these leaders make matters. They show students how to engage in robust dialogue with civility but without fear.
Despite reports of angry campus protests that make headlines, ACTA knows that the majority of students are hungry for close collaboration with each other and to understand the motivations of those who hold contrasting viewpoints. Through our partnership with the grassroots organization, Braver Angels, ACTA empowers university student groups to hold parliamentary style debates so that every member of the campus community can experience this type of passionate exchange. With ACTA’s assistance, students learn how to hold a civil discussion with each other by listening and asking genuine questions and cultivate the virtues of patience, self-awareness, and empathy that result from forming a friendship across political and ideological divides.
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.
Discover MoreSign up to receive updates on the most pressing issues facing our college campuses.
