In a recent op-ed for The Wall Street Journal, “A Solution to Campus Extremism,” Robert P. George, the Witherspoon Institute’s Herbert W. Vaughan Senior Fellow, argues that increasing extremism on both sides of the political spectrum is not an accident, nor merely the result of a few radical voices. It is the predictable outcome of an educational system that has abandoned the intellectual and moral foundations of a true liberal education.
In his article, Professor George contends that universities have failed to provide students with a substantive grounding in the classical liberal tradition and civic education, the disciplines that cultivate critical thinking, humility, rational debate, and an appreciation for shared humanity. When students are deprived of that inheritance, they become vulnerable to dogmatism and polarization, whether from the left or the right.
The answer, he argues, is not censorship or surveillance, but a renewal of classical and civic learning, a recommitment to open inquiry, and the rigorous pursuit of truth.
At the Witherspoon Institute, we share this conviction. Our work is dedicated to renewing the intellectual and moral foundations of our civil society through education rooted in timeless wisdom and ordered toward truth.
We invite you to read the article and to join us in this effort to rebuild the conditions for genuine learning and civil friendship.
