Where is the Intellectual Diversity at MSU, Mankato?
During my college years, even as someone who considered himself politically liberal at the time, it was obvious to me that the liberal political perspective dominated MSU’s classrooms. But even I was surprised by a recent study that showed just how pervasive the lack of intellectual diversity is on America’s campuses. That study, funded by the Randolph Foundation, found that a startling 72 percent of those teaching at American universities and colleges identify themselves as being liberal. In sharp contrast, only 15 percent identified themselves as being conservative.
That’s why now, as an alumnus, I want to raise the issue I should have raised as a student. I respectfully ask MSU President Richard Davenport and his newly appointed diversity commission -- what, if anything, is being done to advance intellectual diversity at MSU? I am not raising this question now to simply play the role of the conservative antagonist taking on the liberal establishment on campus. I bring it up because I truly believe that intellectual diversity is vital to providing a quality education to MSU students and necessary for preserving the long-term well-being and intellectual health of the university. The first event, sponsored by the Department Sociology and Corrections, was a teach-in entitled ‘Debunking the Social Security Crisis Myth.’ According to the MSU website, university professors discussed proposed Social Security privatization and non-privatization ideas and how the myth of a Social Security "crisis" came about. The second event was a conference entitled “How to Stop a War,” which focused on the “consequences of the Iraqi war.” It was sponsored by the Kessel Institute, which is an official program of the Department of Sociology and Corrections. Topics discussed at the conference included, "U.S. Impact in Iraq: Anything but Liberation," "The Ravages of War," and "Organizing Against War: Reflections of a Peace Activist." Speakers at the conference included MSU students and faculty members and representatives from liberal organizations such as the Minneapolis Welfare Rights Committee and the Minneapolis Anti-War Committee. Both of these university-sponsored events appeared to be lacking in points of view that challenged the liberal opinions that were being presented as fact. For example, why wasn’t former Democrat Congressman Tim Penny, who has been a great advocate for MSU over the years and was a member of the President’s Commission on Social Security, asked to come make a case for Social Security reform? Or, in the discussion about “the consequences of the war,” why wasn’t a speaker invited to discuss how the people of Iraq benefited from the successful free elections and the toppling of a tyrant like Saddam Hussein? When it comes to issues as important to their future as Social Security and the war in Iraq, MSU students deserve broad and open debates. University faculty members simply shortchange students when they present one political point of view at a school-sponsored conference and dress it up as “education.” And not only are students shortchanged, the reputation and intellectual health of MSU suffers when only one political point of view dominates campus discourse and stifles dissent. That is why Center of the American Experiment, as part of its FACT program, is working to expand intellectual diversity on campuses by working with students, alumni, and faculty members to bring conservative, free-market speakers to MSU and other institutions of higher education. I encourage President Davenport and his new diversity commission to join us in those efforts by making intellectual diversity a centerpiece of their diversity campaign at MSU. Randy Wanke is Director of Communications for Center of the American Experiment, a conservative think tank located in Minneapolis. He grew up in Mankato and earned a Bachelors of Science degree in Public Administration from MSU in 1994 |
Randy Wanke