Announcements

 

Peter Wood quoted in sexual harassment piece at Inside Higher Ed
After a professor at the University of Iowa was arrested for bribing students with A's in exchange for sexual favors, the university announced that all faculty members would be required to attend sexual harassment training. NAS executive director Peter Wood stated that “One case does not make a pattern. There is a history of harassment at Iowa, but it involves student-on-student harassment by athletes. So why in effect punish faculty members and employees when, if there is a problem, it lies in coddling out of control student athletes?”

 

NAS executive director Peter Wood publishes "How Our Culture Keeps Students Out of Science"
In today's Chronicle of Higher Education Point of View section, NAS executive director Peter Wood published, "How Our Culture Keeps Students Out of Science." The article discusses how an education of self-esteem and a fascination with "identity" cripple the study of science in America.

 

Inside Higher Education publicizes Argus project
Inside Higher Education highlighted NAS's Argus project in its top 3 news stories today. The article quotes NAS president Steve Balch telling about the project. Entitled, "Big Argus is Watching," the article sought to frame NAS as practicing Orwellian surveillance, but President Balch affirms that Argus volunteers will only be dealing with publicly available information.

 

Read Chronicle article assessing NAS's call for renewal of liberal education
Richard H. Hersh and Richard P. Keeling evaluate NAS's recent statement "Rebuilding Campus Community: The Wrong Imperative" in a point of view article in the Chronicle of Higher Education. In the print edition, the article spans the back cover of the August 1, 2008 issue.

 

CONTROVERSY in the Chronicle   Read text...

 

Chronicle of Higher Education cites NAS in Intergroup Dialogue article
The Chronicle of Higher Education cited a National Association of Scholars statement in its article on Intergroup Dialogue, a multi-university program that seeks to prove diversity's educational benefits.   Read text...

 

NEW NAS STATEMENT ON RESIDENCE LIFE
The National Association of Scholars released a statement of its position on curricular residence life and the wrong way to build campus community. The new residence life regime, NAS states, usually bypasses the faculty in its efforts to educate students on the evils of heterosexism and carbon footprints - and it is an affront to the liberal principles of sound education.

 

NAS endorses Civil Rights initiatives   Read text...

 

In thankfulness for Sir John Templeton
The National Association of Scholars mourns the passing of Sir John Templeton: visionary investor, philanthropist and seeker after truth. We are honored and deeply grateful to have been touched by his generosity.

 

Front page New York Times piece quotes Peter Wood
Peter Wood, speaking for the NAS, was quoted above the fold on the front page of the New York Times on July 3rd, in an article entitled, "The ’60s Begin to Fade as Liberal Professors Retire." The story is about generational change in higher education and asserts that the old culture wars generation is retiring and being replaced by more moderate faculty members. To read the article, click here.

 

Read book by Gratz and Grutter lawyer Larry Purdy: Getting Under the Skin of "Diversity"
The National Association of Scholars is privileged to present an advanced look at Getting Under the Skin of "Diversity", a book by Larry Purdy, the lawyer who represented Jennifer Gratz and Barbara Grutter in the U.S. Supreme Court cases Gratz v. Bollinger and Grutter v. Bollinger. A printed version of the book will be available later this year. In the days and weeks to come, however, we will serialize this important book on our website. Each chapter will go up in PDF form until the whole book is present. We do this with the author’s permission. Mr. Purdy retains the copyright to Getting Under the Skin of "Diversity" and all legal claims to his intellectual property. To read it, go to the Books and Reports page of the NAS website.

 

Survey Error Fixed
Our Argus survey initially had an internal glitch that caused some surveys to be dropped. The error has been fixed and submissions are working perfectly now. If you got an error page when you tried to submit the survey, we ask you take it just once more so we can retrieve your answers. To do so, click here: Take Survey. I so appreciate your taking the time to help us here at the NAS. We are eager for you to join us in taking back the university!

 

Argus Project Launched
NAS today began sending invitations to 240,000 Townhall readers to take our Argus survey. Through this project, we are looking to find objective, informed observers of higher education. Join with us and take back the university as it should be.

 

Take our survey!
NAS has just opened an original survey as part of our Argus project. The goal of this survey is to learn the educational background and opinion outlook of those attracted by our concept of creating many different well-trained watchers of campuses and disciplines. We also see this as an opportunity to learn of new stories worth pursuing. The survey is an on-ramp for the Argus project because we are seeking people who have both the will to report and the objectivity to be skilled observers — and this survey is an excellent way to discern who those people are. All are welcome to complete the survey; in addition to the link on our website, we will be working with Townhall to send the survey to a database of 240,000 people. Thank you for taking a few moments to fill it out and help us invest in higher education.   Read text...

 

Leave Us a Comment
Our website host has recently set up an interactive comments feature for articles, initiatives, and briefly noted items on our website. We invite you to leave a comment on a piece you've read - we'd love to hear your thoughts. Simply click "Add a Comment" at the bottom of the article, set up a user name and password, then post something. Comments will be reviewed by an NAS administrator before appearing in public view. We are excited to see our hope of a more engaging website fulfilled.

 

Special Issue of Academic Questions: The Military and Higher Education   Read text...

 

Wall Street Journal Quotes NAS in ResLife/ Sustainability Article
This Wall Street Journal article tells of UD's residence life program reinstatement and the rise of the sustainability movement in college dorms. The author quotes Peter Wood explaining how this movement came about.   Read text...

 

NAS Has Moved
Our national office moved last week to a new space near the Princeton airport. Our new address is: 1 Airport Place, Suite 7, Princeton, NJ 08540-1532 Our phone number and email address remain the same. Please take note of our new address when mailing to NAS. We are enjoying the added space and the view of the small aircraft coming in to land across the street.   Read text...

 

UD Faculty, Students Stand Up Against Res Life Proposal
UPDATE: The proposed program was not accepted at yesterday's Faculty Senate Meeting. Instead, a vigorous debate took place, to be continued on Monday, May 12.   Read text...

 

Peter Wood publishes "Sustainability's Third Circle" in Inside Higher Education
Today, Inside Higher Education published an article by NAS executive director Peter Wood, entitled, "Sustainability's Third Circle." The article explains how sustainability's agenda is political and ideological, as well as environmental.   Read text...

 

Pacific Legal Foundation Essay Competition
July 1, 2008 deadline. For free society: legal research and writing program. Categories for law students, untenured law professors, and tenured law professors. $5,000 prize.   Read text...

 

The 2008 Sir John M. Templeton Fellowships Essay Contest
May 1, 2008 deadline   Read text...

 

Read Academic Questions online
How to access Academic Questions online   Read text...

 

Academic Questions: Newest Issue Hot off the Press
The National Association of Scholars recently released a new issue of its journal, Academic Questions. The issue features articles by President Stephen Balch and Executive Director Peter Wood.   Read text...

 

Our New Website!
NAS is pleased to launch our new website, designed and hosted by Princeton Online. We now offer a fresh, clean site that is better organized and can be navigated more easily. Soon to come: The website will also include an interactive feature that will enable readers to post comments on what we publish. We welcome your insights and observations and invite you to peruse our website.

 

To Members and Readers
Say Cheese...   Read text...

 

Position Available: Academic Project Director
The National Association of Scholars is seeking candidates for the new position of Academic Project Director. This person will manage several NAS projects aimed at stimulating reform in higher education. We need someone who has academic experience, writes and speaks well, can work under deadline, and is computer savvy. A Ph.D., earned doctorate, or ABD is required. Experience in advocating for educational reform is preferred, as is a record of publication in journals of opinion. This is a demanding job for an academic who has seen the contemporary university from the inside and who knows first-hand that our students and our nation deserve better. Salary commensurate with experience and skills. To apply send a letter, your c.v., and sample publications to Peter Wood, Executive Director, National Association of Scholars, 221 Witherspoon Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08542. Position is immediate. Candidates will be reviewed as they apply.

 

Ashley Thorne Joins NAS as Communications Director
Mrs. Ashley Thorne has been appointed NAS director of communications. Mrs. Thorne is a graduate of The King's College in New York City, where she majored in politics, philosophy, and economics. She is from Dallas, Texas, and has also spent considerable time in Russia as a Christian missionary. Mrs. Thorne is taking charge of our Argus initiative, which aims to recruit individuals who will examine particular programs, universities, and other institutions and report their findings to NAS in ways that we can post. She also takes charge of our continuing examination of schools of social work.

 

Latest Posting on NAS Online Forum
Looking at today's campus, Don Downs observes on the loss of the framework within which civil disagreement can take place. When personal becomes political, civility evaporates and with it goes free speech.

 

Noteworthy Achievement: NAS President Receives National Medal
NAS president Steven Balch received the National Humanities Medal at a ceremony in the Oval Office on Thursday, November 15. Steve received the award in recognition of his success in building the National Association of Scholars and thereby strengthening the foundations of American education especially in the humanities and the liberal arts. Steve has been "institution building" for over twenty years, starting with NAS. He also played a major role in getting the AALE and ACTA off the ground, then helped to launch the Historical Society, the Association of Literary Scholars and Critics, and the Association for the Study of Free Institutions. He's also worked to create centers and programs focused on Western civilization and the study of free institutions on campuses around the country.   Read text...