University Statements

Dear Cornell Community,

American universities are at a crossroads. Higher education is being challenged by disruptive forces that include declining public trust, increasing costs, an unsteady relationship with the government, and transformative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI). Universities that embrace principled change will thrive; those that do not risk becoming obsolete.

I convened Cornell’s Committee on the Future of the American University and gave them an ambitious charge: to assess these disruptions and to envision the path forward, by engaging with our community as well as external stakeholders of higher education — both supporters and critics, administrators and students, staff and faculty, alumni and parents, elected officials and residents. Over the last year, this committee reflected on input gathered from thousands of those voices and produced a vision statement (PDF) and a comprehensive report (PDF). I accept and endorse the vision and the report, and I encourage everyone to read them.

The challenges facing universities are immense. AI is reshaping the core of what universities do: how we teach, learn, conduct research, and engage in creative work. It is changing the skills needed in the labor market and raising new questions about the value and purpose of higher education. At the same time, concerns about cost, ideological compression, access, and institutional transparency have contributed to growing public skepticism about higher education.

Throughout the committee’s work, one fundamental question rose to the top: “Is a university education still worth it?” The committee’s answer is a resounding yes — if we clarify and renew the university’s purpose. The committee proposes that Cornell should be a “human-centered, integrated learning ecosystem that cultivates sound judgment.” To realize this purpose, the committee has identified five guiding institutional commitments that bridge human-centered education, research, and public engagement, all of which are at the heart of a land-grant research institution like Cornell. Together these commitments offer a bold path forward for universities as we prepare graduates for an uncertain and rapidly changing world:

• Rigorous deliberation and engaged discourse are essential to developing sound judgment and discernment. Universities should not serve only as knowledge factories. They should also be places where broad intellectual diversity grounded in genuine difference can nourish a constructive culture of deliberation and discourse. Deliberation builds the discernment needed in a world where diminished trust and AI saturation challenge every premise and undermine every conclusion.
• Robust public engagement: Universities must strengthen public trust by deepening two-way relationships with communities locally, nationally, and globally, expanding opportunities for public service and lifelong learning, and demonstrating that research excellence and public impact reinforce one another.
• Sustained research, scholarship, and innovation: There is no substitute for the American research university in producing discovery, creativity, economic impact, and the next generation of scholars. Some critics have called for a narrower mandate for America’s universities, separating out research from teaching. That would be a grave mistake; research and teaching must remain inseparable for future generations to continue to push the frontiers of knowledge and discovery.
• Within the university, strong community connections and greater integration and coordination provide the foundation to strengthen all our missions, enhance our effectiveness, and create new opportunities for teaching, discovery, and public engagement.

The report reflects a diverse range of intellectual disciplines, opinions, and viewpoints — committee members did not always agree. Their deliberation and reflections demonstrate the capacities that the report calls upon our community to cultivate. I thank the committee for their efforts, which have yielded a thoughtful and forward-looking vision at this time of great uncertainty. Building on this vision, we will develop a strategic plan to translate these recommendations into action. In the coming weeks, more information will be shared about concrete next steps, and I look forward to continued engagement from the whole university.

It is fitting that Cornell undertook this project of self-reflection. Cornell has been dubbed “the first American university” because of its pioneering commitment to intellectual breadth and opportunity (“… any person … any study”). This widely adopted model has advanced our country through pathbreaking research and scholarship, impactful public engagement, and the education of generations of students. At this critical moment, Cornell can and should help define a new model for the American university.

Sincerely,

Kavita Bala
Provost