Wow.....

I could opine about the variety of reasons, some of which the author hasn't even addressed. But I'd save it for a conversation instead of a social media space. My research is a little dated.

And answering why men have stopped coming to college as much as before is a very complex problem.

Yes. And I expect that part of why it's being ignored is because it's complex. It requires critical thinking, which is already discouraged in favor of sound bite solutions. People like easy answers. They've also been trained to distrust complex work involving people.

Exactly. It's far more nuanced than just "implicit bias" (sexism). There's cultural norming. There are issues with race, homophobia, classism, & more. There's resentment of the cultural institution of higher education, despite the understanding that educated people are a necessity. It's complex!

This is an interesting article, but it feels like it misses the mark. You can't look at this as just a problem of implicit bias against women. It's more than that. And the answer isn't men's colleges. Wabash & Hampden-Sydney (& even Morehouse, I think) aren't growing. They're still treading H2O.

This is a fascinating piece, especially relevant for communities who still have the small, endangered institutions with very low endowments. Thanks for posting!

That happening in my brain is why I can't go to sleep at a reasonable hour.

Completely. We have engrained the idea of a "four year degree". It would be better to focus on good learning and work-life balance, as long as the impact on student loan debt isn't too much. That's one reason why I like how we don't charge out-of-state tuition and we have the MN North Star Promise.

Paging Tywin Lannister... "Any man who must say 'I am the king' is no true king."

Note, I'm not saying that we ARE self-important or think we're better. But we're perceived that way. And perception shapes reality for people. We need to be known again and not be an abstract group that's easy to villainize. It's how K-12 teachers were protected for so long until the last 15-20 yrs.

The perception seems to be that higher ed is full of self-important "elites" who think they're better than everyone else. People who get "rich" while doing very little (What's "knowledge work"?). In our country, that's ripe ground to be taken down a peg or two. And that's part of what's happening.

I've seen too many instances where faculty and more senior (wealthy) admins are only involved in other arenas of privilege, such as local politics or board positions. We should be able to be recognized because we respect and work alongside an electrician or builder or truck driver.

I've believed for awhile that we need to be reconnecting with our communities in ways that humanize higher ed. Be involved in community spaces like fraternal & service organizations, churches...the places where "regular" people go. If we aren't showing up for them, they won't show up for us.

In other circumstances, that cost could be a disqualification to an otherwise great promotion. I love my job and am glad that I'm here. At the same time, I can't help but to think of how many great professionals want to change jobs, but can't because it costs too much to relocate. 2/2