Dr. Hossam Badrawi Official Website
This title is taken from an editorial in The New York Times, on March 16, 2025.
In response and as an addition to the article, I want to clarify my perspective on universities and the role of higher education, before returning to the article and its implications.
The Purpose of Higher Education
What purposes should higher education serve in any nation? What do we expect from it? It may seem that the answers are clear to everyone, but in reality, they are not—even for some experts in the field. Higher education is the kind of education that shapes the future and builds individuals capable of driving development, rather than merely filling gaps in existing needs. It fosters individuals who create and seize opportunities, rather than merely benefiting from them.
Over the centuries, universities have assumed various social functions, shaping their unique identities. Every university needs to “reproduce,” “spread,” and “evolve” simultaneously. It must also understand the reasons for change and the reasons for maintaining traditions. To do so, universities must question acquired knowledge and critically examine the different ways of thinking present in society.
Moreover, universities must take risks by presenting the unexpected to societies that prefer to maintain the status quo—sometimes even fighting against renewal and change to preserve a familiar reality, even if it is flawed. Universities embody processes of transformation; their role in society is to innovate, absorb new knowledge, and facilitate the acquisition and application of knowledge in the present while anticipating future demands.
Universities are built on two main pillars: one shifts focus from immediate well-being (meeting basic needs) to a deeper quest for truth, while the other moves from opposition (a critical stance) to engagement (institutional commitment to social productivity). The continuous efforts to balance these functions always lead to the pursuit of a unified goal, as reflected in the very term “universitas.”
The Role of Universities in Modernization
Modernization is a fundamental function of universities in all societies. To define modernity and understand its implications for social change and scientific progress, universities—being essential institutions of the nation and cornerstones of cultural development—must survey their surrounding environment and recognize the complexities of potential transformations. This requires academic freedom and institutional independence.
Practically, this means defining strategies that enable universities to develop institutional policies that can be tested, measured, and validated—ensuring accountability as a necessary condition.
Academic Freedom and Institutional Autonomy
I recently attended an important conference in Stockholm, Sweden, for the Magna Charta Ambassadors of Living Values—a project aimed at embedding the values of the Bologna Process into the mindset of university administrators, faculty, students, and staff to create a better academic community.
The Bologna Declaration, which participating universities commit to, is based on the following fundamental principles:
- The university is an independent institution at the heart of society; it produces, examines, evaluates, and disseminates culture through research and education to meet the needs of the world around it. Its academic work must remain ethically and intellectually independent of all political or economic authority.
- The foundation of the university is the freedom of research and teaching. These are essential principles of academic life, and both governments and universities must ensure their respect while rejecting intolerance and maintaining openness to dialogue.
I had previously published a significant research paper with my Swiss colleague, Dr. Andrea Barban, titled Universities: Builders of Civilization or Providers of Educational Services? In it, we argued that universities must fulfill four fundamental objectives: welfare, order, meaning, and the pursuit of truth. I concluded the paper with a quote from Dr. Taha Hussein in his influential book The Future of Culture in Egypt, in which he states:
“A university does not merely produce scholars; it cultivates the enlightened and civilized individual who does not suffice with being cultured but strives to be a source of culture, and who does not simply accept civilization but seeks to advance it.”
The Attack on Universities in the United States
Why am I writing this? Because today, universities—the strongholds of freedom in the United States—are under attack by the Trump administration. I believe this will have global consequences for the values of higher education.
The New York Times, in its March 16, 2025, issue, states:
“When a political leader seeks to push democracy toward a more authoritarian form of governance, they often aim to undermine independent sources of information and accountability. They attempt to delegitimize judges, sideline independent governmental bodies, and muzzle the media. Over the past quarter-century, Russian President Vladimir Putin has done this. To a lesser extent, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have followed similar paths.”
Weakening higher education is a crucial part of this strategy.
Academic researchers are expected to seek the truth, but emerging autocrats recognize that empirical truth can pose a threat to their authority. Putin himself once said, “Teachers are the ones who win wars,” yet he and Erdoğan have shut down universities, Modi’s government has arrested dissenting scholars, and Orbán has appointed loyalist institutions to run universities.
The New York Times continues:
“President Trump has not yet reached the level of democratic erosion seen in these other leaders, but ignoring his early steps to emulate them would be naïve.”
Trump has dismissed government watchdogs, military leaders, prosecutors, and national security experts. He has sued media institutions and threatened to regulate others. He has hinted that judges lack the authority to restrain him. He also described the arrest of Mr. Khalil, a leader of pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University, as “the first of many upcoming arrests”—a clear indication that he aims to curb free expression, particularly among the many immigrant students in universities.
On social media, he wrote: “Whoever saves his country does not break any law.”and I say :This is the same justification used by every dictator throughout history.
The Trump Administration’s Campaign Against Higher Education
The New York Times article argues that Trump’s multi-pronged assault on higher education is central to his efforts to weaken institutions that do not conform to his narrative of reality. Most notably, his administration is enacting or considering severe funding cuts to universities.
Trump’s administration has announced drastic reductions in federal payments covering general research costs. Vice President J.D. Vance and other Republicans have pushed for a sharp increase in the endowment tax Trump signed into law during his first term. Together, these policies could significantly and harmfully shrink the annual budgets of major research universities.
Trump is also tightening the grip on higher education in other ways. The Department of Education has laid off nearly half its workforce, making it harder for students to access financial aid. The near-total elimination of the U.S. Agency for International Development has resulted in an $800 million cut in grants to Johns Hopkins University alone. On March 7, the administration targeted Columbia University specifically, announcing the termination of $400 million in grants as punishment for its “insufficient response to campus antisemitism.”
American leadership in medical and scientific research depends on federal funding. Private corporations, even large ones, rarely invest in fundamental research due to its high uncertainty—successful experiments may take decades to yield profitable products. This is why the state’s role in research, driven by a long-term vision rather than short-term profit, is crucial.
The New York Times acknowledges that many professors and university administrators in recent years have acted more as liberal ideologues than as seekers of empirical truth. Some academics have attempted to silence debate on legitimate issues, including COVID lockdowns, transgender treatments, diversity, equity, and inclusion. A Harvard University survey last year found that about 70% of final-year students did not feel comfortable expressing their views on controversial topics.
I firmly stand in support of academic freedom and institutional independence for the future-makers of youth—not just in Egypt, but across the world.
