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The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is arguably one of the finest engineering schools in the country, if not the world. They do teach other subjects, I am sure, but their core strength is more STEM than liberal arts, right?<\/p>\n
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology publicly rejected an offer from the Trump administration Friday that would\u2019ve granted the university preferential treatment for federal funding in exchange for new restrictions on the school\u2019s finances, hiring and admissions.<\/p>\n
The Education Department has approached nine colleges in recent weeks about signing the compact and MIT is the first to make its position publicly known.<\/p>\n
The compact involves changing college admissions policies and faculty hiring, ensuring there is \u201ca broad spectrum of viewpoints\u201d on campus, ensuring sex is defined as \u201cmale\u201d and \u201cfemale,\u201d and adopting a policy of institutional neutrality, which means they won\u2019t weigh in on societal and political events.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Good for them!<\/p>\n
\nMIT President Sally Kornbluth said the administration\u2019s \u201ccompact\u201d includes principles they \u201cdisagree\u201d with and would ultimately restrict the school\u2019s freedom of speech and independence in a letter<\/u> to Education Secretary Linda McMahon.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
I know we rail against the ultra-liberal schools that force-feed our kids all kinds of nonsense. But I have to say that in this case, I am on MIT’s side.<\/p>\n
Hey, they were told they could get preferential treatment if they just shut their collective mouths and toed the line. (No, it’s not TOWED, damnit.) And they had the cojones to step up and say no. Probably going to cost them, too.<\/p>\n
But I would rather a school be run by an administration that will take a stand for what they believe in, and in this case that belief is that their views can’t be dictated to, and bought by,\u00a0 Federal funding dollars. Agree with their views or not – man, it just doesn’t get any more American and honest than that.<\/p>\n
Or maybe French? Urban legend says Voltaire said \u201cI may disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” (Actually it was a biographer of his, Evelyn Beatrice Hall,\u00a0 who coined the phrase. ) Might remember that Voltaire and quite a few other European Enlightenment thinkers had deep influences on some folks we refer to as the Founding Fathers.<\/p>\n
I think MIT is following in their footsteps. Agree with ’em or not, I admire their stance.<\/p>\n
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