American Campus Podcast
a social and political history of higher education
American Campus Podcast
The peak and decline of US higher ed with Bryan Alexander
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Lauren Lassabe Shepherd
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On the academy’s decline since 2011.
References and suggested readings:
- Bryan Alexander. 2026. Peak Higher Ed: How to Survive the Looming Academic Crisis. Johns Hopkins University Press.
- 2023. Universities on Fire: Higher Education in the Climate Crisis. Johns Hopkins University Press.
- 2022. Academia Next: The Futures of Higher Education. Johns Hopkins University Press.
- Tressie McMillan Cottom. 2017. Lower Ed: The Troubling Rise of For-Profit Colleges in the New Economy. The New Press.
- Randi Weingarten. May 6, 2025. Stop Trying to Make Everyone Go to College. New York Times.
- Luke Kemp. 2025. Goliath's Curse: The History and Future of Societal Collapse. Knopf.
- Sarah McLaughlin. 2025. Authoritarians in the Academy: How the Internationalization of Higher Education and Borderless Censorship Threaten Free Speech. Johns Hopkins University Press.
- Future Trends Forum.
- Bryan’s Substack.
Browse the American Campus bookshelf
Get in touch! Email Lauren at shephell@iu.edu. You can also anonymously request an episode or give feedback on the show.
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