We Need a New Deal Between Higher Education and Democratic Capitalism

Higher education has become a crucial element in the historical bargain between democracy and capitalism in the 21st century. This new reality has emerged gradually over the past 30 years but, for the most immediate evidence, look no further than the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Both the Donald Trump supporters and the Bernie Sanders supporters can be viewed, to some degree, as evidence of insufficient postsecondary opportunities to reconcile the democratic promise of economic opportunity with the changing set of skills needed on the job. The author examines the crucial role of higher education in the historical bargain between democracy and capitalism.