With higher education policy increasingly driven by executive action, Michael and Jeff explore why Congress has been largely absent from the conversation—and what that means for students and institutions. They’re joined by James Kvaal, former Under Secretary of Education under the Biden Administration, and Preston Cooper of the American Enterprise Institute, for a bipartisan discussion about stalled reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, cuts to the Department of Education, the future of international students at American colleges, and more. This episode is made with support from the Gates Foundation.

0:00 - Intro
04:44 - The Cost of Congressional Inaction
13:28 - Unlocking Movement on Higher Ed
19:53 - Areas for Bipartisan Compromise
23:15 - The Big Change We Need
28:33 - The Impact of Cuts to the Department of Education
32:58 - Immigration and International Students
38:23 - Agreement Across the Aisle
43:55 - Changes Since the Last HEA Reauthorization
48:12 - Too Much Focus on the Elites?

In a special episode recorded at the Milken Global Institute, Jeff moderates a wide-ranging panel with higher education leaders including the presidents of Dartmouth, Stanford, UC San Diego, Yeshiva University, and the CEO of ETS. The conversation explores the crises and critiques facing higher ed—from campus protests and declining public trust to research funding and economic ROI. The leaders discuss how institutions can reaffirm their missions, serve a broader public, and restore faith in the value of a degree in an era of polarization and political scrutiny.

In this second part from the Milken Global Institute, Jeff Selingo engages in a provocative conversation with investor and Harvard critic Bill Ackman. They discuss the challenges facing elite higher education today—from DEI rollbacks and government funding threats to what Ackman describes as Harvard's financial crisis and governance failures. Ackman argues that administrative bloat, viewpoint homogeneity, and an unsustainable business model have undermined top institutions, while suggesting Harvard's $53 billion endowment may be significantly overvalued. The discussion explores contentious issues in admissions fairness, including legacy preferences, and concludes with Ackman's vision for higher education's future, where competition from new models might force established universities to reform or risk irrelevance.

0:00 - Intro

1:04 - Federal Funding as a Lever of Influence

8:07 - Board Insulation at Harvard

13:08 - Limiting Class Size

14:25 - Fairness in Admissions

18:27 - Where We Go From Here

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