On behalf of The George Washington University, President Ellen Granberg has signed on to the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) public statement, “A Call for Constructive Engagement. As a signatory, GW joins leaders from America’s colleges, universities, and scholarly societies for a joint response to ongoing actions by the federal government affecting higher education. This effort marks the first time current presidents have spoken out collectively in large numbers about these issues.
GW supports the statement because it makes clear what’s at stake—for higher education and for America’s shared prosperity—in any unraveling of the longstanding, productive partnership between government and institutions of higher learning. The presidents “are open to constructive reform and do not oppose legitimate government oversight,” while calling for “constructive engagement that improves our institutions and serves our republic.”
The constant flurry of headlines relating to executive orders, intense scrutiny, investigations, and other actions taken by the federal government have created challenging times for higher education. GW will continue to do what is required to protect our university’s future access to federal funds, including vigorous enforcement of our policies. GW continues to monitor and assess executive orders and other actions and their potential impact on the university while doing all we can to safeguard our mission, our values, and our operations.
The full statement and an up-to-date list of signatories are available online at www.aacu.org/constructive-engagement.