Dive Summary:
- A lengthy document approved at the Republican National Convention spells out the party's stance on higher education and its alleged failings.
- The document does praise colleges for their research clout and recruitment of foreign talent, but its overall tone remains combative, going so far as to claim that research is harmed by bias for the left.
- The GOP's higher education platform in 2012, per the document, takes on colleges for being out of touch with the job market, says new rivals to traditional four-year colleges will drive down tuition, calls for an end to the federal government's direct lending program for student loans, and demands a crackdown on public employee unions and an end to affirmative action in college admissions.
From the article:
TAMPA, Fla. -- The Republican Party's 2012 platform has strong words for higher education's alleged failings, on ideological bias as well as unsustainable tuition hikes. The lengthy document, approved here today at the party's annual convention, also draws a hard line on standard party litmus tests affecting colleges, such as immigration, public employee unions and embryonic stem cell research. The GOP's playbook praises colleges for their research clout and recruitment of foreign talent. But the overall tone about the sector is combative. ...