Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon on Monday sent a call-to-action letter to all U.S. university presidents and governing boards asking them to return to their institutions’ original purpose and restore America’s faith in higher education.
She asked the leaders of every post-secondary education institution to publish a statement by Dec. 31 outlining their commitment to academic excellence, pathbreaking research, and national service.
McMahon said this action was prompted by polling that demonstrates “public trust in higher education has reached historic lows across political parties and demographic groups.” She also noted that leaders at Yale, Vanderbilt, and Washington universities recently raised concerns about the dilution of academic standards, opaque admissions policies, and the politicization of the humanities and social sciences.
“Bold university reformers will bring excellence and accountability to American higher education,” McMahon’s letter said. “A renewed academy, in turn, will usher in a new era of opportunity, prosperity, and American leadership. “
McMahon’s letter said colleges and universities should address seven topics with the American people: transparency and merit in admissions; free speech and open inquiry; intellectual pluralism and academic vitality; affordability, value, and student outcomes; academic standards and rigor in the age of artificial intelligence; safeguarding research integrity from malign foreign influence; and prioritizing American interests.
“This forthright conversation with the American people is long overdue. And it is the essential first step toward rebuilding trust in the sector,” McMahon wrote.
A 2025 survey report by the Pew Research Center indicated that 70 percent of Americans think U.S. higher education is headed in the wrong direction.
Most of those surveyed were dissatisfied with the cost of college and university education and said that they don’t believe schools are preparing students for well-paying jobs in today’s economy. Most of the respondents also said they don’t think higher education institutions expose students to a wide range of opinions or ensure they have opportunities to express their own opinions.
McMahon’s letter is requesting actions from higher education leaders but not mandating it. Unlike previous letters reminding college and university presidents about existing Civil Rights laws, the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court ruling prohibiting race as a consideration for admissions, and findings of campus anti-Semitism or Title IX violations stemming from biological males participating in women’s sports, the recent letter does not threaten to withhold federal funding.
That deal was later extended to several other institutions, but the Department of Education has yet to announce an agreement with any school so far.