prepare tar, feathers

Every university is commissioning blue-ribbon committees these days to manage through the financial challenges in higher education.

As a sociologist, I recognize the symbolic role of my own CLA 2015 commitee with Gary Oehlert, charged with strengthening and repositioning the College of Liberal Arts. But, as Lauren Edelman taught me, just because an institution serves symbolic functions doesn't mean that it can't do some real good. To take but one example, I've argued (with Lauren and Howie Erlanger) that equal employment grievance procedures can offer both symbolic and functional value to both organizations and workers.

When blue-ribbon university committees are composed of a diverse set of civic-minded participants, I'd like to think they have the potential to develop a broad-based vision, set an agenda, generate a plan to realize it, and make sound recommendations for action -- even while they are also providing political cover, legitimating unpopular changes, and demonstrating symbolic compliance with widely-shared norms and expectations.

Our CLA 2015 committee just released our interim report on the future of liberal arts in Minnesota. Our final report isn't due until October, but we're offering up a document now in the interest of transparency -- and to signal our direction and provoke discussion or feedback. Our intent was to provide a short statement that would be part wake-up call, part unifying call-to-arms, and part vision statement. To the extent we succeed, we'll generate some heated debate and hard-hitting critique. To the extent we fail, well, we'll be run out of town on a rail.

I'm cautiously optimistic, but I wouldn't mind hearing that I could crash on your couch for a few days -- just in case I need to leave town in a hurry.