The Yale Committee on Trust in Higher Education released a report April 10 which detailed immediate factors behind the recent rise of public distrust in higher education. The report issued recommendations for Yale University to regain trust by lowering costs, increasing admissions transparency, promoting political plurality, refocusing on the classroom and refining Yale’s stated mission.
The committee’s work lasted a year, and the report said the committee aimed to balance the challenge of addressing the sweeping issue of nationwide distrust while also recognizing the need for timely recommendations. Consisting of 10 Yale faculty members in various departments, the committee also referenced a bibliography citing works of hundreds of academic scholars nationwide that served as reference points throughout the process. Additionally, Yale launched a public event series on “The Future of Higher Education” sponsored by the Committee on Trust in Higher Education.
Outside of the committee’s work at Yale, members also held consultations with five experts in higher education at other institutions, including University Assoc. Sociology Prof. Angel Adams Parham. Another University faculty member — Chad Wellmon, Commonwealth professor of Germanic Languages and Literatures — was cited in the report's selected bibliography for his 2017 article, "Melancholy Mandarins: Bloom, Weber and Moral Education,” which calls on universities to rededicate themselves to teaching the humanities.
Parham said that although the report is crafted specifically for Yale, the burden falls upon higher education institutions writ large to build public trust, even if particular issues across institutions differ.
“I think [U.Va. does] have to deal with a larger public perception, even if the realities are very different,” Parham said. “There's unfortunately a tendency in the mind of the public to kind of lump all universities together, and so if nothing else, we have to deal with public perceptions that may not be fair.”
To restore trust in higher education, the report listed areas of recommendations pertaining to the classroom, cost, free speech and university governance that apply to higher education institutions nationwide.
“Whether or not a diploma has enduring value depends on what it signifies: personal effort, professional skill, intelligence, knowledge, expertise,” the report read. “If the public ceases to believe that colleges and universities are fostering such qualities, support for higher education will necessarily suffer.”
The issue — declining trust in higher education
In a Gallup poll, 57 percent of Americans surveyed reported they had “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in higher education in 2015. In 2025, just 42 percent reported those levels of confidence.
Although the issue of mistrust is not nearly confined to institutions of higher education — the media, federal government and major corporations and businesses at large have faced similar declines in public trust — higher education institutions serve a particular purpose to create and share knowledge. If the public does not trust the knowledge generated, then the purpose effectively becomes void, the report explains.
“Universities exist to preserve, create and share knowledge,” the report read. “Staying true to that fundamental purpose, while remaining open to productive change, will be essential for building public trust in the years ahead.”
The report addresses how historically, universities have existed to educate students, preserve cultural heritage and “push the frontiers of knowledge” — goals that higher education has not always met. The report explains that universities exist at a distance from society to maintain autonomy and elude political and commercial pressures. At the same time, the report points out that universities are not separate from society — they create value for the public, and they practice an implicit commitment to use knowledge for forces of good.
Critics argue higher education executes this balance between separation and interaction with society poorly. In particular, the report cites dissatisfaction around topics of academic freedom, demographic quotas, government research funding and an increasingly drastic political ideology imbalance.
The University was founded on dissatisfaction with the state of public education in Virginia — University founder Thomas Jefferson’s dissatisfaction, that is. Jefferson’s dissatisfaction manifested in his attempts to amend the Constitution of the College of William and Mary. Jefferson proposed changes related to University governance, funding and the organization of the College, arguing it had not fulfilled the public's expectations. According to Monticello, Jefferson’s attempts to reform public education led to his creation of the University in 1819.
The committee identified areas where — both throughout history and today — public expectation and higher education institutional practice significantly differ, planting seeds for festering distrust. According to the report, the most dominant issue among these was the cost of attending higher education institutions, followed by issues of opaque admissions practices, stilted free speech and self-censorship concerns, a lack of intellectual pluralism and the devaluation of teaching and learning in the classroom.
In summary, the report is a call to action. These issues leading to declining trust must be addressed to ensure that higher education retains its value moving forward, for the public ultimately decides the value placed on a college degree, the report asserts.
A university’s “mission,” debated
As the report dug into the contributing factors to the public’s distrust in higher education, it began by laying out an issue of widespread uncertainty about the purpose and mission of higher education.
“Trust is earned by doing what you say you’re going to do — and, ideally, doing it well. In recent years, however, universities have been expected to be all things to all people — selective but inclusive, affordable but luxurious, meritocratic but equitable,” the report wrote. “Without a clear mission and purpose, it becomes difficult to judge whether colleges and universities are living up to their fundamental commitments.”
The University’s stated mission touches on the University’s local and global commitments, its obligation to develop students to their potentials and its responsibility to provide quality patient care at U.Va. Health.
“The University of Virginia is a public institution of higher learning guided by a founding vision of discovery, innovation and development of the full potential of talented students from all walks of life. It serves the Commonwealth of Virginia, the nation and the world by developing responsible citizen leaders and professionals; advancing, preserving and disseminating knowledge and providing world-class patient care,” the mission statement reads.
Yale’s mission statement was expanded in 2016 to include improving the world and educating leaders worldwide — similar language to the University’s global-oriented language in its mission — and growing an “ethical, interdependent and diverse community.” The report recommended this mission be narrowed to focus on the creation, dissemination and preservation of knowledge.
“This statement serves as the basis for the recommendations that follow in this report. At a moment when higher education is being buffeted from all sides, it is imperative to understand what we are here for and what universities do best,” the report wrote. “That requires clarity, not diffusion, of purpose.”
The classroom
Yale’s report included many recommendations to recenter college life around coursework and classroom interactions. The recommendations ask that Yale instill a device-free policy as the default for classrooms and refocus on the rigor and reward found in “sustained attention, intellectual curiosity and disciplined habits of mind.”
“In our era of quick fixes and ever-faster information flows, colleges and universities may be the last places where it is possible to slow down, step back and think systematically,” the report wrote. “We believe that these qualities are likely to become more important, not less, in the years ahead.”
The in-person, technology-free classroom experience is of unique importance to the University — former University President Teresa Sullivan was temporarily ousted by the Board of Visitors in part due to her alleged lack of action in the face of the rise of online courses. The Board cited her inaction in protecting the University from the fully online courses in their push for her resignation.
To create spaces for connection amidst an increasingly online reality, the University has turned in part to no-tech classes to increase student engagement and discourse.
Another contested subject in the classroom is grading — the report addresses the ever-present questions of what grades should signify to students and potential employers or application reviewers, and how professors should assess students. In particular, the University has seen a robust trend of grade inflation over the last few decades. In the last 15 years at the University, the average GPA has jumped from 3.24 in 2010 to 3.61 in 2025.
According to the report, inflation has caused grades to lose their significance, and a necessary collective action solution among professors has not been attained.
“Grades exist to communicate what students have learned. At Yale, as at many peer institutions, they no longer do,” the report wrote. “Decades of inflation and compression have rendered the college grading system almost meaningless as an academic measure. Previous efforts to reverse that trend have failed, in part because individual faculty, who rightly control grading in their own courses, have had no institutional framework for acting collectively.”
Grade inflation is particularly prominent among the Ivies, with many Ivy League schools rewarding students with average GPAs of above 3.6 — a full grade point above the average GPA of between 2.3 and 2.8 that characterized the Ivy grading system in the 1950s and 60s. Just last month, Harvard University announced it would cap A’s to 20 percent of the letter grades awarded in a course. About two-thirds of undergraduate letter grades were A’s at Harvard for its 2024-25 academic year.
The report recommends a 3.0 mean GPA for Yale, and it asks for conversations on this topic among faculty to begin now. The report also recommended that the registrar’s office compute course percentiles to reflect the context for each grade on a student’s transcript. With percentile ranks, the report argues that a student’s relative standing will provide stable, comparable measures and encourage students to enroll in challenging courses.
Within the classroom, course content is also a concern broached in the report. Many conservatives argue that higher education curricula indoctrinates students with a left-wing bias. After the Black Lives Matter movement of 2020, critical race theory became a basis for contention, following a centuries-long history of book bans, censorship and debates on religion’s place in education.
Parham said she was consulted by the committee primarily on the topic of curriculum — in her view, it seemed like the Yale committee brought in outside scholars to speak on their particular area of expertise relating to improving trust in higher education. Parham advocates for curricular reform in K-12 and higher education settings, and she said she pushed for a common set of texts that all students at a particular university would read to serve as reference points in students’ coursework to enable healthy discourse within universities.
The report ultimately asks that Yale “create common knowledge” — a proposition Parham championed when she was consulted by the committee.
“The curricular requirements in Yale College are diffuse. There is no single course, book, work of art, or scientific experiment that every Yale student is guaranteed to explore before graduation,” the report wrote.
Parham said the University does not do anything in the curriculum arena that calls for particular attention when compared with higher education nationwide. She said the University is similar to most other universities in that students arrive to take courses in their particular area of study, and there are no common readings comprising a University-wide curricular element.
According to Parham, Julia Adams, a co-chair on the report’s committee, contacted her, which led to a Zoom call between Parham and the committee. Beforehand, Adams asked Parham for suggested readings focused on curriculum for the committee to review, and Parham sent articles in support of a coherent curricular approach in which students read more in common.
“For many colleges … there's not any one text or anything that everyone is going to have read and could have a conversation about — that makes it a lot harder for us to have cohesive conversations,” Parham said.
Parham said she shared with the committee about the work she has done at the undergraduate and K-12 level, stressing the importance of having common texts to serve as starting points for conversation among students.
“What I think is important is that [having common texts] allows for addressing enduring questions like ‘What is justice?’ ‘What is freedom?’ [and] ‘What is the nature of a good life?’” Parham said. “Having read some of these texts … doesn't mean we're all going to think the same about the questions or the text, but it provides a really crucial foundation.”
The Yale report recommends the creation of a civic education initiative, which would grant a “common intellectual foundation” for first-year undergraduate students. The University currently offers programs like the Civic Cornerstone Fellowship and Engagements courses that focus on dialogue and inquiry, although these opportunities are not mandated for all University students.
Cost
The University ranks among the top universities nationally for affordability, value and return on investment. Most recently, the Princeton Review ranked the University second in “best value colleges for public schools.” Undergraduate tuition for in-state students is $16,842 for their first two years in the College, and undergraduate tuition for out-of-state students is $57,432 for the 2026-27 academic year. Yale’s undergraduate tuition for the 2026-27 academic year is $72,500.
Both schools publicize that they meet 100 percent of demonstrated financial need for all eligible undergraduate students. At the University, in-state students with family incomes below $50,000 get tuition, fees, housing and food covered by the University, and tuition and fees are completely covered for families earning under $100,000. Yale provides free undergraduate tuition to families with annual incomes below $200,000.
Parham noted that the University differs from Yale in terms of cost and affordability, citing high national rankings in cost effectiveness. Broadly speaking, she highlighted that a major driver of public distrust in higher education is cost.
“I think [cost is] just rising very, very quickly, and then [there are] pressures in the job market at the same time for graduates,” Parham said.
The report asks that Yale make higher education more affordable to rebuild public trust by gradually raising the income limit on the “no tuition” guarantee and making the financial aid system more fair and comprehensive, clearly showing how aid calculations are made and how much support students can expect over the entire four years.
In conjunction with conversations on affordability, the report asks for Yale to more closely assess whether it is providing an adequate return on investment — “Do graduates earn back what they paid?” Reporting by The Cavalier Daily demonstrates that ROI sharply differs between majors, with bachelor’s degrees in computer science and mathematics offering the highest initial salaries, and degrees in anthropology and studio art offering the lowest earnings out of college. However, the report also acknowledges that the value of college cannot and should not be reduced to such simple measures.
“Educational value cannot be reduced to a future paycheck. The value of higher education also includes the public contributions of graduates,” the report wrote. “We recommend that Yale ensure that public-serving careers are actively recruited for, well-funded through fellowships and programming and treated as a source of institutional pride.”
The report advocates for the value of a liberal arts education and its ability to equip students with critical skills that serve as a foundation for future endeavors. The College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences — the University’s liberal arts-centered school — is the largest academic division of the University, educating approximately 70 percent of all undergraduate students.
Undergraduate admissions
The report asks that Yale reform its undergraduate admission practices, which begins with taking account of how the process actually works and articulating this to the public. Additionally, the report says that the top priority for applicants should be academic achievement.
“The university also bears an obligation to … conduct the [admission] process with as much fairness and respect for the aspirations of young people as it can muster,” the report wrote. “We recommend that the university embrace a standard of candor — it should only use criteria for admission that it is willing to describe publicly and defend openly.”
Yale requires students applying to include ACT or SAT scores. The University, on the other hand, had a test-optional admissions policy for the Fall 2026 semester, meaning students had the choice of submitting an ACT or SAT score or omitting a score altogether. According to the University’s admissions website, students will not be disadvantaged because of their choice.
Yale’s first-year application also features seven short-answer questions and one essay question for students applying through Common Application and Coalition Application, in addition to non-Yale specific essay requirements. The University does not require supplemental essays — these were fully eliminated for the 2025-26 application cycle. Yale also allows applicants to submit additional materials including artistic portfolios and STEM research. For the 2025-26 application cycle, University policy allowed prospective first-year students who “exhibit truly exceptional talent” and intend to declare an arts-related major and/or minor to submit an arts supplement for the holistic review process.
The University, on its admission website, publicizes a page on the “characteristics and qualities of competitive applicants.” The resources detail qualities including strong coursework and grades, potential to “live lives of purpose [and] impact” and a demonstrated determination to succeed in the face of adversity.
The University also publicizes a page on the “application review process.” The page delves into the University’s holistic approach, clarifying no algorithm is used during application review. According to the page, 60 application readers seek to enroll students “in-line with [the University’s] institutional mission and values.” The University also offers statistics on SAT scores for entering classes and in-state and out-of-state percentages.
Regarding accessibility and admissions, Parham noted that Yale and the Ivy League more broadly differ from the University in this way — Parham said she believes the University is largely accountable to the Commonwealth, hosting majority Virginia residents in its student body.
Yale encounters a unique set of challenges not faced by the University — the distrust that comes with legacy admissions. According to the report, the current system of preferences for certain applicants distorts the admissions process, which should be reduced. Additionally, the report recommends “establishing and making public a minimum standard of academic achievement” to lighten the burden on students.
“Under the current system, Yale informs potential students that everything matters, leaving applicants scrambling to second-guess what the university wants,” the report wrote. “A floor such as a minimum SAT score or a Yale-specific entrance exam would ensure that no student is admitted without the requisite academic preparation and ability. It would also spare a meaningful number of applicants time and emotional investment in an application that will not succeed.”
The report also recommended that even though many will not get the opportunity to study at Yale, the knowledge created should be communicated beyond the walls of the institution.
“Yale in particular has paid too little attention to the ways that it might communicate and exchange knowledge beyond its own campus and peer institutions,” the report wrote. “We recommend that the university think more creatively about how to make its research and resources, including its teaching, available to a wider community.
Some initiatives that disseminate knowledge to the public carried out by the University include Aperio — the peer-reviewed, open-access press supported by the U.Va. Library — the Karsh Institute of Democracy and the Center for Politics — both of which often host political-oriented events open to the public — and many projects within the School of Data Science, which operates with a commitment to societal collaboration and betterment.
Free speech and self-censorship
In line with many national conversations and local conversations held on Grounds, the report asked that Yale protect free speech and support academic freedom.
“The history of intellectual growth and discovery clearly demonstrates the need for unfettered freedom, the right to think the unthinkable, discuss the unmentionable and challenge the unchallengeable,” the report wrote.
The University dropped from last year’s first place ranking to No. 21 out of 257 schools in the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression 2026 College Free Speech Rankings, released in September 2025. The University earned a score of 73.41 in 2024 and a score of 70.33 out of 100 points in 2025.
Amidst this decline in the rankings, the University offers a range of resources and events with the goal of promoting a positive free speech climate on Grounds. Initiatives include Think Again, which aims to promote civil conversations across the political spectrum, a partnership with Student Affairs and Freedom Forum — a national foundation which aims to “foster First Amendment freedoms for all” — and free expression offerings through the Karsh Institute of Democracy.
With regards to academic freedom, the report instills the belief that Yale faculty should “conduct research, teach classes, engage in campus discussion and speak as public citizens without fear of reprisal from the university or government.”
In the most recent faculty exit interview summary for the University administered by Work Institute — a third-party employee retention and engagement consulting firm — outgoing faculty members reported “a strong, visible institutional commitment to diversity and inclusion.” Further, the respondents said diversity was seen as beneficial for research and teaching perspectives.
University governance
As the University’s Board of Visitors has recently seen many changes to its composition, the report’s section on collaborative and trusted governance proves relevant. The report asks for systems of shared governance to consult broadly with students, staff and the wider community.
“We also recommend that [Yale] explore ways to enhance lines of communication, mutual trust and consultation with campus and community constituencies,” the report wrote. “Governance built on consultation is slower than governance by decree. It is also more legitimate and more likely to last.”
The committee also asks that Yale streamline its bureaucratic leadership to reduce administrative bloat — a disproportionate growth of administrators and managers relative to students and faculty. The committee said the challenge of bloat, which drives up tuition costs and patient bills, is a problem shared by many other peer institutions. The report asks for greater transparency in the area of fund usage to improve trust both within and outside of Yale.
“The governing principle should be clear. It should be hard to administratively expand, and easy to contract,” the report wrote.
Additionally, the report recommends that Yale work to build trust with trustees — its equivalent to the University’s Board.
“By the nature of their demanding volunteer positions, trustees are distant from day-to-day life on campus,” the report wrote. “To enhance communication in both directions, we recommend that the Yale faculty, through the boards of permanent officers, appoint or elect a limited number of faculty representatives to serve as liaisons to the Board of Trustees and its committees.”
The University’s Board currently includes one non-voting faculty representative — a position that Jeri Seidman, outgoing Faculty Senate chair and associate Commerce professor — will begin July 1. A non-voting student representative also sits on the Board — rising fourth-year College student Jackson Sleadd — and he began his role June 1. The report also recommended that Yale’s trustees include experienced scholars and academic leaders. The University’s Board is currently composed of a majority of lawyers and businessmen.
“Trustees drawn exclusively from business and finance, however capable, will inevitably require the administration to translate between institutional decisions and academic consequences,” the report wrote. “Scholars on the Board would assist the trustees in enhancing the university’s mission and remove a burden from the university’s upper administration, which otherwise must do all the work of explaining campus life to the trustees in routine and emergency matters.”
The University’s response to the report
Regarding the University’s communication and action following Yale’s report, University Spokesperson Bethanie Glover wrote in an email statement to The Cavalier Daily that committee members designed the report using Yale-specific concerns and data. The University, she wrote, has its own review processes for many of the issues the report mentions.
“The report … was specifically designed for Yale by a committee of its own community members, and [it] reviews and recommends improvements on Yale's own procedures and policies,” Glover said. “However, the University regularly reviews and considers many of the factors that were analyzed in the report … on its own accord, and implements improvements where needed and possible.”
Report of the Yale Committee on Trust in Higher Education
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