If asked where the intellectual capital of the United States is concentrated, the state of Texas likely wouldn’t be first to spring to mind. New York, California, and Boston’s university row have long reigned supreme.
Yet, this paradigm is being profoundly challenged. The legacy universities, for all their multi-billion dollar endowments, legions of administrators, and record-low acceptance rates, no longer serve their original purpose. A university is, at heart, an institution dedicated to the pursuit of truth. Knowledge and truth are inseparable. By seeking the truth about the world around us, one finds knowledge.
Unfortunately, prominent American universities no longer seek to establish the truth. Rather, they aim to manipulate or deny it. Universities, never politically apathetic places in the best of times, have fallen spellbound to the trappings of a suffocating movement pushed by activist students, complicit academics, and politically aligned administrators. This movement operates under the guises of inclusivity and equity, seeking to establish a new modus operandi for the higher education system: a place where political wrongs and societal inequities are remedied, and opposing voices are stifled. Yet knowledge certainly does not contort itself into narrow ideological boundaries to serve political agendas.
In short, the objective and non-partisan study of truth has taken a backburner to ideological conformity masquerading as care for the “well-being” of others. Where once was rigid intellectual inquiry and debate now lies the detritus of the culture wars, where over 60% of students are afraid of sharing their political views in class. The situation is critical at top universities, because professors and students have privileged access to the political and economic elite.
However, not all hope for American higher education is lost. Unburdened academic inquiry is experiencing a revival where one might not expect it: the Lone Star state, the land of overpasses, jacked-up trucks, rodeos, and cowboys. Welcome to Texas, where everything is bigger. In contrast with the New England elites and the hipsters in Menlo Park, the Texans have retained a distinct frontier aesthetic, somewhere between intrepid pioneerism and soulless corporatism. Vast economic opportunity and comparative political normalcy have brought hundreds of thousands of transplants from California, New York, and across the country. It is then little surprise that a simultaneous intellectual migration has also found its place here, in the form of the fledgling University of Austin (UATX).
The University of Austin is the proposed alternative to the ideological fervor that has seized American higher education. Established by a team including Bari Weiss, Niall Ferguson, and Larry Summers, the university has as its stated goal an environment “devoted solely to the fearless pursuit of the truth.”
In theory, ideological dogmas should play no role here. I went to find out.
Anglo-American Grand Strategy at Old Parkland
I attended this summer’s Forbidden Courses program. The Forbidden Courses are the first “classes” offered by the university, featuring week-long explorations of subjects ranging from Anglo-American Grand Strategy to Science and Christianity. As UATX is still seeking formal accreditation, the Forbidden Courses, alongside a graduate “Polaris” fellowship and shorter courses for highschoolers, serve as the initial offerings of the university.
I went into the program hopeful, yet skeptical of the long-term prospects of UATX’s success. Establishing a new organization is hard in the best of times; creating a new university during a period of economic uncertainty is harder.
Despite the university's name, the classes actually occurred at the beautiful Old Parkland Hall, in the city of Dallas. (For those interested in the architecture of Old Parkland, read fellow student Matthew Lodge’s piece here.) My course of study was Anglo-American Grand Strategy, with world-renowned author, professor, and commentator on international affairs, Walter Russell Mead. Professor Mead certainly knew how to make an impression.
Apologizing for any distractions, Professor Mead explained that he was in the final stage of editing an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal. Gruff yet welcoming, he quickly demonstrated the breadth of his expertise in history and international affairs. Our primary reading for the course consisted of Mead’s book God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World. (Fear not, curious academics; the time-established practice of professors assigning their own books is well and alive at UATX.) Meeting twice a day over a week, we discussed Mead’s theory of history - that the Anglo-American powers have consistently vanquished their opponents and flourished over the past centuries due to a combination of maritime power, dynamic religion, and the ability to harness capitalism without falling prey to the change it brings. Yet our classes also delved deep into contemporary international politics, religious debates, and contemplations of humanity’s future. Lunching with Professor Mead several times, we had the opportunity to pick his brain thoroughly on every subject imaginable, from the thought processes of the Chinese leadership to his own relationships with prominent global figures.
Yet I would be at fault if I only acknowledged Professor Mead. What truly made the class work was the caliber of the students it attracted, and this went for the program as a whole. My class consisted mostly of university students: two each from Harvard and the University of Chicago, and several from schools ranging from Fordham, Dartmouth, and MIT to the National Intelligence University. Among those who had already graduated, finance was the preponderant industry, with both private equity and investment banking represented. Being some years younger than most of my classmates, I will readily admit to feeling overwhelmed on arrival. However, I quickly realized that the course, aided greatly by its participants, was the single best learning opportunity I had come across in my life thus far. As we discussed questions of Anglicanism, Wilsonianism, and the Adam’s curve (a measure of humanity’s capacity to harness power and survive change), I felt that the doors to a new world had opened to me.
I would also be amiss if I did not mention the participants in the program as a whole. Young people coming from Ukraine to the U.K studied subjects ranging from Writing Sexual Politics to The Psychology of Morality. Most importantly, discussions were not restricted to classrooms - almost every waking moment together was spent in conversation on everything from history to literature to philosophy to the state of American politics and higher education. I even had the opportunity to talk about the failures of South African energy policy with a Polaris fellow, an renewables entrepreneur working across the African continent. Convening in the spacious hotel lobby (everything is bigger in Texas) after activities had finished for the evening, one would find the subject at hand ranging from Don Quixote to the merits of federalization. The program attracted thinkers, people for whom learning was a serious matter. I discussed what I knew and made mental catalogs of everything else.
One final note about my fellow students: the representation from the startup and venture world was astonishing. While partially due to both my youth and inexperience and the prevalence of attendees from traditionally elite universities, I’m drawn to believe that something about the program attracted creators and entrepreneurs. Perhaps those inclined towards providing solutions via creation see flaws in the system more readily than others. Or perhaps it’s the recognition that building new things and seizing new ideas requires uninhibited discussion. Regardless, the number of conversations I had with startup founders, students intent on joining the field, and venture capitalists were too numerous to count.
To call my time at UATX exhausting would be an understatement. It was without a doubt the most intellectually grueling week of my life. Yet it was also one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had. Those I grew close to during the program thought similarly. One even told me that if he did end up leaving his current trajectory to embark on a new career, this program would be responsible. And in a broader sense, if is the question at hand.
Will UATX be able to translate a one week success story into a flourishing university devoted to the pursuit of the truth? Sure, if they get enough students, if they fundraise, if they can get the faculty signups. My conversations with those involved with the University lead me to believe that these are very achievable goals. The University is backed by deep financial and high-profile intellectual capital. They offer an ingenious solution to a widely recognized problem. Yes, attracting the same caliber of student and perhaps professors full-time will be difficult. However, the extent of the disillusionment with the American higher education system and breadth of opportunities at UATX inclines me to believe that they will come. Intrepid rising high-school seniors - consider UATX. It changed my life, and has the potential to change yours.