Bard College President Leon Botstein Publishes Essay on Autocracy and American Higher Education in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists published Bard College President Leon Botstein’s essay “Autocracy and the university in America today” in its September 2025 issue. In his piece, Botstein examines what anti-immigration policies and the upending of decades of close collaboration between the US federal government and American universities could mean for the future of scientific research, educational standards, democracy, and the United States. Botstein points to a renewed and reformed university and college system after the promise of democracy reasserts itself. “We must make higher education better than it was.”
About the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
The Bulletin equips the public, policymakers, and scientists with the information needed to reduce man-made threats to our existence. The Bulletin began as an emergency action, created by scientists who saw an immediate need for a public reckoning in the aftermath of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. One mission was to urge fellow scientists to help shape national and international policy. A second mission was to help the public understand what the bombings meant for humanity. These scientists anticipated that the atom bomb would be “only the first of many dangerous presents from the Pandora’s Box of modern science.” They were all too correct.

The Bulletin is an independent, nonprofit 501 (c) (3) organization that pursues its goals through media products, starting in 1945 as a mimeographed newsletter, then a magazine, now as an online publication. Today, the Bulletin’s website, premium magazine, videos, iconic Doomsday Clock, and regular events help advance actionable ideas to reduce existential threats. The Bulletin focuses on three main areas: nuclear risk, climate change, and disruptive technologies. What connects these topics is a driving belief that because humans created them, we can control them. At the Bulletin we gather a diverse array of the most informed and influential voices tracking man-made threats and bring their innovative thinking to a global audience. We apply intellectual rigor to the conversation and do not shrink from alarming truths. The profound challenges of our moment cannot be met without increasing the variety of backgrounds and perspectives of our organization and the public debate. thebulletin.org

About Bard College
Founded in 1860, Bard College is a four-year residential college of the liberal arts and sciences located 90 miles north of New York City. With the addition of the Montgomery Place and Massena properties, Bard’s campus consists of more than 1,200 parklike acres in the Hudson River Valley. It offers bachelor of arts, bachelor of science, and bachelor of music degrees, with majors in nearly 40 academic programs; advanced degrees through 13 graduate programs; nine early colleges; and numerous dual-degree programs nationally and internationally. Building on its 165-year history as a competitive and innovative undergraduate institution, Bard College has expanded its mission as a private institution acting in the public interest across the country and around the world to meet broader student needs and increase access to liberal arts education. The undergraduate program at the main campus in upstate New York has a reputation for scholarly excellence, a focus on the arts, and civic engagement. Bard is committed to enriching culture, public life, and democratic discourse by training tomorrow’s thought leaders. For more information about Bard College, visit bard.edu.

Website: https://thebulletin.org/premium/2025-09/autocracy-and-the-university-in-america-today/?variant=B&utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Kathryn%20Bigelow%20interview%20on%20%22A%20House%20of%20Dynamite%22&utm_campaign=20251020%20Monday%20Newsletter%20%28Copy%29&vgo_ee=JfF%2BEA1nPZEgWRMksg5XRGd3GxuyhH1i3OgH%3AD9Mp71EhYeKHAt%2FIwcijIYIhDI%2FfTx7%2F

Download: Autocracy_and_the_university_in_America_today_Botstein.pdf

This event was last updated on 09-03-2025

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