When the founders of The New School proposed an alternative to the university a century ago, universities were bastions of privilege and received knowledge. In the intervening years the American university has reimagined itself as for all, expanding and diversifying curricula, students and faculty, but it has become increasingly hard to deliver on that promise. In our own time universities have become a point of contention in the political culture wars. A growing number of Americans see universities as a menace to a healthy society rather than a constituent part of it. And yet, as algorithmic shortcuts take the place of thought and polarizing media undermine confidence in a shared reality, the need for an educated citizenry has never been more important. This three-session intensive course explores the history of American higher education, with a strong dose of early New School ideals, in order to articulate the calling of higher education in contemporary society, and imagine new structures and practices that might serve it. Readings may include Thorstein Veblen, John Dewey, Paolo Freire, bell hooks, Fred Moten and Stefano Harney, Eve Tuck and K. Wayne Yang. A companion course, What is College For: Making a Liberal Arts Major (1cr.), runs in March, although each course can be taken separately.