3 Takeaways From a Dinner With Presidents

Washington, D.C.—With higher education under fire from the Trump administration, a dozen private college presidents gathered at the National Press Club Thursday night to discuss mounting pressure on the sector.

The wide-ranging discussion was part of an annual Presidents Dinner hosted by Bucknell University, now in its ninth year. For 90 minutes, presidents fielded questions from reporters representing a range of national publications. Here are three takeaways from that conversation.

1. Higher ed has an “antagonistic relationship” with Washington.

Private institutions aren’t immune to political pressure, as evidenced by the concessions some highly selective institutions have made to the Trump administration in the face of its relentless attacks. Presidents at Thursday’s dinner, who mostly represented small liberal arts colleges, noted increasing concern about the strained relationship between the higher education sector and the federal government.

Their concerns were far-reaching.

When asked about Education Secretary Linda McMahon’s recent “Call to Action,” the successor to the widely rejected “Compact for Academic Excellence,” presidents appeared apprehensive.

“What we’re seeing is we are being put into an antagonistic relationship with our own government around something that we do as a civic contribution, something that we have been doing for generations that has been broadly recognized globally as the best in the world,” Vincent D. Rougeau, president of the College of the Holy Cross, said.

Some wondered if the call on institutions to answer questions about admissions, tuition costs and academic freedom was intended to help or harm institutions.

Colorado College President Manya Whitaker told reporters she thought McMahon’s email was spam and deleted it. After seeing the headlines the next day, she dug out the message and asked herself, “How can I view this as an opportunity?”

Colorado College is now consulting with faculty and staff on whether to respond, though Whitaker expressed misgivings about the letter, noting that “it feels like there is something behind the scenes at play.”

Presidents also expressed alarm about the Trump administration’s threat to strip private colleges of their tax-exempt status if they maintain admissions policies or scholarships intended to support minority students, which the federal government considers equivalent to racial discrimination.

“Of course, we should and do comply with Students for Fair Admissions [which ended affirmative action], but to use the IRS in this way is a significant and frankly frightening change in policy,” Bates College President Garry W. Jenkins said.

DePauw University President Lori White saw the proposal as a threat to institutional independence, placing undue restrictions on what universities can do within the law.

“The idea that we would lose our tax-exempt status for doing things that are aligned with our institutional mission and values—that are legal—and [the federal government would] take away resources that we are using for good to help support scholarships and other kinds of experiences for students attending our institution is quite frightening,” she said.

Presidents also noted concerns about slumping international enrollment and the potential for long-running consequences as the Trump administration increasingly targets such students.

Williams College President Maud Mandel said international enrollment at her institution had held steady, but she is worried about how moves by the Trump administration to limit duration of status and restrict work opportunities might affect the experience of international students and make the U.S. less desirable for future students.

2. The AI conversation is evolving into something more nuanced.

Concerns about academic integrity have dominated conversations about artificial intelligence since the technology surged into the mainstream almost four years ago. But some presidents argued on Thursday that the cheating question is the least interesting part of the conversation.

President Adam S. Weinberg of Denison University said the dialogue at his institution has centered on a few key points: how to embed the technology in the curriculum to help students graduate with AI fluency, when not to use it because it can stunt learning, how it is driving changes in the job market and how to leverage such tools for operational efficiency.

Anne Harris, president of Grinnell College, noted a concern that has received less attention: the socio-emotional relationship students are developing with AI and the potential for dependence.

“We are starting to hear people talk about ‘my AI said,’” Harris remarked, noting that people are using the technology to probe into relationship issues and other personal matters. Outside of academic and other uses, she said AI is shaping “how students are processing the world.”

Several presidents also said that much like the rest of higher education, they are figuring out the norms for using AI in their jobs.

White, of DePauw, gave an example of deploying AI to help her prepare a sermon that she gives annually at a local church, plugging the Scripture and themes into the program to help with her remarks. She noted that she didn’t follow what it gave her verbatim and compared it to using a speechwriter.

“I didn’t feel guilty about doing it, and it certainly saved me time,” White said.

Elizabeth Bradley said that when she became president of Vassar College, she made a commitment to read all the books and articles that her faculty members produced. But she noted that “some of these books are really hard to understand”—especially those that fall outside her discipline—so she has turned to AI to help unpack complex topics and engage with the writing.

“It’s sort of like having someone as a teacher with you as you’re reading,” Bradley said.

3. ROI extends beyond earnings.

Presidents also pushed back on the notion that earnings alone show the value of a degree.

Rougeau, of Holy Cross, suggested that the focus on earnings is too narrow given the many pathways available to students, especially those at religious institutions, who often go into low-paid roles in the ministry. Overemphasis on return on investment, he said, excludes the value of service.

“What is the value of offering something to others? You cannot monetize that. But if institutions are willing to support students who make those choices, why is that bad?” Rougeau argued. “Why shouldn’t that be rewarded?”

Smith College President Sarah Willie-LeBreton was even more pointed. While she emphasized that college graduates are more likely to volunteer in their community and give to charity, she also said that many of those questioning the value of a degree still want their kids to enroll.

“I also think we should just be suspicious anytime people who are sending their children to college are suggesting that it’s a good time for other people not to send their children to college,” Willie-LeBreton said.