At about this time last year, I argued that one strategy to use to help combat the loud and negative public attitudes toward higher education might be to employ a version of Gerald Graff’s concept of “teaching the conflicts” in general education literature courses. Such a strategy could, I suggested, provide students with an opportunity to reflect on the role of the university in their lives and in culture in a conversation based on texts that considered questions of a university’s value deeply. Participating in a semester-long discussion of literary representations of higher education might give students, I suggested, a greater future ability to interpret and contextualize public discourse about the purpose and effectiveness of US higher education.
Character (Still) Counts: Moral Injury and the Case for Character Education
Many academic leaders remember the Character Counts! initiative from the 1990s and early 2000s. It was visible in schools and youth programs nationwide, emphasizing as core values the Six Pillars
Teresa Maggard Stephens
June 15, 2026
