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May 13, 2025

WASHINGTON, DC—A new commentary in The Milbank Quarterly urges research universities to make tough decisions in the face of deep Administration cuts with eyes wide open and resolve to speak up. In “Tough decisions for the future of US research universities: Transparency and shared governance are critical,”(Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, Marco Thimm-Kaiser, Adam Benzekri, and Alida Bouris), the authors urge “greater transparency and shared governance regarding who will make these (university) decisions and how.”

“Research universities and the scientific community are facing some very hard choices in the face of aggressive cuts: If you call the cuts out, the fear is the funding will be cut. If you don’t, you will still likely get cut and lose independence and academic freedom, which are central,” said lead author Dr. Vincent Guilamo-Ramos, Institute for Policy Solutions (IPS) Executive Director and the Leona B. Carpenter Chair in Health Equity and Social Determinants of Health at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing.

The new paper explores:

• The weakness of research universities that are being exploited by the federal funding cuts: dependence on research resources coming from the federal government and low public trust in higher education institutions.
• The need for more transparency in decision making to build the public trust that makes it much harder for cuts to stand.
• The importance of rebuilding a broad public consensus that free and independent universities make important contributions to society.
• The imperative to make university education more accessible for everyone who wants it.

“Shared governance that centers full transparency, rigorous debate, and academic freedom offers universities a way to harness their strengths, address current weaknesses, and ensure that they remain central to the betterment of scientific and civil life in the United States. Standing firm and speaking up—in protecting institutional independence and academic freedom—may reinvigorate the core values of scientific inquiry and yield renewed public support from segments of U.S. society that believe in the benefits of independent institutions and academic integrity. At the same time, these decisions will likely require painful financial sacrifices,” stressed Guilamo-Ramos.

ENDS

Note to editors

Link to Milbank Quarterly

Find more information about the Institute for Policy Solutions at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing at www.ipsnow.org