Agent of Democracy - Society for College and University Planning

Agent of Democracy
onto their radical values but had become disillusioned with colleges’
political potential as most of their students had abandoned sixtiesstyle
activism. Some, technically part of the baby boom but in
graduate school after 1975, faced
what David D. Cooper called “the
“Intellectuals are also
entitled to participate not
as professionals but as
citizens with personal
opinions and interests,
just like everyone else’s.
But when they adopt that
role, they must make sure
not to claim or imply any
special authority.”
(“Public Intellectuals and
the Influence of Economics,”
HEX, 2001.)
chronically depressed conditions
of an insanely competitive job
market,” making ends meet by
teaching adjunct courses at several
institutions and never having
the time or power to be active
politically. 5
Finally, some had developed
a new perspective that, while still
reformist and egalitarian, was increasingly
pragmatic, open-ended,
and solicitous of institutions, of
existing communities, of civic
culture, and of public deliberation,
regardless of its outcome.
Cooper wrote in HEX that
he “was bent on nourishing the
fragile bond between the inner life and ethical responsibility to work,
institution, and community.” 6 He contrasted this civic commitment
to the standard approach of his academic discipline, which was
“abstract, contentious, and theory-driven.” Edward Royce could
have been describing Cooper when he wrote a HEX article about
scholars who were not so much interested in “social criticism” as
in using “their intellectual capital to inform, educate, and empower
ordinary citizens.” 7 These people played a central role in HEX.
5 David D. Cooper, “Bus Rides and Forks in the Road: The Making of a Public
Scholar,” Higher Education Exchange (2002): 29.
6 Ibid., 32.
7 Edward Royce, “The Practice of the Public Intellectual,” Higher Education
Exchange (1999): 26.
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