An impressive array of international scholars who, individually and collectively, marshal a wide range of evidence around the very large puzzle of university transformation in the early twenty-first century. The transnational breadth of this project is its greatest intellectual strength.
Mitchell L. Stevens, Stanford University An unusually broad analysis of the changing public mission and purpose of the contemporary ... Read moreuniversity. Its comparison of the challenges, responsibilities, and opportunities characterizing public universities around the world is particularly valuable. This book serves as an important scholarly resource and as a thoughtful analysis of key higher education policy issues.
James J. Duderstadt, University of Michigan Knowledge Matters problematizes the concept of the public good and the public university and analyzes multiple challenges faced by universities. Several timely issues, such as the commodification of knowledge, are addressed from different theoretical perspectives and with different research objectives. Many chapters situate ongoing debates regarding the public character of the research university within a framework that emphasizes globalization dynamics, such as the pressure to adapt to transnational university rankings and national quality assurance schemes. Taken as a whole, this book offers theoretically provocative essays and a wealth of empirical material. An engaged and engaging scholarly effort.
Francisco O. Ramirez, Stanford University Contains up-to-the-minute facts and interpretations of the great transformation of public research universities in the era of neoliberalism. Did these institutions sacrifice their public purposes or did they change to serve public purposes more effectively and in new ways? Contributors provide well-informed analyses and fresh perspectives on this important question.
Steven Brint, University of California, Riverside A substantial contribution to our understanding of university purposes across national contexts. The editors draw together some of the best original thinking among the field's most prominent thinkers, offering conceptual foundations certain to inspire much-needed dialogue and further research.
Patricia J. Gumport, Stanford University Show Less