Week 4: Amylynn Nguyen

Amylynn Nguyen

ASA 02 A02

Week 4

In Fredrik DeBoer’s article, “Why We Should Fear University, Inc.”, he writes about the corporatization of the university. When talking about the idea of the corporatization of the university, he is not talking about product placement, but about the fact that the culture within universities resembles one of a corporation. The ideas that are discussed within the article can relate to the concept of social engineering that was brought up during lecture. Given the information from the article, universities place students in an environment that benefits the university more than the students. Students submerge themselves into this culture not knowing that their intellectual freedom is being threatened. Reading this article, along with the idea discussed during lecture, has really made me question the ethics of the university. Since attending this school, I seem to have just blindly believed that this institution will do nothing but support me as a student. Now I am questioning universities as a whole and what actions they have taken to silence student activism. As much as I want to believe that these campuses are sanctuaries for students and their beliefs/ideas, the harsh reality is that schools are now being operated like corporations that put their students second.

Question: How can students combat the corporatization of an area that was built for them and their education?

References:  

DeBOER, F. (2015, September 09). Why We Should Fear University, Inc. New York TImes Magazine. Retrieved October 12, 2017.  

In Corporation they Trust [Jpg]. (2015, June 27). Polyp.org.uk. https://dcgmentor.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/polyp_cartoon_corporate_school.jpg