Can the Next President Put Public Universities Back on Top? September 19, 2012

America's public universities are in crisis. The nation's success in the global economy depends on producing more college graduates, but our graduation rates have slipped in comparison to the rest of the world. In response to state budget constraints, public universities continue to make deep cuts and raise tuition, making it harder for students to afford higher education. And those who do earn a degree enter a weak job market carrying more debt than ever before. With an election approaching, UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, Chair of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities; University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman, Chair of the Association of American Universities; and Carnegie Corporation of New York President Vartan Gregorian visit Zocalo to ask what the higher education agenda of the next president should be.