Ohio State professor defends the critique of the university with ‘positivity’

A professor from The Ohio State University recently published an article in which he sought to defend academia, arguing that colleges and universities in the United States benefit the country.

OSU’s College of Arts and Sciences published “In Praise of the Arts and Humanities” by Ryan Skinner, director of OSU’s Humanities Institute, on Nov. 20.

“One faculty member told me they read it that morning and they cried,” Skinner told NBC 4. “We so often do not hear this (positivity) about our field.”

The news source added that after conducting its own survey, it found that 63% of 1,000 American voters surveyed felt a college education is not worth the cost.

“What happens when we attend to the positive?” Skinner asked. “And when we’re not simply defending ourselves to the negative, but affirming ourselves to the positive?”

According to him, the existing problems in education could be solved by expanding successful programs. In the article, Skinner celebrated the fact that arts and humanities courses at the institutions of higher learning teach students critical skills, highlighting achievements in the humanities at Ohio State.

Additionally, Skinner also wrote about the success within the Buckeye State, showing that the creative sector supports nearly 300,000 jobs statewide in 2024 and generates $32.9 billion.

Skinner told the news source that he decided to write this article to respond to the nonstop criticism of the academic world, specifically of professors at American colleges and universities.

“I worry that a careful and cautious posture that is on the defensive could prevent us from acknowledging and addressing the things we are doing well,” he said.

In his article, Skinner did not mention other problems that plague many colleges and universities in the country, including Ohio State.

Among those problems are “race-exclusionary practices,” such as the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Ohio State was previously criticized for requiring all of its students to complete courses in seven “foundational” areas, including Race, Ethnicity and Gender Diversity.

“Our letter showed that the Ohio State student registration portal still lists one course in ‘Race, Ethnicity and Gender Diversity’ as required as a Foundation in General Education,” Reagan Dugan, project manager for Higher Education at Defending Education, said. “We believe this DEI requirement in General Education clearly violates this prohibition.”

Skinner also failed to mention that Ohio State ranked only 12th in merit and free speech. The reason that happened was that the university implemented DEI practices and allowed antisemitism to spread around its campus, which resulted in one of its alums comparing Jews to roaches on Facebook.

Skinner also didn’t write about Ohio State nurses demanding an investigation into the hospital’s leadership, which allowed healthcare workers to be constantly threatened in and outside the hospital.