Commentary
Thoughts and opinion pieces by or about President Schapiro.
2021
- Sep: Break the Silence: How to create a safe space for real debate in the classroom (Commentary with Gary Morson published in Persuasion)
- Aug: The job of a university president is tougher than ever (Commentary published in Times Higher Education)
- July: Let’s Not Return to Normal When the ‘New Normal’ Finally Arrives (Commentary published in The Chronicle of Higher Education)
- May: Beliefs Aren’t Facts (Commentary with Gary Morson published in Persuasion)
- May: The Value of a College Degree (Broadcast appearance on WBBM’s Education Week)
- May: Tanks into Tractors? How Much Chutzpah Do You Need to Rewrite the Torah? (Commentary with Gary Morson published in Patheos)
- April: We have met the fundamentalists and they are us (Commentary with Gary Morson published in The Hill)
- March: Who Shall Teach? (Commentary with David Figlio published in Inside Higher Ed)
2020
- October: The greatest generation, redux? (Op-ed with Barry Glassner published in Inside Higher Ed)
- May: After this pandemic, higher education will have to leave the ivory tower (Commentary with Gary Morson in the Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
- March: Our resilience and empathy will carry us through this coronavirus crisis (Published in the Chicago Tribune)
- March: You might hate other people’s politics, but being too extreme imperils us all (Op-ed with Gary Morson published in the Los Angeles Times)
2019
- September: Religion and science don’t contradict — they just answer different questions (Commentary with Gary Morson published on the Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
- September: Elul 16 ~ Morton Schapiro (Published on Jewels of Elul)
- October: Escaping the Trap of Self-Righteousness (Commentary with Gary Morson published on Inside Higher Ed)
- August: America's colleges and universities are aggressively addressing foreign threats (Commentary with Michael McRobbie published on The Hill)
- August: Students on both ends of the economic spectrum face challenges in college (Commentary with Barry Glassner published in The Washington Post)
- April: American democracy is ailing. Thinking like an economist can help. (Commentary with Gary Morson published in The Washington Post)
- February: Killing in the name of no God (Commentary with Gary Morson published in the Jerusalem Post)
2018
- August: College kids aren't 'supercilious snowflakes' (Commentary with Barry Glassner published in the Los Angeles Times)
- March: Technical or Cultural Courses? Students Need Both (Commentary with Barry Glassner published in The Chronicle of Higher Education)
- January: Why Economists Got Russian Sanctions Wrong (Commentary with Gary Morson published on CNBC)
2017
- December: Four myths about safe spaces at NU and other campuses (Commentary published in the Chicago Tribune)
- November: Could a Bit of Tolstoy and Austen Improve Economic Forecasting? (Essay published in Knowledge@Wharton online business journal)
- September: Bloomberg Markets: Northwestern President on 'Most Selective' (Interview with host Carol Massar and Bloomberg News Higher Education Reporter Janet Lorin)
- August: Oh what a tangled web schools weave: The college rankings game (Commentary with Gary Morson published in the Chicago Tribune)
- July: Cents and Sensibility: What Economics Can Learn from the Humanities (Discussion of new book)
- July: The Economist Asks: What can economists learn from literature? (Interview with The Economist Radio)
- July: Want to get an edge in investing? Read fiction, say the authors of a new book 'Cents and Sensibility' – and there's a lot economists could learn as well (Interview with Gary Morson in the Daily Mail and This is Money)
- July: How the Humanities Can Improve Economics (Interview with Bloomberg Radio)
- July: Ethics 101 for Admissions Officers (Commentary with Gary Morson in the Chronicle of Higher Education)
- July: Liberal Arts in the Data Age (Article published in July-August 2017 issue of Harvard Business Review)
- June: Want to understand Russia's economy? Try reading Tolstoy. (Interview with host David Brancaccio on Marketplace Morning Report, American Public Media)
- June: To be a better investor, read more good novels (Commentary with Gary Morson published on MarketWatch)
- June: The Dehumanities (Commentary with Gary Morson published in Inside Higher Ed)
- June: It makes economists shudder, but this creative tool can help us better understand economic data (Commentary with Gary Morson published on LinkedIn)
- May: Why Northwestern President Morton Schapiro Favors Safe Spaces (Article published in the Wall Street Journal)
- February: Advice for New Presidents (Commentary in the Chronicle of Higher Education)
- February: Are Great Teachers Poor Scholars? (Commentary in Inside Higher Ed)
- January: Are Great Teachers Poor Scholars? (Article published by the Brookings Institution)
2016
- November: Dealing with Tragedy (Commentary in the Chronicle of Higher Education)
- October: Presidential Directive on Intercollegiate Athletics (pdf)
- August: Diversity on Campus Sparks Protest? It's a Sign of Progress. (Commentary in the Los Angeles Times)
- May: Congratulations on Graduating. Now Give Up on Your Dreams. (Commentary in the Los Angeles Times)
- January: I’m Northwestern’s President. Here’s Why Safe Spaces for Students are Important. (Commentary in the Washington Post)
2015
- August: Baby Boomers, Don't be so Quick to Mock Colleges on 'Trigger Warnings' and 'Micro-aggressions' (Commentary in the Los Angeles Times)
2014
- September: Public Funds Hard to Replace, Even in the U.S. (Commentary in The Times (UK) Higher Education Supplement)
- April: Leadership Tips for College Presidents and CEOs (Commentary in the Wall Street Journal)
2013
- October: At Homecomings and Reunions, Life Marches By (Commentary in The Chronicle of Higher Education)
- August: The Right Reasons to Pick a College (Commentary in the Los Angeles Times)
- May: Rate of Return at Record Levels for College Degree (Broadcast appearance on WBBM)
- May: We Didn't Sign at the Office (Commentary in the Wall Street Journal)
- March: Fact and Fiction About Getting a College Education (Commentary in the Chicago Tribune)
- March: Schapiro Discusses Misconceptions About the Value of Higher Education
- February: College Presidents: Bruised, Battered and Loving It (Commentary in the Chronicle of Higher Education)
2012
- September: Grounding the Helicopter Parent (Commentary in the Washington Post)
- July: President Schapiro Makes a Strong Case for the Value of Education
- July: Give College More Credit (Commentary in the Los Angeles Times)
- March: Winning the 'Northwestern Way' (Broadcast appearance on WBEZ)
- March: Schapiro Talks with WBEZ About the Role of Athletics in University Life
- January: President Schapiro Provides an Overview of the University’s Financial Condition
2010
2009
- September: A Letter to the Community
- January: President-elect Delivers Remarks on Both Campuses