Higher Education Reform Initiative
Develop and advance higher education policy reforms at the state and national levels.
Policy Priorities
Reform America’s Dysfunctional Higher Education Accreditation System
Rethink Public Financing of Postsecondary Study to Encourage Competition and Accountability
Open New Pathways to Family-Sustaining Careers
Combat the Politicization of Higher Education and Encourage Viewpoint Diversity on U.S. Campuses
Protect Students’ and Professors’ First Amendment Rights
Universities are among the most important institutions in American society—responsible for advancing science, fostering economic growth, transmitting a cultural inheritance to the next generation, and preparing young people for citizenship and family-sustaining careers. Unfortunately, although U.S. universities are lavishly funded by state and federal taxpayers, many of them are failing to live up to their important public responsibilities.
The America First Policy Institute’s Higher Education Reform Initiative works to develop and advance policy reforms at the state and national levels. We envision a competitive higher education marketplace that does a better job of graduating students with in-demand skills and credentials at a reasonable cost to families and taxpayers. Universities should also prepare graduates for citizenship and lifelong learning through rigorous academic programs delivered in an environment that fosters free inquiry and a wide range of viewpoints.
Team
Latest
Statement
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March 20, 2025
AFPI Reaffirms its SUPPORT for H.R. 1048. DETERRENT Act.
Today, the America First Policy Institute releases the following statement from Chris Schorr, Ph.D., Senior Policy Analyst at AFPI’s Higher Education Reform Initiative, in advance of the House of Representatives’ pending vote on the Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regime Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act.
Fact Sheet
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March 12, 2025
Sex Reassignment Surgeries and Hormones are Dangerous and Medically Unnecessary
Sex reassignment surgeries and hormone therapies (so-called “gender-affirming medical care”) are dangerous and often irreversible procedures intended to alter a person’s body to match the person’s self-professed “gender identity.”
Research Report
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March 12, 2025
State Reforms to Protect Children from Harmful and Irreversible Transgender Medical Procedures
An explosive increase in childhood transgender identification threatens the health and well-being of American children. Transgender identification is the first step along the path toward harmful and irreversible transgender medical interventions.
Fact Sheet
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March 12, 2025
The Vulnerable Youth Protection Act
Vulnerable Texas children and children around the country are being groomed for a lifetime of preventable suffering. Transgender medical procedures—euphemistically referred to as “gender-affirming care”—include puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and sex-change surgeries. These procedures are associated with a host of harmful side effects.
Expert Insights
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March 12, 2025
Quantifying Progressive Cancel Culture in Higher Education
A culture of hostility toward dissenting thought and expression undermines the value of higher education.
Topics
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issues