“Overwhelmingly, people want politics kept out of the classroom.”

That according to Vanderbilt University political science professor Josh Clinton, co-director of the Vanderbilt Unity Poll, which recently queried 1,033 adults from Nov. 7 to Nov. 10 about pressing higher education issues.

“They don’t want professors using the classroom to push political views, and they don’t want politicians trying to dictate what happens in higher education. People want education to be about education,” Clinton said in a news release regarding the results.

The results found 38 percent of respondents “believe universities should remain strictly neutral on all political and social issues” and 34 percent think “universities should speak out only when issues directly affect their ability to educate and conduct research,” according to Vanderbilt.

“Reflecting this preference for keeping politics out of higher education, Americans broadly believe state legislatures should not control what is taught about subjects such as U.S. history (66 percent), capitalism and socialism (68 percent), evolution (70 percent), and gender identity and sexual orientation (74 percent). And when asked about federal involvement, 65 percent say the government should not try to direct how professors teach in colleges and universities,” the news release stated.

The poll also found that Americans want colleges and universities to just teach, not preach.

“One of the clearest findings is that the public wants colleges to get back to basics,” stated John Geer, co-director of the Vanderbilt Unity Poll and professor of political science. “When you ask about the core purposes of a college education, you see almost no political polarization. That is, liberal Democrats and MAGA Republicans agree—a rare thing these days.” 

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