CUNY in the News
An analysis of reporting on the humanities at the people’s university, from its founding to today.
This project is a timeline that tracks local media reporting on CUNY, specifically related to liberal arts education and the humanities. It explores the evolution of both rhetoric and aesthetics in the news from different time periods, looking through how local publications have responded to changes at the City University of New York.
The archival research of this project explores four distinct eras, grouped around major events in the history of the university: 1961-1971, for the founding of the university and open admissions struggle; 1980-1990, for the response to the ‘70s fiscal crisis and introduction of the Board of Trustees; 2000-2010 for the post-open admissions era and the centralization of CUNY; and 2020-present, for COVID and a new fight for racial equity.
Examining these “snapshots” of reporting will provide insights into how major events such as protests, financial struggle, and various other crises corresponded with shifting representations of the place of the humanities at the university. The aim of this project is to use the archive to better understand how the work of the humanities at the university has been perceived and presented historically, so that it may be used to advocate for the humanities at CUNY today, during an era of extreme cutbacks in higher education and general hostility towards public schools.
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“At City College, a Division . . .”
This is one of the articles that most clearly delineates the cultural differences between the humanities students of City College’s south campus, and the science and technology students of the north campus. In no uncertain terms, it suggests that disciplinary practices shape the student outlook on contemporary issues; and it paints the different student groups…
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Protests at City College
Black and Puerto Rican students begin lead protests at City College, insisting that the college expand its admissions and programs to accommodate the residents of the community that the campus resides in. These protests were led by liberal arts students of CCNY’s south campus. One of their primary demands was for an expansion of available…
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“Gallagher Resigns, Blasts Budget Hatchet Job”
After months of student protests and a declaration of budget cuts, longtime president Buell Gallagher of CCNY resigns. This report from the Daily News is much more emotive than the times supporting, juxtaposing a frantic and distressed-looking Gallagher with a smug looking Albert H. Bowker, then chancellor. This type of visual flourish completely contradicts the…
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“The Sad Beauty of Locked Gates”
“The upstart rebel kids turn into dignified men and women, committed to the rights of their people, flying the flags and manning the barricades of a genuine revolution.” Robert Mayer This coverage of the events at City College is much more poetic, elegantly written and outwardly sympathetic to the demands of the protesters, described as…
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“Art and Engineering Students in Separate Worlds: Different Motivation Found on Protests and Life Aims”
This article takes an almost pseudo-scientific approach to the recurring conflict reported between the liberal arts and engineering students on the CCNY campus. The piece has a more conservative tone when it comes to the liberal arts students versus the engineering ones, with more regard being given to the industriousness of the latter, and relating…
