How higher education became polarizing in the US

The polarization of Americans lies across various categories. Political beliefs may be tied to geographic location, religion, race and/or media consumption.

But we’re also divided along lines of higher education. The more highly educated someone is, the more likely they are to affiliate with the Democratic Party.

As our lives take on different shapes — with different friends and teachers, professional outlets and social networks — Americans actually become substantially different from one another. Perspectives part ways and it becomes harder to connect, even if we have similar priorities. College attendance is a significant predictor of our differences.

“You did see thought leaders on the right, conservatives like Lewis Powell or the economist James Buchanan, making arguments that free tuition or low tuition was encouraging student unrest and we needed to change the system so that young people and their families had economic skin in the game.” — Will Bunch, author.

Listen: Author Will Bunch discusses how education polarizes us.

Guest

Will Bunch is a national opinion columnist with the Philadelphia Inquirer. His new book is “After the Ivory Tower Falls: How College Broke the American Dream and Blew Up Our Politics — and How to Fix It.” Bunch says it became a governing philosophy to not have the public pay for higher education in the 1970s and 80s.

“You did see thought leaders on the right, conservatives like Lewis Powell or the economist James Buchanan making arguments that free tuition or low tuition was encouraging student unrest and we needed to change the system so that young people and their families had economic skin in the game,” he says.