Book CoverTo have people who are well informed but not constrained by conscience is conceivably, the most dangerous outcome of education possible. Indeed it could be argued that ignorance is better than unguided intelligence, for the most dangerous people are those who have knowledge without a moral framework.

To push for excellence today without continuing to push for access for less privileged students is to undermine the crucial but incomplete gains that have been made. Equity and excellence cannot be divided.

When all is said and done we simply must make teaching in this country an honorable profession-since it's in the classrooms of America where the battle for excellence, ultimately, will be won or lost.

I am suggesting that quality in undergraduate education means giving students a perspective that is global.

Literature is an inquiry into the deepest yearnings of the human spirit.

Music gives us a language that cuts across the disciplines, helps us to see connections and brings a more coherent meaning to our world.

A poor surgeon hurts one person at a time. A poor teacher hurts 130.