Higher Education and the Formation of Character

Trust in higher education is fractured. Why have universities at all? To answer such a question, we need first to recover the very idea of a university. Universities exist in order to discover, understand, and articulate truth in each discipline of human endeavor. Do they also exist to help foster the virtues of character? Jonathan Sanford thinks they do – he explains why.Guest InfoJonathan J. Sanford, Ph.D., is the 10th president of the University of Dallas. He has published widely on philosophical figures and topics, especially in foundational questions of moral philosophy. His books include Before Virtue: Assessing Contemporary Virtue Ethics (The Catholic University of America Press, 2015) and The Philosophical Legacy of Jorge J. E. Gracia (Rowman and Littlefield, 2022). He frequently speaks, provides interviews, and publishes on central issues in higher education, virtue theory, Catholicism, and culture. Dr. Sanford is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Hildebrand Project, a member of the American Academy of Catholic Scholars and Artists, a Board Director of Great Hearts Texas, and a member of the Dallas Chapter of Legatus. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit avemariapm.substack.com