Education
A week in Scotland, college tours, becoming a Doctor, and witnessing the power of education to change lives and change the world.
CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts — I’m sitting in my office in the heart of America’s first university. Harvard was founded in 1636 -140 years before the United States was born - and it’s an immense privilege to serve here. The teaching, the people, the research, all of it is targeted toward making the world a better place. Truly a mission of service.
A week after receiving an honorary doctorate from the University of the West of Scotland (formally, Doctor of the University, honoris causa or DUniv hc), I’m back in Cambridge reflecting on a remarkable few days that included visits to universities that are 200 years older than Harvard and the important ways in which higher education - in its many brilliant, varied and evolving forms - makes a difference for individuals, their families and the world around them.
Scotland’s first universities date back to the 15th century, St. Andrews in Fife blazing the trail in 1413, followed by Glasgow, Aberdeen and then Edinburgh. They are world renowned as institutions, homes to brilliant young people now, but also to centuries of thinkers who shaped the modern world. Adam Smith, economist and philosopher who wrote The Wealth of Nations, helped shaped modern philosophy and economics. David Hume, Francis Hutcheson, dozens of philosophers, economists, religious scholars who set the world on a path to enlightenment and modernity.
Our youngest son is considering higher education in Scotland as a potential path for him. On this visit, we visited Glasgow and St. Andrews. Stunning gothic architecture, remarkable educations on offer, vibrant cities (although Glasgow is considerably larger), and a real Hogwarts feel about the whole experience. He’s also considering fabulous schools in the United States.
Either way, he will have the opportunity to learn, get a great education, and build a life from there. That’s what we have to keep on offer for as many people as possible, as many people who want to consider continuing their education after high school. Part of doing that is recognizing that higher education is not a single thing. It’s not Hogwarts or bust. Or a choice between Harvard and Plymouth State. It encompasses so much more. Community colleges, credible hybrid learning, vocational training, part-time and non-traditional degree and certificate programs, everything in between.
Sure, higher eduction has challenges to address. Costs are too high, funding models around the world are broken, and the combination of deliberate misinformation, polarization and AI-slop are making it harder than ever to discern between what’s real and what is not. But that’s precisely why we need to open the aperture to valuable post-secondary learning as wide as possible. The idea that we should discourage it - as some would do - is silly, dangerous and counter-productive to the sort of people, populace, society and communities that the huge majority of us aspire to.
During a beautifully sun-drenched week in Paisley, around 1,500 graduates received degrees from the University of the West of Scotland. The class of 2026 included people from all walks of life, many countries and backgrounds, different stages in life. Parents of graduates filled the town; kids of graduates, too. Many, like me, were the first in their family to graduate from college. Some had traveled, like me, thousands of miles. Others - also like me - had come just down the street. I grew up 1,500 steps, 0.7 miles away from Paisley Abbey where the ceremonies took place. And watching the joy, the promise of the graduates reminded me of the power of education and all that it can unleash for people and families.
The University of the West of Scotland was created - and has grown - on the belief that education should be and can be available to all, not just those from certain circumstances. As it should be. We need to find ways to empower and enable those aspirations. The class of 2026 will go on to do great things across a whole bunch of fields and in communities around Scotland and around the world. I’m proud to be their classmate.
Thanks for following along with the Summer Stack. We’re almost done! Home for a few days before a trip to DC next week (flights 12 and 13 since June 1), then up to Casco Days.
Well Done Paul! Congratulations to you. What an accomplishment!
Sun drenched and Paisley in the one sentence Paul 😀. Many congratulations. Sorry I missed you last weekend