2017 NAICU Annual Meeting to Focus on the November Elections and Implications for Private Colleges

J.D. Vance, author of The New York Times bestseller Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, and Jonathan Rauch, author of The Atlantic's July/August cover story, What's Ailing American Politics?, will be among the keynote speakers during NAICU’s 2017 Annual Meeting and Advocacy Day, January 29-February 1, 2017 in Washington.

In Hillbilly Elegy, Vance offered a glimpse into the inner workings of his poor white Appalachian family and their values and habits.  At the Annual Meeting, he will use that context to offer a discerning analysis of the culture of poor white Americans who helped drive the politics of rebellion seen in the November election.

In The Atlantic cover story, Rauch wrote that our severely fractured political system is plagued with a "chaos syndrome." The demonization of the political professionals and parties has left the system vulnerable to viruses like the Tea Party, and the current state of affairs is just the latest symptom. Rauch claims the cure is a return to establishment politics.  Rauch is a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, and contributing editor at National Journal and The Atlantic. He will discuss governing in the age of chaos.

With a new Administration and a new Congress convening in January, it is important for NAICU members to join together to discuss current and emerging public policy questions.  During the Annual Meeting, attendees will gain a better understanding of the new political and policy landscape in Washington, and the implications for private higher education and campus communities. Among the other confirmed speakers:

• Charles E. Cook, Jr., editor and publisher, The Cook Political Report and columnist, National Journal
• Judy Woodruff, co-anchor and managing editor, PBS NewsHour
• Mike McCurry, distinguished professor of public theology, Wesley Theological Seminary, and former press secretary for President Bill Clinton

Other topics set to be discussed during the meeting include the expected changes in priorities in student aid, tax policy and deregulation of higher education institutions as well as the future of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Attendees will also will hear from presidents and their staff about the pros and cons of hosting a presidential debate on campus, and the effort by Georgetown University to address its slavery history.