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President Donald Trump unveiled a unique and forward-thinking vision of American higher education this week, criticizing institutions like Harvard University for supporting “the savages and jihadists who attacked Israel.”
To combat the rising tide of far-left academia in the United States, he has introduced “The American Academy,” an alternative to traditional higher education academics that will be fully accredited and non-political.
To kick-start the academy, which is part of his Agenda47 policy, Trump said that as president, he would take “billions” of dollars from taxing and fining “excessively large university endowments and we will then use that money to endow a new institution called ‘the American Academy.’”
He stated that the academy’s mission would be to offer a “world-class” education that would be available to every American “free of charge.”
The president explained, “This institution will gather an entire universe of the highest quality educational content covering the full spectrum of human knowledge and skills and make that material available to every American citizen online for FREE…the goal will be to deliver and get it done PROPERLY.”
Importantly, Trump vowed that funding the American Academy wouldn’t add a single penny to the national debt, because he would take the money out of the hyperinflated endowments for universities like Harvard.
According to the president, the curriculum would be strictly apolitical, with “no wokeness or Jihadism allowed – NONE of that’s going to be allowed.”
Perhaps most significantly, Trump announced that the education received from the American Academy would directly compete with a four-year bachelor’s degree by “granting degree credentials that the U.S. government and all federal contractors will henceforth recognize.”
In other words, the diplomas or certificates issued by the American Academy would be nationally recognized, accredited, and applicable to learners’ chosen career fields.
He added, “In addition, to help the 40 million Americans who have some college education but no degree, the American Academy will grant credit for past coursework at legacy institutions and give you a chance to complete your education at the American Academy for free – and much more quickly than is now possible or available.”