Faculty on the Edge 2: Vulnerability

In this episode, we explore the limits of identity politics, different forms of vulnerability in the classroom, and the academic personas we cultivate. We reflect on the significance of gender, the structural vulnerabilities intensified by the current political moment, and whether academia has long operated under assumptions of invulnerability, particularly when it comes to academic freedom. We also take up the increasingly contentious question of viewpoint diversity and what it might mean in practice.

What is Faculty On The Edge?

Nadje Al-Ali, Paul Nahme and Andre C. Willis are three "Faculty on the Edge"! In the midst of multi-sided crises in university life, they give up the pretense that everything is under control. Inexpertly edited and with little production, their free-ranging and candid takes on university politics, governance, and the state of higher education are released here as a podcast that refuses to stay in its lane. Expect sharp analysis, occasional irreverence, and candid conversations about the broader cultural and political forces shaping academic life, as well as revelations about the personal toll it can take. Serious, but not self-serious: this is what it sounds like when warm friendship, sharp minds, and a sense of humor collide!