For its third event of the summer, Seminars at Steamboat will host Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, for a discussion Monday on the mounting pressures facing higher education across the country. 

“The Role of the University in a Democratic Society,” scheduled for July 28 at 5:30 p.m. at the Strings Pavilion, will tackle critical challenges confronting prestigious institutions like Harvard University and Columbia University, as well as state universities across Texas, California and Virginia.

One of the key topics in the seminar regards international student and researcher participation in American higher education. Mitchell will address how limitations on visa approvals or revocations of existing visas could affect university staffing and knowledge advancement, given the substantial contributions of foreign scholars to research facilities and laboratories.

The seminar will also explore potential restrictions on scientific and technological research conducted at universities, which could significantly impact medical breakthroughs and innovation.

Prior to leading the American Council on Education, Mitchell served as the under secretary of education in the U.S. Department of Education, overseeing federal higher education policy and workforce development programs.

Seminars at Steamboat are free and open to the public.