Robert Jones addresses the future of public research universities in Louise McBee Lecture

Robert J. Jones, president of the University of Washington, delivered the 34^th annual Louise McBee Lecture on April 23 and urged public research universities to challenge declining public trust by adapting boldly in an era of accelerating technological and social change. 

Jones’s address, “The Research University in an Era of Declining Public Trust and Confidence,” was delivered as a part of the Louise McBee Institute of Higher Education’s annual series honoring the legacy of Dr. Louise McBee, a revered university administrator at UGA and state legislator. His remarks examined declining confidence in colleges and universities and mounting skepticism toward the value and importance of a college degree.

“Today, at a moment of deep polarization and a crisis of faith in public institutions, including public higher education, Dr. McBee’s legacy of equity, collaboration, and holistic leadership is deeply relevant,” Jones said. “It continues to stand as a model that should inspire all of us who care about students and the institutions that prepare them for lives and careers of purpose.” 

“We are honored to have President Jones deliver this year’s lecture on building public trust in universities,” said Erik Ness, professor and director of the McBee Institute. “His address resonates with Louise McBee’s legacy and with our recent efforts to promote the value of higher education.” In March 2025, the McBee Institute hosted the Momentum & Barriers Symposium, which included presentations from student, state, and national perspectives on efforts to strengthen public perceptions of higher education.    

Jones, who earned his master’s degree in crop physiology from UGA in 1975, expressed gratitude at the opportunity to return to his alma mater once again. Through his research as a crop scientist and his leadership in various senior administrative roles, his career has been guided by a life-long calling to promote access, excellence, and impact through great public research universities. 

“We are once again in tumultuous times as educators and public servants,” he said, noting that rapid technological change, shifting cultural norms and political polarization have converged to challenge higher education in unprecedented ways. 

Drawing on national polling data, Jones outlined a steady erosion of public confidence in colleges and universities over the past decade. According to a recent Gallup survey, the percentage of Americans expressing a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in higher education has dropped sharply since 2015, while skepticism about the value of a four-year college degree has reached historic heights.  

Jones identified affordability and student debt as one of the key factors driving this trend. Yet, for those who graduate either debt-free or with minimal debt, Jones notes that confidence in the value of higher education is substantially higher.  

Thus, Jones said his top priority while at the University of Washington has been to address the factors contributing to a loss in public trust by working to reduce the number of students who graduate with student loan debt. He warned that the prospect of accruing debt was a barrier preventing some students from even applying to college, noting “These talented young people are left on the sidelines, which hurts not just them, but our whole economy.” 

Jones emphasized that restoring trust also requires rethinking how universities prepare students for a rapidly evolving workforce shaped by artificial intelligence. Rather than viewing AI as a threat, for example, he said universities must equip students to use new technologies as tools for problem-solving and collaboration. 

Jones also highlighted “radical partnerships” among universities and between universities and industry as a model for creating new opportunities for students to be competitive in the workforce. For example, he cited an expanded partnership that he led between the University of Washington and Microsoft that will provide researchers with access to modern AI training and experimentation as well as real-world research opportunities. He likewise pointed to a multimillion-dollar quantum computing collaboration between Northwestern University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he previously served as chancellor, that he helped establish as a groundbreaking initiative that was changing the way that the institutions worked together to make fundamental advances in computing.  

Jones concluded by stating that beyond workforce preparation, research universities have a responsibility to repair and strengthen civic health amid this time of declining institutional trust.  

“If we are to regain the public’s trust and fulfill our vital role as engines of innovation and social progress,” he said, “we must embrace change and adapt to the demands of the 21^st century.”  

Launched in 1989, the Louise McBee Lecture series is hosted by the Louise McBee Institute of Higher Education and is a part of the University of Georgia’s 2026 Spring Signature Lecture series.