American higher education has long equated quality with exclusivity, treating the number of students an institution rejects as a measure of its worth. That logic puts enormous pressure on the colleges that open their doors widest, and it frames struggling institutions as inevitable casualties of a shrinking market. But what if access and excellence were never actually in conflict?

In this episode of Radical Cooperation, Dr. Michael Horowitz speaks with Dr. Jonathan Koppell, President of Montclair State University, the second largest university in New Jersey and one of the nation’s leading institutions for economic opportunity and student success. Drawing on more than a decade of experience at Arizona State University, Dr. Koppell explains how a majority-minority, majority Pell-eligible university can deliver research-level excellence without sacrificing access. He also shares how Montclair made the decision to absorb the historic Bloomfield College, the only four-year predominantly Black institution in New Jersey, instead of allowing its distinctive mission to disappear.

At a time when many assume distressed colleges have no choice but to close, this conversation explores how cooperation, thoughtful mergers, and a genuine commitment to community can preserve what makes institutions valuable. It is a candid look at why the strongest universities measure the impact they create, not the applicants they turn away.

Listen to Episode 28 of Radical Cooperation on your favorite platform:

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