Yale’s faculty committee, convened by President Maurie McInnis, issued a blunt report linking the public’s declining trust in higher education to institutional failures—especially high tuition, opaque admissions, and a campus culture that critics say undermines free expression. The committee said the issue is “real [and] urgent,” positioning its findings as a corrective agenda rather than a response to outside pressure alone. The report challenges “high tuition-high aid” pricing models, citing how sticker prices remain the first signal families see, and criticizes Yale’s holistic admissions process as difficult to explain—highlighting that Yale rejected nearly 96% of applicants in 2026. It also points to grading practices and device policies as part of a broader legitimacy gap. Yale’s publication adds to a growing wave of campus self-audits across the Ivy League, but the report’s focus on admissions explainability and cost transparency signals where trust-building reforms may be targeted first—faculty governance, admissions messaging, and grading accountability.