My nephew is heading to Johns Hopkins this fall. As part of their orientation, and to “start a discussion among the whole freshman class,” all entering students have been assigned a book to read: Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? The book was chosen by the “Committee for the Freshman Book Read,” and it chose this particular book “so that as a community we could look at race relations on campus.”

At a time when even the best students head to college with meager knowledge of history, civics, and the arts, this is what the Hopkins educators believe is the most worthwhile subject for students to address.