In Storming the Ivory Tower: How a Florida College Became Ground Zero in the Struggle to Take Back Our Campuses, Richard Corcoran poses a pivotal (and potentially generational) question: Is higher education in the United States of America at a tipping point?
Across a political career spanning multiple decades, Corcoran served as Sen. Marco Rubio's chief of staff, speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, and the state's education commissioner throughout one of the most tumultuous periods in recent political history: the COVID-19 pandemic. But in January 2023, Florida governor Ron DeSantis tasked Corcoran with what many would deem an impossible mission: to bring a failing woke liberal arts college back from the brink.
In his compelling new book, Corcoran continues Florida's modern tradition of proving its critics wrong by offering a firsthand account of his successful efforts to confront and dismantle entrenched progressive ideologies within the state's education system during his role as interim president of New College of Florida: a school that had become a melting pot for the worst elements of American wokeness.
After walking readers through what he views as the foundational problems at the heart of American academia—cancel culture, gender studies, assaults on free speech, support for terrorism, and (of course) diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives—Corcoran lays out why we must prioritize free speech above all else on college campuses, why we are compelled to fight against the DEI bureaucracy, and why we must speak clearly and unapologetically against incidents of cancel culture, violence, and anti-Semitism.
The results of his reforms speak for themselves, with Corcoran celebrating the reversal of New College's declining enrollment trends, while its campus became a place where free speech is protected and intellectual diversity is celebrated. Corcoran's actions, he explains, not only revitalized the college but also demonstrated that meaningful change is possible for those willing to stand firm in the face of institutional pressure and even cries of "fascism" from academic elites and legacy media alike.
Throughout, Corcoran's writing blends personal anecdotes with data-driven analysis in a straightforward style that distills the complexities of educational reform into manageable portions while balancing the urgency of the issues with thoughtful reflection on the challenges he faced.
Among these insightful details, Corcoran doesn't hold back. He even names names, providing a humorous yet cutting description of the types of "barking dogs" faced at New College: well-meaning but confused chihuahuas who "yip loudly to draw attention" through lawsuits, complaints, and resignations; poodles who seek nothing but the limelight, such as MSNBC, New York Times opinion writers, and California governor Gavin Newsom; and wolves in sheep's clothing who hide their ideology behind a shield of objectivity, such as the legacy media.
The book concludes with Corcoran's roadmap for success during his mission to save New College, which explores crucial themes such as competent and strong leadership, fighting back against the Left's weaponization of litigation, and—perhaps most important—why we must "give no quarter."
Storming the Ivory Tower is a timely and essential read for anyone concerned about the trajectory of American education. Its impact, however, goes far beyond the fight for one liberal arts college in Florida and stands as inspiration for Americans across the political spectrum and throughout American life, with a message that resonates with conservatives, moderates, and liberals who value intellectual diversity over identity-based obsession, spectrum-wide inclusion over self-insulated political homogeneity, and equality over equity.
Indeed, as Christopher Rufo argues in the book's foreword, Corcoran's success in Florida serves as a blueprint for conservative progress in the battle for American institutions. Because what makes this book both fascinating and deeply important is that Corcoran's seemingly isolated fight against radicalism on one college campus isn't just about New College, or American academia, or even individual issues like free speech, DEI, or cancel culture.
"On the surface, it is the story of a battle," Corcoran begins. "However … it is about much more than that. It is the story of what we were fighting for: the power and beauty of a liberal arts education."
In reality, Corcoran is selling himself short, because this book is a guide for success against institutional radicalism across the nation, if not the entire West.
In his conclusion, Corcoran writes that there are two equally true endings to Storming the Ivory Tower. The positive ending surrounds the return of New College to its "principles of free speech and civil discourse." Meanwhile, the negative ending is "disheartening," with Corcoran lamenting that he does not see such changes happening elsewhere.
But this is not like the complaints of conservatives Corcoran mentions in his introduction. No, it is a direct call for action.
As Rufo writes, "Conservatives have bemoaned the capture of America's universities" for years. We "wrote books, hosted panels, and furrowed [our] brows." But now, "complaint is no longer enough."
"Now," Rufo declares, "we need action."
With Florida continuing to stand alone as a beacon of tangible conservative success against the radical Left, only one question remains: Will America follow Florida's lead and act?
Storming the Ivory Tower: How a Florida College Became Ground Zero in the Struggle to Take Back Our Campuses
by Richard Corcoran
Bombardier Books, 336 pp., $28.99
Ian Haworth is a columnist, speaker, and podcast host. You can find him on Substack and follow him on X at @ighaworth.