University launches program to end ‘wokeism’ in the corporate world

Troy University in Alabama is introducing a new Free Enterprise Scholars program this fall in an effort to teach undergraduate students about the virtues and foundations of free market capitalism.

The program will be spearheaded by Dr. Allen Mendenhall, Associate Dean of Sorrell College of Business and Executive Director of the Manuel H. Johnson Center for Political Economy.

According to Troy University’s blog announcement of the initiative, students in the program will participate in “fall and spring reading groups, attend a monthly MJC event and write an op-ed about free enterprise.” 

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They will also have opportunities to “take a Moral Foundations of Capitalism course, attend academic conferences, and take field trips.”

Dr. Mendenhall stated in the announcement that “[t]he moral value of free enterprise means that business leaders do not have to apologize for profits earned honorably or purchase absolution through wokeness.”

Campus Reform spoke with Dr. Mendenhall to get more of his perspective on the Free Enterprise Scholars program.

“[The program] is predicated on the belief that businesses operating in good faith, in free countries with stable institutions, create value to society by providing goods and services that improve our lives and associations. Businesses that ‘go woke’, by contrast, prioritize social justice initiatives over sensible and responsible business practices and duties to shareholders, investors, and other stakeholders,” he told Campus Reform.

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Dr. Mendenhall went on to say that “[c]orporations seeking to take a stand on social issues--from gun control to DEI and ESG--often are merely virtue signaling without actually committing to finding solutions to real problems, and their efforts end up harming the very communities the activism is intended to support.” 

Campus Reform reached out Troy University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.