Davidson College President Doug Hicks: In an AI Economy, a Davidson Education Pays Off
August 10, 2026
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- Jay Pfeifer
In a Fortune op-ed published August 9, Davidson College President Doug Hicks ’90 makes the case that a liberal arts education is not just economically valuable but increasingly “AI-proof.” Hicks notes that six months after graduation, 95% of Davidson’s class of 2025 were employed or in graduate school.
Hicks argues that as artificial intelligence reshapes the job market, the skills employers value most—asking good questions, connecting ideas across disciplines and collaborating across differences—are exactly what a liberal arts education cultivates. He points to comments from tech leaders, including Anthropic co-founder Daniela Amodei and SAP’s Caroline Hanke, who both emphasized adaptability, critical thinking and human judgment over narrow technical training when discussing how they’d guide their own children’s education.
The piece also highlights the career paths of two Davidson alumni: Erika Dean ’05, a Spanish major turned global product lead at Google, and Brian Fork ’01, a former football coach and lawyer who now serves as CEO of the Carolina Hurricanes, fresh off a Stanley Cup win.
Hicks concludes that while higher education adapts slowly, its core mission—helping people discern what’s “real and genuinely human”—positions liberal arts graduates well for stability in a fast-changing, AI-driven economy.
Read the full op-ed at Fortune.com.
