Rutgers professor Rebecca Cypess makes the case in her commentary published by Inside Higher Education: “On its surface, scholar activism sounds appealing. Its defenders will tell you that ordinary scholars are locked in an ivory tower, removed from real-world problems, while scholar activists emerge from that tower to change the world for the better. Scholar activism is often rooted in Marxist ideologies that inherently view knowledge as a form of power. Scholar activists generally tie their work to race, class, and identity questions, positioning themselves as bridges between academia and the underprivileged communities they seek to serve. Scholar activism does not refer to scholars who also march in protests or engage in community service. Rather, it refers to the use of scholarship for the purpose of activism.” Read more here.