The American educator A. Flexner expanded upon the German vision of a research university. He held that universities ought to probe systematically and continually the various bodies of knowledge encompassed by the physical sciences, the social sciences and the humanities, and he objected to the idea of universities being "service stations" for society. In his view, universities should lead the age rather than react to it.
美國教育學者弗來斯納承襲德國的研究觀而加以闡揚，他認為大學應是一個有機體，應不斷探討「物理世界」、「社群世界」及「美藝世界」的種種知識，他反對大學訓練實務人才，更不願見大學成為社會的「服務站」，大學應引領時代，而非被時代牽著鼻子跑。