How is the new industrial model of privatization, commercialization, and corporatization altering higher education's traditional mission? To provide policymakers with understanding about the traditional charter between higher education and society, this article defines the concepts of the public good underlying the charter, analyzes the new model's pervasiveness, synthesizes empirical evidence about its effect on the social and public purposes of higher education, and proposes a list of issues and questions for discussion among education and government leaders.