What is being argued here is that there should be more to an education than a vocation. The purpose of a higher education is to make one a thinking, learned human being. It doesn't matter if you're Knuth when it comes to CS, if you don't have a working knowledge of history and philosophy and political theory, you're uneducated.
Another theme I see is that people have to earn a living so they must learn ONLY STEM. That's false for 2 reasons. The first is that one can do non-utilitarian study in philosophy, for example, while also learning CS to get a job. It is also wrong because it is a reflection of the high cost of an American education that forces people to think about "return on investment". That is the very notion that is being criticized here! Education should not calculated solely in economic terms because there are social returns to it.
The fact of the matter is that it is absolutely disastrous - morally and culturally - to uncritically accept the views of our neoliberal system. The humanities and non-utilitarian education helps you examine the system. That's what ultimately makes the world a better place.