Abstract: The historical evolution of American higher education system is a game with multiple ethical values—from the highlight of democracy of higher education in the colonial period to the highlight of freedom of higher education system in the founding period; from the rational highlight of higher education system in the industrial transformation period to the highlight of justice of higher education system in the popularization expansion period and finally to the highlight of efficiency of higher education system in the consolidation period. The historical evolution logic of American higher education system ethics is a game of multiple values between harmony and complementarity and between non-equilibrium and equilibrium， whose ultimate goal is to realize the equilibrium of the multiple values. In terms of China’s higher education system ethics， it is recommended that China should benefit from the American characteristics， strengthen its institutional construction， promote the balance of the multi-value system， and also maintain its own strengths with its historical and cultural traditions.

Key words: America, ethics of higher education system, historical evolution, multiple values