By Nick DeSantis. A student at Harvard University says he lost an internship at Facebook after an application that he created revealed privacy flaws in the social-networking giant’s messaging app, The Boston Globe reported. More...
U. of Texas to Move Jefferson Davis Statue to Campus History Center
By Nick DeSantis. The University of Texas at Austin will move a statue of the Confederate president, Jefferson Davis, from its prominent position on the campus to a history center there, but will leave statues of other Confederate leaders in place, the Austin American-Statesman reported. More...
Governance Group Urges Board Members to Be Loyal and Obedient
By Andy Thomason. Saying that governance is “at a crossroads,” the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges on Tuesday released new guidance stressing that university trustees be loyal to their institution, among other things. The document, a “statement on the fiduciary duties of governing-board members,” outlines three main duties for board members: care, loyalty, and obedience. More...
Hillary Clinton Asked for Emoji-fied Takes on Student Debt. You Will Believe What Happened Next.
By Brock Read. Hillary Clinton’s social-media team, looking to keep her recently announced college-affordability plan in the public eye, took to Twitter to ask for a bit of audience feedback on student loans. More...
Confederate Statues at U. of Texas Should Be Moved or Explained, Panel Says
By Brock Read. A task force convened by the University of Texas at Austin to consider the fate of several statues honoring Confederate leaders has made its recommendation: Either add explanatory plaques to them, or move them to a museum. More...
In Clinton’s Higher-Ed Agenda, Expect Echoes of Past Plans on Student Debt
By Brock Read. Hillary Clinton, the heavy favorite among Democrats running for president, plans to announce key planks of her higher-education platform on Monday at an event in New Hampshire, Politico reports. When she does so, student-loan reform will be the dominant theme. More...
Judge Curtails Popular Work Program for Foreign Students
By Ian Wilhelm. In a decision that may reduce the appeal of the United States as a destination for international students, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday that the Department of Homeland Security must curtail a popular program that allows foreign students and graduates to work while in the United States. More...
For-Profit College Closes Without Telling Its Students
By Andy Thomason. Missouri Tech, a small for-profit college, closed this week without notifying its students, who showed up for class only to learn that the company had been shuttered. More...
Twitter Asks: What if Hogwarts Were an HBCU?
By Andy Thomason. What if Hogwarts, the Harry Potter universe’s boarding school for wizards in training, were a historically black college? Today’s hot hashtag — #IfHogwartsWasAnHBCU — to the rescue. And while the hashtag is more about the union of African-American pop culture with Harry Potter nerd-dom than anything related to higher education, I’ve covered much more tangential topics on this blog in the past. More...
Vanderbilt Releases More Information on Elusive Red-Tape Study
By Andy Thomason. Vanderbilt University has released more information about its noted red-tape study, which for months has been trumpeted by some observers as evidence of smothering government regulation in higher education. The Chronicle has repeatedly requested access to the study, which asserts the university spent roughly $150 million to comply with regulations in 2013-14. More...