By Doug Lederman. Amid uncertainty over new administration’s stance on postsecondary education, Under Secretary Ted Mitchell exhorts colleges and other supporters of expanding postsecondary opportunity to “double down” on their work. Read more...
Being Watched
By Colleen Flaherty. A new website is asking students and others to “expose and document” professors who “discriminate against conservative students, promote anti-American values and advance leftist propaganda in the classroom.” Read more...
Thinking Outside the Pipeline
By Colleen Flaherty. Many faculty diversity initiatives are predicated on the pipeline theory: that getting more minority students to enroll in Ph.D. programs eventually will lead to gains in numbers of professors from underrepresented backgrounds. The pipeline theory has long had its critics, who point to other problems within the academic recruitment, hiring and retention system. A new study seeks to back up such criticisms with hard data. Read more...
AAUP Condemns Hate Crimes, Endorses Campus Sanctuary Movement
By Colleen Flaherty. The American Association of University Professors is the latest academic group to speak out against hate crimes and support the campus sanctuary movement for undocumented students. Read more...
'The Faculty Factor'
By Colleen Flaherty. Book argues that faculty’s diminishing influence puts higher education at risk. Suggested interventions include changing tenure to save it -- namely by ending it for professors at 70 years of age. Read more...
Free Summer Courses and Completion
By Ashley A. Smith. A Texas community college system is hoping the appeal of free summer courses will drive students to move from part-time to full-time status, giving completion rates a boost. Read more...
Middle East Scholars Group Moves to Delete "Nonpolitical" From Bylaws
By Elizabeth Redden. Members of the Middle East Studies Association voted in favor of advancing a resolution to remove the word “nonpolitical” from the group’s bylaws in what opponents see as a prelude to a future vote on the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel. Read more...
In Defense of DACA
By Elizabeth Redden. Amid uncertainty over Trump presidency, college leaders sign on to a statement calling for the continuation of a program that has benefited undocumented college students. Read more...
More on Trump Plans on Visas and 'Extreme Vetting'
By Elizabeth Redden. President-elect Donald J. Trump’s pick for chief of staff on Sunday reiterated Trump’s pledge to temporarily suspend immigration from certain countries until an enhanced vetting system is in place -- what Trump called “extreme vetting” in an August speech. Read more...
Protesting AU Cairo Students Call for Tuition Cap
By Elizabeth Redden. Protesting students at the American University of Cairo are calling for a cap on tuition amid concerns that a devaluation of the Egyptian pound against the U.S. dollar could send their fees skyrocketing, The New York Times reported. Read more...