By Ry Rivard. Ivy Bridge College will cease to exist next month, just five years after Tiffin University and Altius Education created the online, two-year degree program. Tiffin, a small private institution in Ohio, appears ready to move on after deciding to drop Ivy Bridge over accreditation woes. But problems for Altius Education may be far from over.
The San Francisco-based education company is now facing an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. Read more...
Mandatory Reporting Perils
By Ry Rivard. A Swarthmore College student who was booted from the resident assistant program for refusing to name a sexual assault victim says she’s being punished for speaking out publicly – and prompting a federal investigation, no less – about the institution’s failure to protect those very survivors. Retaliating against would-be R.A. Mia Ferguson would be illegal under rules enforced by the same U.S. Education Department unit that is investigating Swarthmore, the Office for Civil Rights, and could theoretically lead to an investigation in itself. Read more...
Brazil's universities take affirmative action
By Julia Carneiro. Twenty-four-year-old Antonio Oliveira was born into a poor, mixed race family in the state of Maranhao in north-east Brazil. As a teenager he had to balance his time between school and helping his parents harvest vegetables to sell at a farmer's market, and doing other small jobs to scrape by. Until recently, he says the only prospects for those growing up in his city, Colinas, were to work with crops or to get a post at the city hall - "a mediocre job that people think is heaven," as he puts it.
But Antonio has just finished his first term studying Economic Sciences at Rio de Janeiro's prestigious Federal University (UFRJ), a dream he had nurtured since his days at a rural public school. His placement represents a radical change in the Brazilian university system. More...
Canadian Alliance for Community Service-Learning (CACSL)
The Canadian Alliance for Community Service-Learning (CACSL) supports, educates and networks to ensure the effective growth of CSL in Canada. Its vision is students, educators and communities learning and working together to strenghten individuals and society. The link address is: http://www.communityservicelearning.ca
CLAYSS - Centro Latinoamericano de Aprendizaje-Servicio Solidario
The mission of CLAYSS - Centro Latinoamericano de Aprendizaje-Servicio Solidario (Latin American Center for Service-Learning) is to contribute to the growth of a fraternal and participative culture in Latin America through the development of service-learning projects. As such CLAYSS was born to accompany and serve students, educators and community organizations that carry out or wish to put into action service-learning projects. The link address is: http://www.clayss.org.ar
U.S. Universities Fight Off Hackers
an email to all students asking them to use complex passwords and change them regularly, and soon the university will require a two-step authentication system for access to certain applications. More...
U.S. universities are relying on faculty and students to help strengthen data security following a spike in cyberattacks over the last few years. While institutions continue to monitor their networks and engage in joint efforts with law enforcement, educating the university community plays a vital role in protecting their systems. At Stanford University, students were recently asked to remain vigilant across all devices after a July attack on the school’s information systems infrastructure. The attack appeared to have been launched from overseas. While the purpose of the hacking wasn’t clear, experts suggest that intellectual property of commercial value is a common target in such attacks, Randy Livingston, Stanford’s vice president for business affairs, wrote in a letter to students. Mr. Livingston has sent outInstituto Internacional para la Educación Superior en América Latina y el Caribe (IESALC)
El Instituto Internacional para la Educación Superior en América Latina y el Caribe (IESALC) es un organismo de la UNESCO dedicado a la promoción de la educación superior, contribuyendo a implementar en la región latinoamericana y caribeña el programa que, en materia de educación superior, aprueba bianualmente la Conferencia General de la UNESCO. Su misión fundamental es contribuir al desarrollo y transformación de la educación terciaria afianzando un programa de trabajo que, entre otros propósitos, procure constituirse en instrumento para apoyar la gestión del cambio y las transformaciones a fin de que la educación superior de la región sea promotora eficaz de una cultura de paz que permita hacer viable -en una era de mundialización- el desarrollo humano sostenible, basado en la justicia, la equidad, la libertad, la solidaridad, la democracia y el respeto de los derechos humanos. The link address is: http://www.iesalc.unesco.org.ve/
Obama’s plan to rate college generates major debate among academic leaders
By . President Obama’s pledge to begin federal ratings of colleges by 2015 has touched off widespread debate in academia, exposing a divide that can be seen in the reactions of higher education leaders, such as those at two Maryland schools that are almost polar opposites. University of Maryland President Wallace D. Loh endorses the plan Obama announced Aug. 22 to rate colleges on the value they deliver for students and link federal student aid to those findings. “At stake is whether higher education remains the great equalizer of conditions in our democracy,” said the leader of the 37,200-student public flagship in College Park. Read more...
College presidents on Obama’s rating plan
By . The Washington Post asked several leaders of colleges and universities about President Obama’s plan to rate their institutions by 2015 and link student aid to those ratings by 2018.
Read on for responses from leaders of Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Georgetown, Catholic, Howard, Morgan State, the University of the District of Columbia, the University of Massachusetts, the University of Maryland at College Park, Oregon State, University of Virginia, George Mason, William & Mary, University System of Maryland, Goucher, Vassar, St. John’s, Marymount, Washington and Lee, Davidson, Stevenson, Hood, Trinity Washington and Excelsior. Read more...
Inter-American Organization for Higher Education (IOHE)
The Inter-American Organization for Higher Education (IOHE) was created to respond to the needs of developing international relations, improving the quality of information, and promoting academic collaboration among Higher Education Institutes (HEI) in the Americas. The IOHE is the only university organization that spans the entire continent of the Americas. The IOHE is a not-for-profit organization whose objectives are primarily educational. This is achieved by: establishing collaboration among universities of the Americas; promoting understanding and mutual support; contributing to the sustainable development of the peoples of the Americas and respecting the free discussion of ideas. The link address is: http://www.oui-iohe.org/