Formation Continue du Supérieur

By Serena Golden. Its title notwithstanding, How to Be an Intellectual (Fordham University Press) is no instructional manual. Rather, in his new book (more tellingly subtitled "Essays on Criticism, Culture, and the University"), professor and higher education writer Jeffrey J. Williams examines what it means to be an intellectual: what the role entails, how it might best be performed and, perhaps most importantly, how it has changed along with American higher education. Read more...

By Paul Jump for Times Higher Education. While ever-greater efforts are being made to have equal numbers of male and female speakers at academic conferences, a new study suggests women (at least those in Australia) may choose to maintain a lower profile. Read more...

By Scott Jaschik. While higher education was talked about by gubernatorial candidates in many races this year, it is hard to see a clear pattern (at least on that issue) in the election outcomes. Read more...

By Jake New. Students at Georgetown University elected their first all-female student executive team in 2012, bringing a brief reprieve to a reign of mostly male-dominated student body presidencies dating back to when the university became fully coeducational in 1969. There have been two male presidents since, though the current administration does boast a woman vice president. Read more...

By Kaitlin Mulhere. When Emily Johnston and some of her peers at Carleton College didn't see themselves reflected at the campus sexuality and gender center, they sought out an acronym revision. Instead of LGBTQ and an "A" for "ally," they asked, can that letter recognize students who are asexual? 
That was one year ago. Now, Johnston, a senior, is the president and co-founder of Asexuality Community and Education (ACE), which regularly draws 15 to 20 students to its meetings. And the campus center is actively working to expand its programs for asexual students. Read more...

By Kaitlin Mulhere. Aveni is Russell Colgate Distinguished University Professor of Astronomy, Anthropology and Native American Studies at Colgate University, where he has taught since 1963. His experiences with college students and fellow academics during the past half-century are the backbone of Class Not Dismissed: Reflections on Undergraduate Education and Teaching the Liberal Arts (University Press of Colorado). Aveni writes on a wide range of topics, from his love of the lecture-style lesson to helping develop a core curriculum. Read more...

By Carl Straumsheim. The Digital Games Research Association (DiGRA) is under attack by critics who say academe is colluding with the mainstream media to push a feminist agenda in video games.
The association, an international group of scholars and professionals in a variety of fields, is the latest group to be dragged into the ongoing Gamergate controversy, an uncontrollable social media campaign whose call for ethics in gaming journalism has been marred by anonymity-fueled misogyny. Read more...

By Carl Straumsheim. When faculty members choose which textbooks to assign to their students, they look for trusted names and a track record of quality -- not the price tag, a new survey suggests. While those priorities may stymie the growth and adoption of open educational resources (OER), the Babson Survey Research Group’s report on faculty members’ attitudes and opinions about those resources contains both “terrible” and “incredible” news for proponents of OER, depending on your interpretation. Read more...

By Ry Rivard. Inattentive college and university governing boards are putting American higher education at risk, according to a new set of guidelines for trustees issued today by the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. Read more...

By Ry Rivard. College endowment funds saw double-digit returns this year, but many are still just treading water over the past decade.  Endowments saw average market returns of 15.8 percent in the 2014 budget year, according to preliminary findings of a survey by Commonfund and the National Association of College and University Business Officers. Read more...