An analysis of newly available federal data shows that a far larger proportion of college students take at least one fully online course than was previously understood. The analysis, first conducted by the ed-tech consultant and blogger Phil Hill, shows that based on 12-month reporting — which the Department of Education’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System only … Continue reading
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U.S. Department of Education Announces Transformational Changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, Will Put Over 550,000 Public Service Workers Closer to Loan Forgiveness
[On Wednesday, 10/06/21] the U.S. Department of Education announced an overhaul of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program that it will implement over the next year to make the program live up to its promise. This policy will result in 22,000 borrowers who have consolidated loans—including previously ineligible loans—being immediately eligible for $1.74 billion … Continue reading
How Biden’s New Vaccination Policy Affects Colleges
Thousands of colleges could be subject to a new federal rule mandating Covid-19 vaccination or testing for large private-sector employers, the Biden administration announced on Thursday. The Department of Labor’s emergency, temporary rule will require all employees of businesses with 100 or more workers to be vaccinated or to be tested weekly. That mandate will cover more … Continue reading
Three Reasons for Those Hefty College Tuition Bills
What should we do about the high cost of higher education? As we pick the next president, that question should feature prominently in the public debate. The economic prosperity of our children and grandchildren hinges on finding the right answer. Today’s economy leaves little doubt about the value of college. According to the Bureau of … Continue reading
Community Colleges Becoming Prime Destination for Faculty
After spending nearly 20 years working in corporate America for companies like General Electric and Digital Equipment Corporation (Hewlett Packard), Dr. Winston Maddox wanted to make a difference — so he turned his attention to teaching. “I was a late bloomer and many traditional educators thought I was not college worthy,” says Maddox, who is … Continue reading
The Supreme Court’s Rehash of Fisher and Affirmative Action
After the Supreme Court’s second go-round with the Fisher vs. UT-Austin case last week, the big headline to emerge isn’t about whether the high court sends it back to the lower court, or if this is the start of the beginning or the end of the use of race in admissions. No, instead we’re hearing … Continue reading
Hip-Hop Stars Support Mississippi Rapper in First Amendment Case
Musical tastes at the Supreme Court run toward opera. On Monday, a glittering array of hip-hop stars will try to expand the justices’ musical horizons.In a brief supporting a Mississippi high school student who was disciplined for posting a rap song online, artists including T. I., Big Boi and Killer Mike will explain to the … Continue reading
The U.S. Congress Passes Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
[Last] week’s U.S. House passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act, a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, makes it clear: If you want to see education policy in the next few years, look to state capitols, not Washington, D.C. The current version of the law, the No Child Left Behind Act, created … Continue reading
Moody’s Predicts College Closures to Triple by 2017
Closure rates of small colleges and universities will triple in the coming years, and mergers will double. Those are the predictions of a Moody’s Investor Service report released Friday that highlights a persistent inability among small colleges to increase revenue, which could lead as many as 15 institutions a year to shut their doors for … Continue reading
Obama Administration Calls for Limits on Testing in Schools
Faced with mounting and bipartisan opposition to increased and often highstakes testing in the nation’s public schools, the Obama administration declared Saturday that the push had gone too far, acknowledged its own role in the proliferation of tests, and urged schools to step back and make exams less onerous and more purposeful. Specifically, the administration … Continue reading