Daily Lumina News 030620

The novel coronavirus and Covid-19, the disease it causes, are becoming a public-health threat across the world, fueling fears of a possible pandemic.
As more cases are reported, colleges and universities are re-evaluating their study-abroad programs, moving courses online, and taking other preventive measures. Meanwhile, some academic associations are canceling their conferences.

Fahad Alharthi didn’t know what a historically black college and university (HBCU) was before he applied to one. He grew up in Saudi Arabia and, after 18 months of intensive English-language courses in California, he applied to Tennessee State University. It’s an HBCU in Nashville.
After decades of declining enrollment, HBCUs are seeing a surprising uptick in new applicants, especially among Latino and international students.

Oren Cass, author of The Once and Future Worker, says we’ve gone too far in our college-going culture, steering too many students down a postsecondary pathway that only serves about one-third of our population.
Cass says it's time to destigmatize vocational and technical education, to create and fund alternative pathways between high school and the workplace, and to fill millions of jobs that don’t, or shouldn’t, require a college degree.

Apprenticeships took center stage earlier this week during a House Higher Education and Workforce Investment Subcommittee hearing. Democrats on the House education committee are working on a bill to authorize $400 million in federal grants for apprenticeships that would double to $800 million by 2025.
The hearing also addressed including more women, minorities, and low-income individuals in apprenticeships. Several panelists noted the importance of providing apprentices with support services such as housing, childcare, and transportation to help them succeed.