Daily Lumina News 042822

In 2006, Marjorie Blen was required to take remedial math and English courses at Contra Costa Community College in California. The courses cost her time and money but did not earn her transfer-level credit toward a degree.
For many students, Blen's experience is an all-too familiar one. Advocates in California are now calling on reforms to tighten implementation of a state law that rethinks remedial courses.

This fall, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear challenges to the admissions policies at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on their use of affirmative action. Critics say the colleges should not be allowed to consider race.
Author Gary Orfield disagrees. Orfield is a proponent of affirmative action and a variety of other policies to help all students. He explains more in this interview.

College students across the United States are on a desperate search for housing for the 2022-23 school year. And, if 2021 serves as any indication, it won't be easy.
For some colleges, the housing crunch reflects a deeper conflict between the colleges and homeowners who don't want new housing built for students who they say increase congestion and noise.

When Rasheed Adewole’s friends from other high schools used to complain about their heaps of homework, he would feel a flood of shame.
Adewole, who is Nigerian American, was on the losing end of a stark divide in New Jersey. Black, Hispanic, or low-income students are far less likely than their white and Asian peers to take the most rigorous high school courses, including Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate, which often serve as springboards to college.

This week, Harvard University released a 134-page report on the university’s historical ties to slavery, along with a promise of a $100 million fund to address inequities.
Among the report's major findings: At least 41 prominent people associated with Harvard enslaved people, including four past presidents.

A proposed overhaul of Mississippi’s state financial aid programs is complicated, unlikely to address existing issues, and could create new challenges for low-income students, says a report from the Urban Institute.
Instead of the proposed Mississippi One Grant, the report says policymakers should consolidate the state's college aid programs into two simple grants: one program to provide low-income students with need-based aid and another that makes awards based on a students’ grades or test scores.