Daily Lumina News 072420

Even before the pandemic, college leaders faced a difficult reality: financial problems, campus conflict, and intense public scrutiny. Now they are making decisions about reopening in the fall that have potentially life-or-death consequences. How are they navigating the tough economic climate? What ethical considerations weigh most heavily on their minds?
Three presidents discuss how they navigate the crises hitting higher education, the imperative of taking action to combat racism, and the risk of emotional burnout.

With 2.3 million people currently behind bars and 77 million people with criminal records in the United States, a college degree is an investment with tangible returns. Yet despite all of the data, Congress has yet to lift the prohibition on Pell Grants for incarcerated people.
For people who have been involved with the justice system as defendants, prioritizing higher education is a necessary safeguard for social and economic success, both during and after incarceration.

Central Louisiana Technical Community College has a short history that illuminates how much a rural community can do for young or marginalized people like Olivia Cohea when it bets on education as a path to a better life.
But this story also shows the flip side of the coin: how decisions of faraway politicians can ripple out to the smallest communities, and how much harm is inflicted when higher education is starved for funding.

Harvard University and the University of Southern California are advising new international students not to come to campus this fall, saying they will be unable to enter the United States to participate in remote instruction.
Meanwhile, more than 40 higher education groups are seeking greater clarity and flexibility on federal policy for new students from abroad. But with the fall semester fast approaching, time to clarify the rules for new international students is quickly running out.