Daily Lumina News 111320

As a new college president, Lori White noticed that among the various organizations and consortiums of college presidents there wasn’t one solely dedicated to promoting antiracism. She wanted to change that reality. So, a few months after becoming president of DePauw University, she formed such a group for liberal arts colleges.
The Liberal Arts Colleges Racial Equity Leadership Alliance (LACRELA) includes 53 liberal arts college members whose goal is to collectively address issues of racial diversity, equity, and inclusion on their campuses.

The advent of COVID-19 is spurring innovation across higher education. But there is a common thread between the initiatives succeeding better than others: a focus on getting learners back into the workforce as quickly as possible.
Three efforts in various stages of development offer updates on their progress to connect the education and work marketplace.

Like many rural areas throughout the United States, Whitman County reported very few coronavirus cases in the pandemic’s early months, even through the summer.
Then, in August, Washington State University students came back to town, causing a big spike. Now, cases have fallen among students—but the virus is showing up instead in older adults, including residents of nursing homes. Last month, Whitman recorded a grim milestone: its first COVID-19 deaths.

For higher education, a Joe Biden presidency could mean a dramatic shift in policies. President-elect Biden released an expensive and ambitious plan during the campaign that included free public colleges, loan forgiveness, and more money for low-income students to pay for college.
Broadly, the federal government's approach to higher education seems almost certain to be less confrontational—in both rhetoric and policy.