Top Higher Education News for Wednesday
Lumina Foundation is committed to increasing the proportion of Americans with high-quality degrees, certificates and other credentials to 60 percent by 2025. |
| Jack Stripling, College Matters SHARE: Facebook • LinkedIn Political opposition to diversity, equity, and inclusion programs has been building for years, but something happened last October that felt like a turning point. In a widely reported article for The New York Times Magazine, Nicholas Confessore cast doubt on the effectiveness of one of the nation’s best-funded DEI programs. Titled “The University of Michigan Doubled Down on DEI. What Went Wrong?,” Confessore’s story added fuel to a debate over whether DEI programs are meeting their stated goals or actually making campus climates worse. In this interview, Confessore talks in depth about his investigation. |
| Sara Weissman, Inside Higher Ed SHARE: Facebook • LinkedIn President Donald Trump's decision to target federal diversity, equity, and inclusion programming raises questions about how colleges and universities with a federally recognized mission to serve underrepresented students will fare under the new administration. Leaders of these institutions wonder to what extent government officials see their colleges as entangled with the DEI principles Trump is working so hard to root out. They’re also asking themselves what it would take to change lawmakers’ minds before key funding streams and programs suffer. |
| Doug Lederman, The Key SHARE: Facebook • LinkedIn The Trump administration and Republican lawmakers in Congress are looking to cut or eliminate nearly a dozen student loan and federal aid programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education. The cuts, if implemented, could impact millions of Americans, from families who are about to send their children to college to working people looking to advance their careers through an additional degree or certificate to student loan borrowers who are already in repayment. |
| Jon Marcus, The Hechinger Report SHARE: Facebook • LinkedIn Olivia Howe was hesitant at first to add French to her major in finance at the University of Arizona, fearing that it wouldn’t be very useful in the labor market. It turns out her language skills helped her land a job at the multinational technology company Siemens, which will be waiting for her when she graduates this spring. The simple message that majoring in the humanities pays off is being pushed aggressively by this university and a handful of others; they hope to reverse decades of plummeting enrollment in subjects that teach skills employers say they need from graduates but aren’t getting. |
| Stephanie Marken and Zach Hrynowski, Gallup SHARE: Facebook • LinkedIn Many policymakers and student advocates view completion of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid as key to increasing postsecondary enrollment. This is especially true given that cost continues to be one of the top reasons Americans are temporarily or permanently leaving their postsecondary programs or not enrolling in the first place. Results from the most recent Lumina Foundation-Gallup 2025 State of Higher Education Study underscore the importance of the FAFSA, with fresh insights on how application experiences impact enrollment decision-making. |
Erica Breunlin and Jessica Bowman, The Colorado Sun
SHARE: Facebook • LinkedIn Long outspoken about efforts to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion on their campuses, Colorado colleges are now confronting a wave of uncertainty and fear following a volley of executive orders in President Donald Trump’s first two weeks in office. For the moment, officials remain undeterred, even as many questions loom about whether that could jeopardize the federal dollars they receive and as they try to debunk what they see as mischaracterizations of DEI. |
| Danelle Greebe and Mary Kline, The EvoLLLution |
| Joshua Kim, Learning Innovation |
| Sarah Reber, Brookings Institution |
| Faith Bradham, Ariel Dyer, and Sindy Lopez, Ithaka S+R |
| Ashley Mowreader, Inside Higher Ed |
| Nathaniel Cline, Virginia Mercury |
| Kathryn Carley, Public News Service |
| Walter Hudson, Diverse Issues in Higher Education |
| Katherine Mangan, The Chronicle of Higher Education |
| Jeremy Bauer-Wolf, New America |
| Kristin Blagg, Urban Wire |
| Matthew Dembicki, Community College Daily |
| Stephen Masterson, The Regulatory Review |
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