How to Make University Foundations More Transparent
University foundations are at the forefront of schools’ fundraising, event planning, and publicity efforts. But the details of how these foundations operate—such as where they get their money and what…
If We Can’t Repeal the Higher Education Act, Let’s Improve It
The United States got along nicely for its first 176 years without any federal legislation on higher education. (A good reason why there was no such legislation is the absence…
Concerns Raised Over NC’s Dual Enrollment Program and Possible Community College Misconduct
Each year, roughly 1.4 million high school students take college courses. This is made possible by dual enrollment programs, which give those students opportunities to earn credits and work toward…
Beyond Ideology: Poetry and the Conservative Mind
The Ideologues Genius of Burke! forgive the pen seduced/ by specious wonders – William Wordsworth Conservatives today seem to be pretty good at winning elections. They also seem to be…
Universities Are Spending Millions on Ineffective Campus Security Initiatives
Concerns over campus safety—both founded and unfounded—have escalated recently. In North Carolina, for example, sexual assault charges against UNC-Chapel Hill and UNC-Charlotte football players made headlines. And even more high-profile…
Five Questions to Ask Future UNC Board Members
Since 2010, the UNC system’s Board of Governors has become somewhat more conservative and more interested in serious educational reforms. Members of the Board have professed interest in decreasing costs,…
Sweeping Change at the Office for Civil Rights Is Imperative
Nowhere is the adage “personnel is policy” truer than in the federal education bureaucracy. With nothing more than a few Dear Colleague letters meant to provide “guidance” to nearly all…
A Small College Is Suffering from Self-inflicted Wounds
Recently, one of my neighbors saw students from Elizabethtown College, where I taught for many years, walking down the street wearing what looked like the puzzle pieces featured as symbols…
What the Feds Can Do for Higher Education: Appoint Richard Vedder
Assuming that Betsy DeVos, the new secretary of education, has sufficient commitment and stamina, she will change how her department addresses K-12 education. Her support of school choice through charter…
The Accelerating Pace of Change in Higher Education
Judging from recent books, articles, and editorials, higher education is poised for a cataclysmic collapse. There is a considerable body of opinion that systemic problems such as runaway tuition, student…