Summer Reading Questions and What They Reveal About Faculty
After three decades in higher education as student and teacher, this year I begin a new role, as parent. My eldest daughter will attend a small liberal arts college in…
NC State to Spend Millions of Tax Dollars Advancing Corporate, Government Interests
In 2014, North Carolina State University became the new home for PowerAmerica, a $140 million dollar project aimed at promoting research in the advanced electronics industry. Just two years later,…
The Ugly Truth Behind a College’s “Diversity” Requirement
Hamilton College has for years had an open curriculum, allowing students the freedom to shape their education as they think best. Whether that’s a good idea is debatable, but the…
Hillary Clinton’s New College “Reforms”
Seemingly, nothing now stands between Hillary Clinton and the Democratic nomination, so it’s worth looking anew at her proposals regarding higher education. Back in May, Professor Gary Wolfram critiqued the…
Students Learn Climate Change Advocacy, Not Climate Science
For almost thirty years, I have taught climate science at three different universities. What I have observed is that students are increasingly being fed climate change advocacy as a surrogate…
Fisher Decision a Disappointment, But Won’t Stop Campaign Against Racial Preferences
When the Supreme Court agreed to hear Abigail Fisher’s challenge to the University of Texas’s admissions program a second time, it seemed that the writing was on the wall. Why…
Two Key Lawsuits Lead Counterattack Against Title IX Overreach
Hyper-aggressive federal officials have taken the vague language in Title IX of the 1972 Education Act Amendments and treated it as if it gave them plenary authority to control anything…
Shocking: The Chronicle Supports the Case Against College for All
The May 6 issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education contains two illuminating and rather unexpected articles: “Should Everyone Go to College?” by Scott Carlson and “When Everyone Goes to College: a Lesson from South Korea” by Karin Fischer. What makes these pieces so interesting is that they say clearly what so many in the higher education community have long been at pains to deny, namely that a country can go overboard on higher education.
Loan Forgiveness: A Superficial Solution to the Student Debt Problem
Bills filed in the North Carolina General Assembly would provide student loan debt relief to “public interest” attorneys and to K-12 teachers. Both proposals are ill-advised. Rather than erase debt for those in politically connected groups, lawmakers should work to address the root causes of skyrocketing college costs, which are borne by all North Carolina students through the tuition and fees they pay each semester. Of course, state taxpayers also cover those costs, with roughly $2.6 billion allotted annually to the University of North Carolina System.
In Congress, Higher Education Proposals Fall Flat
Although the bills currently under consideration are unlikely to pass in the immediate future, evaluating them reveals the current areas of federal interest in higher education. These categories can be broadly defined as student aid and access, controlling costs, and political interest.