Inside Higher Ed

Fault Lines

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Budget cuts are taking their toll on City College of San Francisco, where limited course offerings bar student access and unfilled vacancies leave jobs undone.

Too Golden a Parachute

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

When a faculty member makes outrageous demands, and an institution wants to encourage more retirements, what's an administrator to do? C.K. Gunsalus weighs the options.

Translation of the Last Department Meeting

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

What they said, and what they really meant: David Galef channels a faculty gathering.

Momentum Builds to Include Loan Reform in Health Bill

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate edged closer Thursday to merging the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act into the budget reconciliation bill being drafted to push health care reform through Congress without Republican support. Among the provisions that would be included: the long-discussed end of the Federal Family Education Loan Program, in which private lenders receive subsidies for making loans to students, and the expansion of the Pell Grant program. At a news conference, the chairs of the House and Senate education committees vowed to ensure that the loan reforms would be included in the bill. Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) said the chance to adjust federal funding for higher education was "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change Washington and do the right thing, the fair thing, and the fiscally responsible thing for hard-working families."

Student advocates Campus Progress, the United States Public Interest Research Group and the United States Student Association sent a letter to Congress Thursday afternoon applauding the proposal. "We can no longer afford to waste billions on special interest subsidies while higher education budgets are cut, college costs skyrocket, and students and their families are struggling to afford a higher education," they wrote.

But news reports also indicated that Senate leaders seem intent on using a newer, and much lower, figure for determining the savings that the student loan reforms would generate. That decision, if it holds up, would mean that Congress would have much less money to distribute among the many would-be beneficiaries of the bill: community colleges, minority serving institutions, early childhood education programs, and, most prominently, needy recipients of Pell Grants.

Tillman's Legacy

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The NFL star-turned-soldier's death provoked controversy and admiration for sacrifice, and now a foundation named for him aims to help veterans pursue education.

Some Binghamton Faculty Push to Leave Division I

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Faculty members at the State University of New York at Binghamton are circulating a petition calling for the institution, in the wake of a basketball scandal, to leave Division I, The New York Times reported. Senior administrators have acknowledged problems in the program, but shown no willingness to reconsider big-time athletics. The faculty statement, however, says: "“Withdrawal from membership in Division I is in the interest of this university that aspires to be a ‘premier’ public research institution. It will send a strong message to [SUNY System] Chancellor [Nancy] Zimpher, our students and alumni that we intend to end the spirit of cover-up that was encouraged from the top, raise our academic standards, and restore BU’s reputation.”

Reforming Teacher Ed

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Prominent voices look to in-the-classroom residencies and colleges of education to reshape how teachers are taught to teach.

From Training to a Job

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Scholars argue for new approach in which vocational education and the quest for employment are seamlessly linked – throughout a career.

Higher Ed Groups Benefit From Obama Donations

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

President Obama announced Thursday the charities to which he is donating the $1.4 million he received as winner of the Nobel Peace Prize -- and several of the organizations support efforts to help more students go to college. Among the recipients: College Summit, the Posse Foundation, the United Negro College Fund, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, the Appalachian Leadership and Education Foundation and the American Indian College Fund.

Accusations at Alabama State

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Three female employees at Alabama State University have filed a lawsuit charging that they were the victims of repeated incidents of sexual and racial harassment, and that senior administrators condoned the actions, The Montgomery Advertiser reported. University officials counter that the suit was prompted by a former trustee who, they claim, is trying to unsettle the insittution.

Power Struggle at North Texas

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Gretchen Bataille's many supporters remain confused and upset by her ouster last month as president of the University of North Texas, with only vague statements having been issued about why she was forced out. The Dallas Morning News, based on a review of e-mail records obtained through an open records request, reports that there may have been no single dispute between Bataille and system leaders, but that she differed with Chancellor Lee Jackson on a series of issues, including tuition, organizational matters and a branch campus.

Syracuse U. Appoints Pagan Chaplain

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

In a relatively rare move in higher education, Syracuse University has appointed a pagan chaplain, ABC News reported. As of last year, there were only 11 student pagans at the university, but they hope their numbers may grow now that they have a chaplain.

Lack of Editors Could Doom 'The Technician'

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The Technician, the student newspaper at North Carolina State University, is in danger of disappearing because it can't find enough editors to run the operation, The News & Observer reported. This week the paper ran an editorial begging for help. "The paper needs your help, regardless of age or experience. Without student support, the paper could cease publication at the end of the semester," the editorial said.

U. of Chicago Press Joins JSTOR Program

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The online journal archiving system JSTOR announced today that it has signed on the University of Chicago Press to its Current Scholarship Program — a project that aims to supplement JSTOR's deep repository of back issues from over a thousand journals. The idea behind the project, which is scheduled to open next year, is to help academic publishers leverage JSTOR’s connections to libraries in 145 countries in order to broaden their subscriber bases. Meanwhile, JSTOR will be able to increase its own appeal by advertising itself as a portal to current publications, not just back files. (The publishers would set the prices and collect the revenue from the subscriptions to current publications.) Chicago is the 11th university press to sign on to the project, joining the University of California Press, among others.

Newly Tenured ... at Lake Washington, Saint Joseph, Smith

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Considering 'Bad Books' ...

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The American Book Review has set off a debate with its list of 40 "bad books," many of them nominated by professors. The symposium's introduction notes that there is not even agreement on what a "bad book" is. It says: "Is it an overrated 'good' book? Can an otherwise good.author produce a 'bad' book? Is the badness in style, in execution? Or is it in theme or outlook? Or is the notion of a 'bad' book even comprehensible in the age of postmodernism, poststructuralism, and cultural studies?" Commentary on the list may be found here and here.

... and Honoring Good Books

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The National Book Critics Circle on Thursday announced winners of its annual book awards:

Ficton: Hilary Mantel, for Wolf Hall

Nonfiction: Richard Holmes, The Age of Wonder

Autobiography: Diana Athill, Somewhere Towards the End

Biography: Blake Bailey, Cheever

Criticism: Eula Biss, Notes From No Man's Land

Poetry: Rae Armentrout, Versed

The Ultimate Safety School?

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 02:21:47 GMT

Dean Dad

Where Mobile Learning and Copyright Collide

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 01:55:36 GMT

Joshua Kim

Math Geek Mom: Thoughts on “We are the World”, Part 2

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 23:53:23 GMT

Rosemarie Emanuele

Self-winding cellphones

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:00:19 GMT

G. Rendell

Express Lane to a B.A.

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

A year after politicians and pundits started talking about three-year degrees, more colleges are starting programs or considering them.

Chaplains to All

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Rev. Liza Neal describes a different model for nurturing student spirituality in a diverse academic environment.

Erskine Sues Church, Gains Injunction

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Erskine College sued the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church Wednesday accusing the religious denomination that created the college of violating its bylaws and attempting to gain inappropriate control, The Index Journal reported. A judge issued a temporary restraining order against the church, blocking it from taking actions against Erskine, pending further hearings. The legal action results from last week's move by the college to fire board members of the college. Church leaders say that the college and its board have not stayed true to the faith, but many faculty members believe that the church is trying to impose ideological control on everyone at the college, and accreditors are raising questions about the church's actions.

Iowa State May Change Policy for Dismissing Tenured Faculty

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Iowa State University is considering a change in its policy on the dismissal of tenured faculty members, The Omaha World-Herald reported. Currently, tenured faculty members may be dismissed only in cases of "extraordinary financial crisis," but a proposed change would also permit dismissals if their programs are eliminated. The change is being considered as more colleges violate the standards of the American Association of University Professors by dismissing tenured faculty members without declaring "financial exigency."

NSF Director Touts Administration's Budget Plan

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The director of the National Science Foundation explained numerous changes that the Obama administration aims to make in the agency's approach to science research and education in testimony before a Congressional science panel Wednesday. Arden L. Bement Jr., who is leaving the NSF to head a research center at Purdue University, told members of the House of Representatives Science Committee about the administration's plan to continue a drive to double spending on the physical sciences and to revamp funding for minority college students in science fields.

Crunch Time for 2-Year Colleges

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Advocates argue that time is of the essence for the American Graduation Initiative and officials need to withhold criticism to help get the bill passed.

Groups Publish Draft of Common High School Standards

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

The Council of Chief State School Officers and the National Governors Association on Wednesday published a draft of proposed "common core standards" that are designed to help states reach consensus on what it means to be "college ready." Most states have agreed in principle to embrace the standards once they are agreed on, and groups of college faculty members in English and mathematics plan to assess the standards.

Race Matters

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Black science students are more likely to stay in their field if they have at least one black instructor, according to new study, which finds no similar impact based on gender.

Georgia State Dean Quits to Protest Merger Idea

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:00:00 GMT

Bart Hildreth, dean of the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University, said that he was told to resign for speaking out against the idea of merging the school with another college at the university, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Georgia's public colleges are currently in the midst of considering a range of proposals to deal with deep budget cuts that they face already -- and the prospect of still more on the way. A spokeswoman for the university said that while officials disagree with the former dean's characterization of events, they were not speaking out in detail out of respect for the confidentiality of personnel matters.