The fall 2020 semester did not go as planned for most students and many felt that their universities failed them. The spring 2021 semester isn’t looking too promising for them, either. Some colleges, such as UCLA, will not reopen until an “effective vaccine or advanced therapeutics have been developed and are available to the majority … Continue reading “Did You Know? UNC Schools Delay In-person Classes”
Penguin Classics is partnering with Disrupt Texts to replace Shakespeare and Homer with Ibram X. Kendi. What is Disrupt Texts? For the uninitiated, it is a new radical movement in classrooms which seeks to disrupt the “hegemony of English” and the Western canon by replacing them. According to its own website, Disrupt Texts is a “crowdsourced, grassroots effort by … Continue reading “Did You Know? Disrupt Texts Is the Latest Attack on the Western Canon”
Last week, Congress approved the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, a $2.4 trillion spending package that includes $23 billion in aid for public and non-profit colleges and universities. The relief package will provide about $286 million in new Higher Education Emergency Relief Funding (HEERF) to UNC system schools. Of that amount, almost $90 million is … Continue reading “Did You Know? UNC Schools Will Get Millions in COVID-19 Funding”
Three universities in North Carolina host chapters of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, a group with ties to the Chinese government. According to a May article in Campus Reform, Duke University, UNC-Chapel Hill, and NC State all have chapters. The website of the Chinese Students & Scholars Friendship Association at NC State states that … Continue reading “Did You Know? Chinese Government Influence at North Carolina Colleges”
Many students since the pandemic have questioned whether they should attend graduate school or change their career plans altogether. The Chronicle of Higher Education reported that 17 percent of graduate students said their career plans changed since the pandemic started. Students are now worried they cannot afford graduate school. According to a 2020 Pew Research … Continue reading “Did You Know? For Some Post-Graduate Plans, Employer Tuition Reimbursements Is the Way”
As college classes go online, one group of students is ignored: those with learning disabilities. The Atlantic calls learning disabilities an “invisible disability” because they aren’t physically obvious. These disabilities can be detrimental to a student’s success if they don’t get help. Students with disabilities aren’t rare; almost 20 percent of undergrads reported having one, … Continue reading “Did You Know? The Trouble with Aiding Students with Learning Disabilities”
Elite colleges are quick to take foreign donations, but slow to inform the federal government. A recent report from the Department of Education found $6.5 billion in foreign donations that colleges had failed to self-report before the Department raised the issue. “Since 2000, the higher education industry has increased its entanglement with foreign adversaries, leading … Continue reading “Did You Know? Elite Colleges Fail to Report $6.5 Billion in Foreign Donations”
Students are paying a higher price tag for college, but is the quality of their education also increasing, or at least staying stable? A lot of indicators suggest “no.” During the George W. Bush administration, the Spellings Commission found evidence that “the quality of student learning at U.S. colleges and universities is inadequate and, in … Continue reading “Did You Know? The Ignorance of College Graduates”
Since the pandemic, many colleges have gone from giving letter grades to offering students a pass/fail grading option for their courses. Letter grades become a passing (P), which gives students credit but is not included in their GPA. If a student fails, they receive an F that stays on their record. Schools suggest that students … Continue reading “Did You Know? Grad School Can Affect Whether Students Take a Class Pass/Fail”
The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) came out with the largest survey of students and campus life, showing the predictable divisions along class, political beliefs, and gender. However, overall, it painted a scenario that is mostly positive, and policy reforms can fix the drawbacks. FIRE surveyed 20,000 students across 55 institutions. Female students … Continue reading “Did You Know? Survey Finds Trouble in Campus Support for Free Speech”