Can the Feds Do Something to Protect Campus Free Speech? Should They?

May 26, 2017 · · 1 Comment on Can the Feds Do Something to Protect Campus Free Speech? Should They?

That free speech on college campuses is under attack cannot be denied. We find invited speakers being disinvited or shouted down, “bias incident” reporting systems that encourage students to complain when they hear anything they don’t like, and professors who demean students who dare to question their assertions. In the fairly recent past, most higher … Continue reading “Can the Feds Do Something to Protect Campus Free Speech? Should They?”

Why the Woman Appointed to a Top Education Department Post Is Under Fire

May 5, 2017 · · 42 Comments on Why the Woman Appointed to a Top Education Department Post Is Under Fire

During Barack Obama’s administration, the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights was staffed with “progressives” who were intent on pushing federal policy in ways that advanced their visions of what education should accomplish and how schools must treat students. But as the former president himself observed, “elections have consequences” and we are seeing them in … Continue reading “Why the Woman Appointed to a Top Education Department Post Is Under Fire”

Elite College, Caught in Title IX Web, Goes to Trial Against Wronged Student

Apr 5, 2017 · · 27 Comments on Elite College, Caught in Title IX Web, Goes to Trial Against Wronged Student

Amherst College is one of America’s most prestigious schools. It is run by people with lustrous liberal credentials, eager to show their fidelity to progressive causes, including the battle against the campus “rape culture.” But that eagerness has landed Amherst a lawsuit brought by a student who argues that he was wrongfully expelled. The facts … Continue reading “Elite College, Caught in Title IX Web, Goes to Trial Against Wronged Student”

Sweeping Change at the Office for Civil Rights Is Imperative

Mar 1, 2017 · · 9 Comments on 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 colleges and universities, during the Obama administration officials in the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) made dramatic and harmful changes in the … Continue reading “Sweeping Change at the Office for Civil Rights Is Imperative”

The Department of Education De-Accredits an Accreditor

Dec 21, 2016 · · 14 Comments on The Department of Education De-Accredits an Accreditor

The final year of the U.S. Department of Education in the Obama administration is noteworthy for all its carnage. In September, the large ITT Tech chain of schools, which had operated in 38 states, was forced to close when Department officials shut off its access to federal student aid. That decision, which I wrote about … Continue reading “The Department of Education De-Accredits an Accreditor”

The Education Department Gives ITT the Death Penalty

Oct 5, 2016 · · 15 Comments on The Education Department Gives ITT the Death Penalty

Foremost among the criticisms of the way our administrative law system works is that bureaucratic agencies get to act as lawmaker, judge, jury, and executioner all rolled into one. That is completely at odds with the way the Founders thought government should function, a point made with great power by Professor Philip Hamburger in his … Continue reading “The Education Department Gives ITT the Death Penalty”