federal aid dollars Archives — The James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal

How Would Trump Change Higher Education Policy?

Aug 3, 2016 · George Leef · Comments Off

Last month I looked at Hillary Clinton’s higher education proposals in this Clarion Call, and found nothing to praise in them. They merely deepen the already ruinous federal involvement in subsidizing college. Now it’s time to take a look at the higher education ideas that have been advanced by Donald Trump and the Republicans. I … Continue reading “How Would Trump Change Higher Education Policy?”

Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville Oct 5, 2022
It’s by now a commonplace story: State universities in “red” states, where most of the voters and legislators dislike progressive ideology, are being infiltrated by administrators and faculty who insist on implementing radically leftist policies and courses. Earlier this year, for example, the Martin Center published this article by Jonathan Small on the ways that … Continue reading “Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville”
Failing Introductory Economics Oct 3, 2022
In June 2014, I wrote a piece entitled “Reform Intro Economics” for Inside Higher Ed. There, I argued that then-current introductory economics courses were little changed from those of decades past. I further stated that the students of 2014 found the unrevised course somewhat unsatisfactory: Today’s students are … not accustomed to sitting through 50-minute … Continue reading “Failing Introductory Economics”
The ACT is Still Useful Sep 30, 2022
Standardized tests have been attacked for being biased against some groups of students. Is that true? Should we stop using them? Exams like the American College Test (ACT) are supposed to assess how much information students learned in high school and, by implication, their preparedness for college. However, they’ve been criticized as being biased against … Continue reading “The ACT is Still Useful”

Did You Know? Student-Athletes Need Mental-Health Services, Too Sep 15, 2022
Did you know that 92 percent of NAIA athletic departments wish they could offer psychiatric services designed specifically for their athletes? As mental-health awareness surges among higher-ed faculty and students, sports departments are increasingly concerned with their athletes’ mental well-being. Schools belonging to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics are no exception, and the NAIA … Continue reading “Did You Know? Student-Athletes Need Mental-Health Services, Too”
NIL Chaos Hits College Athletics Sep 5, 2022
Since the Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling in NCAA v. Alston, collegiate sports have been roiled with confusion and a lack of clarity regarding name, image, and likeness (NIL) rules. When the NCAA was forced to dramatically shift its stance on athletes’ compensation, state officials, university systems, and individual colleges hastily assembled NIL guidelines for their … Continue reading “NIL Chaos Hits College Athletics”
UNC System Athletic Directors’ Salaries Tell Us What Universities Value Jul 18, 2022
As previously mentioned in this series, college sports are a big business. Businesses need managers, and, as such, colleges and universities have athletic directors. In college sports, the athletic director acts as the head manager of the entire athletics department. If a task is related to a sporting event or team, the athletic director is … Continue reading “UNC System Athletic Directors’ Salaries Tell Us What Universities Value”

British Universities Show Why “More” Does Not Mean “Better” Sep 23, 2022
The Biden administration is seeking to “cancel” student debt by transferring what individual students owe to the American taxpayer. Opponents question why Americans who never graduated from college, and had none of the attendant benefits of a degree, should pick up the tab for those who did. Defenders of the Biden order counter with the … Continue reading “British Universities Show Why “More” Does Not Mean “Better””
UNC’s Board of Governors May Reconsider A Fee Increase Sep 22, 2022
Today, the UNC Board of Governors will take up an important question: Is it appropriate to increase student fees when students are already facing tight budgets due to inflation? For most fees, the System has already answered with a resounding “no.” But an exception may be made for the System-wide campus security fee. The Committee … Continue reading “UNC’s Board of Governors May Reconsider A Fee Increase”
After Student-Loan Forgiveness, Mandatory Credentialing Has to Go Sep 21, 2022
President Biden recently announced a controversial, half-trillion-dollar student-loan-forgiveness scheme in which his administration would use a minor provision of the post-9/11 HEROES Act to excuse student borrowers from repaying roughly $500 billion in federal taxpayer funds. This regressive, unnecessary, and perverse maneuver promises to steer vast sums to affluent college-goers, even as it encourages colleges to … Continue reading “After Student-Loan Forgiveness, Mandatory Credentialing Has to Go”

Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville Oct 5, 2022
It’s by now a commonplace story: State universities in “red” states, where most of the voters and legislators dislike progressive ideology, are being infiltrated by administrators and faculty who insist on implementing radically leftist policies and courses. Earlier this year, for example, the Martin Center published this article by Jonathan Small on the ways that … Continue reading “Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville”
Higher Education Used to Love Controversy Sep 28, 2022
It is interesting but depressing to me that the more eminent a college or university is perceived to be, the more outrageous are efforts by administrators to stifle individual expression and enforce a numbing conformity of ideas reminiscent of universities in the old Soviet Union or Nazi Germany. The most prestigious group of schools in … Continue reading “Higher Education Used to Love Controversy”
N.C. Campuses’ Long War Sep 26, 2022
World wars have been fought in less time than the battle the UNC and N.C. Community College Systems have waged to create a user-friendly database that active-duty military personnel and veterans can use to ease their transition into higher education. Lawmakers and veterans advocates want to know why higher-education officials have failed for nearly a … Continue reading “N.C. Campuses’ Long War”

Failing Introductory Economics Oct 3, 2022
In June 2014, I wrote a piece entitled “Reform Intro Economics” for Inside Higher Ed. There, I argued that then-current introductory economics courses were little changed from those of decades past. I further stated that the students of 2014 found the unrevised course somewhat unsatisfactory: Today’s students are … not accustomed to sitting through 50-minute … Continue reading “Failing Introductory Economics”
The ACT is Still Useful Sep 30, 2022
Standardized tests have been attacked for being biased against some groups of students. Is that true? Should we stop using them? Exams like the American College Test (ACT) are supposed to assess how much information students learned in high school and, by implication, their preparedness for college. However, they’ve been criticized as being biased against … Continue reading “The ACT is Still Useful”
N.C. Campuses’ Long War Sep 26, 2022
World wars have been fought in less time than the battle the UNC and N.C. Community College Systems have waged to create a user-friendly database that active-duty military personnel and veterans can use to ease their transition into higher education. Lawmakers and veterans advocates want to know why higher-education officials have failed for nearly a … Continue reading “N.C. Campuses’ Long War”

Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville Oct 5, 2022
It’s by now a commonplace story: State universities in “red” states, where most of the voters and legislators dislike progressive ideology, are being infiltrated by administrators and faculty who insist on implementing radically leftist policies and courses. Earlier this year, for example, the Martin Center published this article by Jonathan Small on the ways that … Continue reading “Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville”
Do American Undergraduates Still Respect Their Professors? Sep 29, 2022
The pandemic has affected numerous aspects of daily life. Included among these are how students and faculty relate and respond to each other on campus. With many classes going virtual and universities dealing with unprecedented circumstances, student and faculty relations may well be expected to have shifted. How students view faculty can tell us many … Continue reading “Do American Undergraduates Still Respect Their Professors?”
Higher Education Used to Love Controversy Sep 28, 2022
It is interesting but depressing to me that the more eminent a college or university is perceived to be, the more outrageous are efforts by administrators to stifle individual expression and enforce a numbing conformity of ideas reminiscent of universities in the old Soviet Union or Nazi Germany. The most prestigious group of schools in … Continue reading “Higher Education Used to Love Controversy”

Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville Oct 5, 2022
It’s by now a commonplace story: State universities in “red” states, where most of the voters and legislators dislike progressive ideology, are being infiltrated by administrators and faculty who insist on implementing radically leftist policies and courses. Earlier this year, for example, the Martin Center published this article by Jonathan Small on the ways that … Continue reading “Woke Capture at UT-Knoxville”
Re: “Failing Introductory Economics” Oct 4, 2022
To the editor: I admire the fact that Professor Ross is not willing to “dumb down” his class in order to make it more popular. Colin Barnett Albuquerque, NM
Failing Introductory Economics Oct 3, 2022
In June 2014, I wrote a piece entitled “Reform Intro Economics” for Inside Higher Ed. There, I argued that then-current introductory economics courses were little changed from those of decades past. I further stated that the students of 2014 found the unrevised course somewhat unsatisfactory: Today’s students are … not accustomed to sitting through 50-minute … Continue reading “Failing Introductory Economics”