| International |
What will become of Cambodia’s youth? | Even though higher education remains far beyond the reach of most rural and female youths, the gross enrolment rate in tertiary education among youths aged between 18 and 22 has improved significantly over the last 10 years from 4.9 to 20 percent, including among the poorest households (from 0.2 to 2.6 percent) and women (3.3 to 17.4 percent).
Is higher education internationalisation sustainable? | Discussions about the internationalisation of higher education go in two conflicting directions. The first is around rising nationalist and protectionist sentiments and contests the myth of unlimited growth. The second points to the continuous increase in student and programme mobility as proof of internationalisation’s unchecked momentum.
Big budget lift for research eco-system, top universities | [T]he University Grants Commission (UGC) this week introduced the STRIDE scheme in order to boost research culture in the universities across India. STRIDE – Scheme for Trans-disciplinary Research for India’s Developing Economy – will not only work to increase research but also to identify young talent, encourage innovation, build capacity and promote transdisciplinary subjects.
HE as a scientific field of study – Examining the absences | This raises questions over the historical development of higher education policy-driven research on the African continent and research agenda-setting outside academia. Who, for example, establishes higher education as an object of study in Africa? Should there be academic programmes, with standardised curricula, accreditation panels and gatekeepers of a common knowledge base?
| U.S. National |
Senators Push Alternative to Student Loans | Senate lawmakers announced legislation Tuesday that they argue will spur the growth of income-share agreements, privately run alternatives to student loans that commit workers to paying back a portion of their future income. ISAs have received extensive press coverage, thanks to their promotion as an alternative to unmanageable student debt. They’ve yet to catch on widely, though — in part, supporters argue, because of a lack of clarity surrounding federal law.
ASU joins groundbreaking College Transfer Network | Adams State University becomes the first institution in Colorado to join the Interstate Passport Network (IPN), a nationwide network of two- and four-year colleges and universities that allows students to transfer lower division general education credits as a block to any IPN member institution. With Adams State’s membership, the network consists of 31 institutions across 13 states.
Is Amazon Training Its Workers or Creating a College Alternative? | Do these moves by Amazon and others to educate their own employees represent a threat to higher education, especially when they choose to bypass traditional institutions? If yes, to what extent? Or do you take the view that this trend is just another development that will require traditional institutions to change what they offer and how they offer it — and that the higher education ecosystem is up to the challenge, having adapted significantly when required over time?
| U.S. States and Territories |
College admissions scandal reveals vast inequalities in higher education | The UC system includes more than 238,000 students and takes great pride in being ranked among the best in the world as well as attracting and educating the best and brightest “from all backgrounds, ethnicities and incomes,” noting that more than 40 percent of UC students come from low-income families. But a system that tends to favor those with means threatens those commendable ideals. It’s a serious challenge to the UC and to institutions of higher learning nationwide.
Washington state’s big bet on ‘free college’ | The main idea behind the new law is to make college more affordable. It does so by providing state aid grants that will cover much or all of tuition for more Washington resident students – 36,000 more by 2021 who are eligible based on their income, according to a Senate source with knowledge of the plan. This will be done through the new Washington College Grant.
| Institutional |
Dems defend Boise State University diversity programs | The letter to BSU President Marlene Tromp, which was signed by all 21 of the Legislature’s Democrats, is in response to one 28 House Republicans sent her earlier this week. That letter, which was written by Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, and signed by several eastern Idaho lawmakers, criticized some of BSU’s minority outreach and multicultural programs as divisive and wastes of money.
Young HBCU Leaders Look to Carry the Torch | At historically Black colleges and universities, particularly, a cohort of younger presidents and chancellors has entered the space with a vision to propel their institutions forward. Although younger than the “traditional” college president, the leaders bring with them years of higher education experience and they are leveraging relationships with government, industry and older presidential mentors to address some of the challenges that many HBCU presidents collectively face: enrollment growth, student success, fundraising, access and affordability and financial stability.
Hackers Demand $2 Million From Monroe | A cyberattack disabled many of Monroe College’s technology systems and platforms last week. Students and faculty and staff members were locked out of the college’s website, learning management system and email, with hackers demanding payment of around $2 million in Bitcoin to restore access.
UChicago Access Initiative Increases Enrollment From Underrepresented Groups | Urquidez credits the UChicago Empower Initiative, a new set of scholarships, access programs and admissions practices introduced at the University of Chicago last year to make the school more attainable for underprivileged students. This year, the university is welcoming a record influx of students from underrepresented backgrounds, including first-generation students, students from low-income households, rural students and the children of firefighters and police.
Educational intelligence begins with connecting campus data | First, campus data becomes siloed within each piece of software, making it difficult to gain big-picture insights. Second, asking faculty, administrators and other campus stakeholders to use an ever-growing number of disparate systems can lead to steep learning curves, and incur the cost of “task switching”—shifting attention from one context to another. Finally, faculty and administrators are left to cobble together data from multiple systems for analysis, requiring help from IT or data professionals—all of which is resource intensive.