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Faculty contracts and cuts collide: reinstatement orders and sweeping program reductions
Portland State faces a standoff after an arbitrator ordered the reinstatement and back pay for 10 laid-off nontenure-track faculty; the university has refused to reinstate on legal grounds and...
Classroom speech and immigration collide: Berkeley suspension and student reinstatement rulings
UC Berkeley suspended a lecturer for the spring semester without pay after officials concluded he used class time for pro‑Palestinian advocacy and violated campus policy by directing students to...
International-enrollment shock: new-student drop trims $1B from local economies
U.S. colleges reported a 17% decline in new international student enrollment this year — the steepest drop outside the pandemic — costing nearly $1 billion in local economic activity and roughly...
AI tests curricula and services: Catholic liberal arts and campus agents get trial by fire
Catholic liberal arts colleges are reassessing curricular relevance as AI reshapes employer demand; students and leaders debate whether philosophy and traditional liberal-arts training are...
Workforce Pell and implementation fights: negotiating rules as deadlines loom
Negotiations over Workforce Pell are underway as stakeholders hash out eligibility, accountability and rollout mechanics from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. A negotiating committee reported...
Campus safety crisis: shooting at Kentucky State and an on‑campus ICE arrest clash
A shooting at Kentucky State University’s residence hall left one student dead and another critically injured; the suspected nonstudent shooter is in custody and campus officials moved quickly to...
Pell Grant shortfall: $6B–$11B annual gap warns watchdog
The Pell Grant program faces a structural funding gap that could run $6 billion to $11 billion a year over the next decade, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget warned. The CRFB analysis...
FAFSA earnings warning: Department adds low‑outcomes flag to student aid process
The Department of Education rolled out an earnings indicator on the FAFSA that flags institutions where median graduate earnings lag those of typical high‑school graduates. First-year...
Martin University pauses operations: Predominantly Black college cites fiscal collapse
Martin University announced it will “pause operations” at the end of the semester, citing dwindling enrollment, mounting financial strain and an absence of an endowment. Trustees said they are...
Program triage in Wisconsin: New metric could accelerate cuts
The Universities of Wisconsin system is adopting a new enrollment-based trigger to flag undergraduate programs for review — programs averaging 15 or fewer juniors and seniors over three years — a...
Arbitrator orders reinstatement — university resists: Portland State stalemate
An independent arbitrator ordered Portland State University to reinstate 10 nontenure‑track faculty who were laid off in June, saying the university violated the collective‑bargaining agreement...
Justice Department rule shift: Disparate‑impact investigations rescinded
The Justice Department announced it will no longer enforce disparate‑impact liability under Title VI, removing a decades‑old tool that allowed complaints based on statistical disparities rather...
Education Department reassigns OCR staff to tackle backlog
The Education Department ordered staff who had been targeted in earlier reduction‑in‑force actions to return to work at the Office for Civil Rights to address a swelling complaint backlog...
Gainful‑employment and value‑transparency rules: Federal clampdown reshapes career programs
New federal gainful‑employment and financial value transparency rules are forcing career education programs — particularly at proprietary institutions — to justify that credentials raise...
AI agents on campus: Universities pilot autonomous assistants for student services
Colleges are experimenting with agentic AI systems that autonomously perform administrative and student‑service tasks — from major changes and advising triage to supply‑chain coordination —...
Student homelessness: College safe‑parking programs scale as campus safety net
Long Beach City College’s Safe Parking Program — which permits students to sleep in a designated lot overnight and access showers and restroom facilities — illustrates a growing campus response to...
FAFSA adds earnings warning: 1,300 colleges flagged
The Education Department has added an earnings indicator to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid that flags institutions whose graduates earn less than typical high‑school completers. The...
Justice Department curbs disparate‑impact probes – Title VI retooled
The Justice Department announced it will stop investigating claims based on disparate‑impact theory under Title VI, removing a decades‑old tool that allowed plaintiffs to challenge race‑ or...
Education Department reactivates OCR staff…amid legal fights and backlog
The Education Department has ordered previously laid‑off Office for Civil Rights staff back to work to address a swelling complaint backlog, even as the department continues to pursue litigation...
Arbitrator orders reinstatement – Portland State refuses, union vows appeal
An independent arbitrator found Portland State University violated its collective‑bargaining agreement and ordered the reinstatement and back pay for 10 nontenure‑track faculty laid off in June....