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Small-college distress: campus sale and a sudden closure
Financial strain drove two small private colleges to divergent outcomes: Wells College agreed to sell its campus in Aurora to the Hiawatha Institute for Indigenous Knowledge, a nonprofit that...
Governance pressure mounts: post‑tenure review and conditional lender demands
State and institutional governance battles intensified as South Dakota adopted a post‑tenure review policy described by officials as accountability reform and decried by critics as a threat to...
Course‑sharing scales: consortiums lift small colleges’ finances
Course‑sharing and cross‑campus collaboration gained traction as institutions seek revenue and program breadth without heavy hiring. Adrian College detailed how membership in a course‑sharing...
AI reshapes admissions and MBA recruiting — video, authenticity, and assessment
Artificial intelligence moved from novelty to core tension points in graduate admissions and MBA recruitment. Business‑school admissions forecasts call out a surge in video assessments and tighter...
Student preparedness strains classrooms — reading declines and retention fixes
Professors and administrators reported an acute drop in students’ basic reading skills alongside renewed attention on graduation rates and interventions. Faculty at selective institutions warned...
UVA board texts: members lash out at lawmakers and faculty
Board of Visitors members at the University of Virginia exchanged candid, critical text messages about lawmakers and faculty amid a period of campus tension, records show. The messages, obtained...
Education Dept. panel signs off on earnings test after a divided vote
A Department of Education advisory panel approved a new earnings test intended to tighten oversight of postsecondary programs, but the vote exposed deep divisions on the committee over...
West Florida board finalizes hire of former GOP lawmaker amid faculty pushback
The University of West Florida’s board of trustees voted 11–1 to name Manny Diaz Jr., a former Republican lawmaker and state education commissioner, as president — a decision faculty called the...
States and students brace for grad lending caps — Connecticut proposes replacement program
Connecticut lawmakers proposed a state-backed graduate loan program to fill gaps left by the federal end of Grad PLUS and new borrowing caps, the state’s higher-education officials announced. The...
Federal grant round seeds new accreditors — $14.5M pushes structural overhaul
The U.S. Department of Education awarded $14.5 million to projects aimed at reshaping accreditation, funding new accrediting entities and encouraging institutions to switch accreditors, according...
Course-sharing spreads: consortia lift small colleges and widen offerings
Higher-education leaders are expanding course-sharing partnerships to preserve programs and improve student access, industry reporting shows. Rize’s consortium and similar models let small,...
South Dakota adopts post-tenure review — critics warn tenure under threat
The South Dakota Board of Regents approved a post-tenure review policy described by officials as increasing accountability, even as faculty and critics warn the move could weaken academic tenure....
Campus finances strain small colleges: closure at Martin, lender pressure at Saint Augustine’s, Wells sale
Financial distress continued to reshape the sector as Martin University announced an immediate closure and asset sales, citing rising costs, falling enrollment and heavy debt. The Indianapolis...
AI in higher ed: from novelty to integration — institutions wrestle with policy and pedagogy
Higher-education institutions are shifting from experimenting with AI to setting policies that govern classroom use, assessment and student support, sector analysts say. Coverage explores growing...
West Florida board hires former GOP lawmaker: search draws faculty ire
The University of West Florida’s Board of Trustees voted 11–1 to name Manny Diaz Jr. president after he served as interim leader, a decision faculty members called the product of a rushed and...
Flagship universities name presidents after abrupt exits — politics likely to complicate transitions
Two East Coast flagship universities named new presidents at the turn of the year after sudden departures, moves that could reshape campus-state relations and provoke governance conflicts. One...
Judge halts HHS edits to Head Start grants — court blocks removal of DEI language
A federal judge temporarily enjoined the Department of Health and Human Services from stripping Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion language from Head Start grant applications and barred further...
Big policy shifts loom for colleges... new lending caps, program sunsets, funding fights
Colleges face three major federal policy changes this year that will reshape finances and access: the Grad PLUS program will end and new graduate borrowing caps take effect July 1; the...
Graduate loan caps threaten many programs — private lending may not fill gap
A Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia analysis found about 28% of recent graduate borrowers exceeded the new federal borrowing limits that take effect in July; nearly 40% of those borrowers would...
Course-sharing scales small colleges — Adrian College shows budget and program wins
Adrian College’s adoption of a course-sharing consortium offers a fiscal lifeline and program expansion model for tuition-dependent small colleges. The Michigan liberal-arts institution subscribed...