Get Ready for July Madness

There are no brackets to guide you through it, but July is the prime month for presidential transitions at private colleges. To keep up on who's going where, visit our Comings and Goings page, with up-to-the-minute news of the many appointments now being made.

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The Shrunken Student Aid Bill Inside Higher Ed March 15, 2010 As Congressional Democrats and the White House begin a last-ditch push to pass legislation to overhaul health care this week, it remains far from certain that a plan to revamp the student loan programs will be merged into the health legislation. While the odds of that happening are better than not, it is still possible that Democrat leaders will decide to ditch or postpone action on the student aid measure if they conclude that it could discourage even a few key lawmakers from supporting the health care bill.

Stop Washington's student-loan takeover Tampa, Fla., Tribune - Editorial March 15, 2010 U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan says removing the middleman - his term for the private sector - from giving student loans will save the nation about $87 billion over 10 years, money that could be used to provide more Pell grants to poor students.  It sounds nice, but we don't buy it.  Any savings, we suspect, would quickly evaporate once the federal government had the student loan business to itself.  Look for inflated administrative costs, poor service and increased defaults.

Federal 'yellow ribbon' program helps area veterans attend private colleges Mobile, Ala., Press-Register March 15, 2010 Spring Hill College and the University of Mobile are among the 1,200 four-year private schools nationwide in the Yellow Ribbon program.  Participants have doubled since the benefits program began in August, according to Jo Schuda, a spokeswoman with the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs in Washington, D.C.  Schools agree to cover up to 50 percent of costs above the public university cap, and the federal government matches that aid dollar-for-dollar.

Colleges work to keep the dropouts in Burlington, Vt., Free Press March 14, 2010 Soon after taking office, President Obama pledged to meet a new goal.  "By 2020," he told a joint session of Congress, "America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world."  Private foundations and educational leaders around the country have since launched new initiatives designed to stanch dropout rates.  Vermont's leaders have followed suit, affirming support for a state "compact" that aims to raise the state's share of college degree holders from 42 percent to 60 percent in the next decade.

Taking a Look at Poverty From an Affluent Suburb New York Times March 14, 2010 As Elmhurst College is revealing with missionary zeal, DuPage County, Ill., is a case study in the often-hidden poverty around us.  S. Alan Ray was clueless about the county and the college before he applied to be president of the liberal arts institution affiliated with the United Church of Christ.  But his due diligence and vision convinced the trustees, and as president at the helm of the battleship that is any college, Mr. Ray is trying to steer Elmhurst down a path of service.

In Hard Times, Lured Into Trade School and Debt New York Times March 14, 2010 One fast-growing American industry has become a conspicuous beneficiary of the recession:  for-profit colleges and trade schools.  But critics say many schools exaggerate the value of their degree programs, selling young people on dreams of middle-class wages while setting them up for default on untenable debts, low-wage work and a struggle to avoid poverty.  And the schools are harvesting growing federal student aid dollars, including Pell grants awarded to low-income students.

Incoming Drexel president has ambitious plans Philadelphia Inquirer March 14, 2010 In a two-hour interview one day after Drexel's trustees had unanimously elected him to the post, John A. Fry outlined areas to address when he takes the helm Aug. 1.  Known for his boundless energy and aggressive agenda, Fry may be someone who can fill the shoes of Constantine Papadakis, who started medical and law schools, increased enrollment, and improved finances during his 14-year tenure.

The state of the American university, frozen in time Philadelphia Inquirer - Book Review March 14, 2010 In The Marketplace of Ideas, Louis Menand, the eminent Harvard professor and New Yorker writer, explores the state of the American university by comparing its present to its past.  He focuses primarily on the liberal arts, where, he observes, professors are a paradoxical species.  They are driven both to reproduce the system and to critique and even oppose it.  That paradox ensures that the same institutional questions get asked again and again, leading to the same sorts of solutions.

Divided Loyalties Chronicle of Higher Education March 14, 2010 What happens when a trustee also has a business relationship with the university?  A Chronicle investigation of 618 private colleges found that one in four have financial ties with trustee-affiliated companies.  These relationships are common at both small liberal-arts colleges and large research universities.  The connections, ranging from a few thousand dollars' worth of business to multimillion-dollar contracts, involve banks, law firms, construction companies, and insurance conglomerates.

To combat rape on campus, schools should stop keeping it quiet Washington Post - Opinion Piece March 14, 2010 The same thing that happened to me is still happening to young women on college campuses in this country dozens of times every day.  And schools are no better equipped (or inclined) to dispense justice than they were in 1992.  That's the conclusion of a recent report by the Center for Public Integrity, which found that, despite Justice Department evidence that one in five female college students will be sexually assaulted or the victim of an attempt while at school, students who say they've been raped on campus are rarely believed.

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