Writing for Huffington Post, Samantha Lachman reports: “The Working Families Party endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-Vt.) bid for the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, after an overwhelming majority of its members backed the progressive candidate. It is the first time the party has formally backed a candidate in a national election. “Over 87 percent of Working…
Writing for The Atlantic, Kevin Cheng has posed and has thoughtfully explored the question, “What Role Do Asian Americans Have in the Campus Protests?” Here are the opening paragraphs: “Last month, Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber signed a document agreeing to take measures against racial inequality on campus, most notably the possibility of removing…
In fall 2015, the Executive Council endorsed the MLA’s joining with twenty-eight other scholarly societies to oppose legislation that would facilitate carrying handguns on college campuses. It also issued its own statement on Texas’s campus carry law. Statement Condemning Texas SB11 (“Campus Carry Law”) The Modern Language Association joins other scholarly organizations in condemning Texas SB11,…
The following “Breaking News” item was distributed today by the Detroit Free-Press: “Eastern Michigan University’s Board of Regents today stood with Gov. Snyder and declined to vote on the future of the Education Achievement Authority. That keeps the reform district running for now—at least until Snyder introduces legislation aimed at a new effort to improve education in…
John Zipp, the president of the AAUP chapter at the University of Akron, recently contributed an op-ed, titled “University Board Selection Process Needs Shake-Up,” to the Columbus Dispatch. After opening with a range of examples of how the Boards of Trustees of Ohio’s public universities have recently made ill-considered decisions–often despite very vocal concerns expressed…
In today’s Community Colleges newsletter, Steve Kolowich interviews Hattie Elmore, who works with impoverished college students. The article, titled “’Sometimes I Cry’: A Ground-Level View of Student Poverty,” opens with the following overview of the problem: “Student hunger and homelessness can be hard to notice, but Hattie Elmore sees them up close, all the time. “Ms. Elmore is director…
Most colleges and universities are nearing the end of their fall terms. Hence it’s time not only for final examinations but also for collecting student evaluations of teaching (SET). Student ratings can be high-stakes. They’re used to evaluate teaching when faculty members are being considered for tenure or promotions. They’re also employed in decisions as…
Today’s New York Times has a terrific op-ed piece by Michael Mann, who directs the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University and is a member of AAUP’s Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure. Mann writes about the efforts of Lamar Smith, the Texas Republican who chairs the House Committee on Science, Space…
Even if Donald Trump were not such a looming threat to the United States and its traditions, he would still be a perfect teaching tool for use in Introduction to Journalism classes. If I could go back an redesign my syllabus for this fall semester, I would make it all about the coverage of Trump—not…
BY CAPRICE LAWLESS In its quest for top-down control and from a misplaced notion that our gritty, lonely and nearly despairing community college students will respond warmly to a more sterile environment, administration has removed almost all the bulletin boards on our campus. The college vice president has to approve anything that anyone might…