Money for Nothing

Reporting on comments by New Jersey governor Chris Christie in Iowa on Thursday, Casey Quinlan writes: “Christie said students shouldn’t expect to receive a degree that will significantly improve their earnings for nothing.” Christie also said: But it’s also the story of how our system is supposed to work – a system where we all…

Let’s Move to Student “Doing” Instead of “Buying”

At the end of an editorial in The New York Times on the Department of Education’s decision to forgive student loans owed to Corinthian Colleges, the Editorial Board wrote: Critics are already casting this as a windfall for former students. But it is important to remember that this loan money flowed to fraudulent institutions that…

Times Have Changed

A colleague at San Diego State University recently sent the following email message to other CSU faculty members.  I thought it worth sharing more broadly. June 6 marked the anniversary of President Kennedy’s 1963 Commencement Address at San Diego State University (then San Diego State College). During the Commencement exercises, JFK was awarded an honorary…

Teaching Loads and Adequate Instruction: A Letter

What follows is a letter sent today by 32 Instructors in the Writing Programs of Arizona State University (further information can be found at the asuagainst55 website): June 8, 2015 Dear Dr. Mark Lussier, English Department Chair, and Dr. George Justice, Dean of Humanities in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Arizona State University: The…

Rich vs. Poor: The Growing “Class” Gap in Higher Education

Two thoughtful yet troubling articles, published within a week of each other, startled higher education leaders last week. In the great debate about which factors best explain the growing achievement gaps between rich and poor students, these studies reached important conclusions about the “drivers” contributing to the widening disparities. Isabel Sawhill, writing for the series…

Two Video Links That Might Be of Interest

Robert Reich’s website includes a series of short videos explaining Ten Ideas to Save the Economy. The videos are available at: http://robertreich.org/post/120107784670. The first seven of Reich’s ten ideas to make the economy work for the many and not the few include: 1. Increasing the minimum wage nationally. 2. Making work family-friendly. 3. Expanding Social Security. 4. Busting…

President Obama’s Eulogy at the Funeral of Beau Biden

This is a very moving eulogy. It is also a great testament to the deep friendship between President Obama and Vice President Biden. Indeed, although—or perhaps because—it is a very personal response to a deeply personal sense of loss, rather than some broader statement on public policy, political positions, or the pressing issues of the…