Newslink

January 31, 2013

Fairfield University and the nearby city of Bridgeport, Conn., announced a new internship program that promises to tie the Jesuit university and gritty industrial city closer together.Already, nearly 100 of the Fairfield's faculty and staff and more than 1,100 of the university's alumni live in Bridgeport, and the Webster Bank Arena in the city is home court for Fairfield Stags...

January 28, 2013

In-state tuition for veterans. On Tuesday, House Veterans' Affairs Committee Chair Jeff Miller (R-FL) and Ranking Member Michael Michaud (D-ME) introduced the GI Bill Tuition Fairness Act (H.R. 357) in the House of Representatives. The bill would require public universities to charge in-state tuition to veterans in order to qualify to receive veterans' education benefits. The law would go into effect...

January 11, 2013

Kathleen McCartney Comings and Goings ... Child development expert Kathleen McCartney, dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Education, was named the 11th president of Smith College, effective July 1, 2013. McCartney represents Harvard on the founding board of edX, the online education consortium created by Harvard and MIT. She'll succeed Carol T. Christ, who has been Smith president since...

January 9, 2013

As part of its celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, Eastern Connecticut State University will present a 12-part series looking back on the life of the man considered the greatest civil rights leader of the past century. Had he lived, King would have turned 84 this year. The series, which contains a greeting by Eastern President Elsa M....

January 7, 2013

The Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) in January issued a white paper, Making Sense of the System: Financial Aid for the 21st-Century Student, recommending more than a dozen federal policies to help students access postscecondary education and ultimately earn valuable degrees and credentials. Based on surveys and focus groups with leaders in business, higher education, civil rights...

January 2, 2013

Kiplinger announced its 2013 list of the top 100 values in public colleges and universities. Five New England public colleges and universities are ranked among the top 100, with slight variations in rankings for in-state and out-of-state students. The University of Connecticut is ranked 25th for in-state students and 22nd for out-of-state students; University of Massachusetts Amherst, 62nd and 49th,...

December 21, 2012

The Leaders in Energy Efficiency Financing (LEEF) Network will gather sustainability leaders from colleges, healthcare institutions, municipalities and other nonprofits to explore "Investing in Energy Efficiency" during workshops in January at Bates College in Maine and Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. The LEEF Network, a regionally based program of the Sustainable Endowments Institute (SEI), brings information about green revolving funds...

December 21, 2012

Veterans' education. On Wednesday, the Senate passed the Improving Transparency of Education Opportunities for Veterans Act (H.R. 4057), as amended, by unanimous consent. The current bill comes from negotiations in both the House and the Senate committees related to veterans' affairs and veterans' education. The legislation would attempt to reduce waste of GI Bill funds by requiring the Veterans Affairs...

December 20, 2012

The American Scholar is one of the most thoughtfully edited magazines published today. The journal has been published by the Phi Beta Kappa Society since 1932. Its title (which seems too hoity-toity for me to allow fellow train riders to see) was inspired by Ralph Waldo Emerson’s speech, “The American Scholar,” delivered to the Phi Beta Kappa Society at Harvard...

December 17, 2012

Last Friday, the National Institute of Health (NIH) approved a broad implementation plan for a set of initiatives intended to strengthen and shape the biomedical research workforce based on the recommendations of the NIH Biomedical Workforce Working Group. The plan calls for institutions to create individual development plans for all research trainees and to track outcomes for all research trainees,...

December 17, 2012

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) announced a new collaboration with the Leaders in Energy Efficiency Financing (LEEF) Network. The LEEF Network is a regional program of the Sustainable Endowments Institute that empowers Massachusetts and New England institutions of higher education by demonstrating the financial case for treating energy-efficiency projects as an investment. Developing a self-managed green revolving...

December 14, 2012

Massachusetts students working toward careers in high-demand fields such as science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and healthcare are eligible for a new scholarship program tied to the most critical employment needs, according to the state Department of Higher Education (DHE).The Massachusetts High-Demand Professions Scholarship, created by the Massachusetts Legislature in FY13, will provide grants up to $6,500 per year...

December 10, 2012

STEM visa bill doesn't move in Senate. While STEM Visa legislation passed the House of Representatives last Friday, the STEM Jobs Act was not considered by the Senate due to the objection of Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY). The bill passed the House by a near party-line vote of 245-139, and consideration by the Senate was proposed by Sen. John Cornyn...

December 3, 2012

Comings and Goings ... Dartmouth College named mathematician and University of Michigan Provost Philip J. Hanlon to be its next president starting in July. Hanlon will succeed Jim Yong Kim, who resigned in April to become the president of the World Bank. The Atlantic Union College Board of Trustees appointed general surgeon Duane M. Cady, M.D. as interim president of...

December 3, 2012

On Friday, the House voted 245-139 to pass the STEM Jobs Act (H.R. 6249). The bill would offer visas for skilled immigrants who earn advanced degrees from American institutions. Many Democrats are opposed to the bill because it includes the abrogation of the diversity immigration program, which allocates visas by lottery. The 55,000 visas originally distributed by the diversity program...

November 30, 2012

Westfield State University math professors were awarded a $550,600 grant from the National Science Foundation to support an innovative approach to teaching mathematics to non-mathematics and science students.The grant, titled 'Discovering the Art of Mathematics (DAoM): Inquiry-Based Learning in Mathematics for Liberal Arts,' supports development of a library of 10 full-length, standalone textbooks, student and teacher resource guides and assessment...

November 29, 2012

The New Hampshire Department of Education joined a collaboration of 15 higher education institutions to prepare teachers and other educators, according to announcements by Commissioner of Education Virginia Barry and Higher Education Commissioner Richard A. Gustafson.In 2011, the members of the New Hampshire IHE Network set aside the usual competitive inclinations in order to share best practices and data collection techniques...

November 19, 2012

Sequestration on education. Sequestration remains the greatest concern for education funding in the immediate future. State school board leaders went on the offensive last week to highlight the threat to education. Education funding has not been the focus of fiscal cliff discussions and is largely swept into the larger picture when discussing sequestration. The administration estimates an 8% to 9%...

November 15, 2012

Democrats and women were the big winners of the 2012 elections, scoring impressive victories throughout New England. Among highlights: New England put the U.S. Senate solidly in the hands of Democrats with the election of Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Sen.-Elect Angus King of Maine who ran as an Independent is expected to join Bernie Sanders...

November 15, 2012

At least 117 of 259 nonprofit two- and four-year institutions in New England offer some sort of 'prior learning assessment,' according to data collected by NEBHE for the 2013 Annual Guide to New England Colleges and Universities.Institutions use student results on prior learning assessments to determine whether students' education and professional experience warrant advance standing through course placement and/or college...

November 8, 2012

NEBHE held its University Unbound conference in Boston last month, bringing together more than 400 educators and opinion leaders to discuss how MOOCs and other innovations are disrupting higher education's hold on knowledge, instruction and credentialing. Here is some of what Mozilla's Erin Knight said about her "Open Badges" work—an alternative credentialing system allowing learners to control their credentials and...

November 5, 2012

MassINC will examine the outcomes of the national and statewide elections and the implications for politics and policy on Thursday, Nov. 8, from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.. at Emerson College's Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston. "Behind the Curtain: What Just Happened? What's Next?" will feature panel discussions moderated by former ABC news anchor Carole Simpson and award-winning host of...

October 31, 2012

University of Rhode Island oceanography professor Robert Ballard, known for the discovery of the wreck of the RMS Titanic, will be among luminaries recognized by the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) in March 2013 at the regional organization's 11th annual New England Higher Education Excellence Awards. Each year, NEBHE presents Regional Excellence Awards to individuals and organizations that...

October 30, 2012

NEBHE held its University Unbound conference in mid-October, bringing together more than 400 educators and opinion leaders to discuss how MOOCs, open badges and other innovations are disrupting higher education's hold on knowledge, instruction and credentialing. Here is some of what U.S. Education Department special advisor Rosemarie Nassif had to say in an interview with NEJHE during the conference ... ...

October 25, 2012

A $1 billion investment in smart infrastructure could create nearly 27,000 jobs and increase New England’s GDP by $9 billion, according to a new report by the New England Council (NEC) and Deloitte Development LLC. The report, “Smart Infrastructure in New England: An investment for growth and prosperity” was released at a NEC breakfast meeting in Boston last week. “Smart...

October 19, 2012

Former NEBHE President and U.S. Congressman Robert A. Weygand will leave his position as the University of Rhode Island's vice president for administration and finance at the end of the fiscal year in June 2013."I will have served in this role for more than nine years, a long time by national standards," he said. "I must admit, it seems like...

October 11, 2012

Nearly one in five American households maintains student loan debt, up from 15% in 2007 and 10% in 1989, according to a recent report from the Pew Research Center.The report also states that rates of student loan debt increased in every demographic group and economic category, and is particularly acute in the bottom and top fifth of income earners.Heightened national...

October 11, 2012

Among recent comings and goings, Father Jonathan DeFelice, O.S.B., president of Saint Anselm College, announced he will retire in June 2013, after leading the college since 1989. Bunker Hill Community College President Mary L. Fifield also announced she will retire in June, after 16 years.Don Vickers said he also will retire as president and CEO of the Vermont Student Assistance...

October 10, 2012

The State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO) group issued an open letter to President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney in Change Magazine's September/October edition.In the letter, SHEEO President Paul Lingenfelter asks the next presidential candidate to sustain federal investment in research and development (R &D) and provide necessary levels of federal need-based financial aid. The letter also emphasizes the...

October 10, 2012

Federal maintenance of effort (MOE) provisions play an important role in state funding of higher education, according to a new report by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU).The MOE provisions require states to maintain a minimum level of state aid to public and private higher education institutions in order for states to receive federal funds. In most...

October 2, 2012

The U.S. Department of Education released a Request for Information on promising and practical strategies to increase postsecondary success.The department invites submissions from institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, states, systems of higher education, adult education providers, researchers, and institutional faculty and staff, or consortia of these groups.The aim is to collect strategies that could be replicated or scaled-up to...

September 24, 2012

STEM visa bill fails On Thursday, a proposal to increase the number of visas offered to immigrants with advanced degrees in the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math) from American schools failed to pass the House. The bill (H.R. 6429) needed a two-thirds vote of members in order to be passed on the House suspension calendar. It fell shy...

September 18, 2012

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) announced the degree programs approved under the New England Regional Student Program (RSP), Tuition Break, for the 2013-14 academic year, including nine new bachelor's, one new associate, and 14 new graduate degree programs.New Associate and Bachelor's Degree Programs Approved for 2013-14: Allied Health, University of Connecticut Design (Graphic & Web) (BFA), Lyndon...

September 17, 2012

New Hampshire, Maine Request NCLB Waivers On Monday, officials in New Hampshire and Maine submitted requests for flexibility from the standards of No Child Left Behind. With this action, all six New England States have made formal requests for flexibility. Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts have had their requests approved already. Vermont, however, made a formal request but subsequently withdrew...

September 10, 2012

* Goal is to increase student persistence and completion * Drive reform of developmental mathThe New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) was awarded a $356,200 grant from the Lumina Foundation to support a developmental education project that provides a high-quality, low-cost instructional platform coupling Khan Academy and community college resources.The project aims to boost the number of high-quality college...

September 10, 2012

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) was awarded a three-year $900,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for a New England-wide project titled Problem Based Learning (PBL) in Advanced Manufacturing: Transforming 21st Century Technician Education. Funding is provided through the NSF's Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program to improve science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.To address the...

September 9, 2012

The Boston Globe and its affiliated website Boston.com launched 10 Your Campus sites featuring links to bloggers, campus newspapers, websites, and Twitter feeds, as well as Globe staff articlesInitially, the sites will serve Boston College, Boston University, Brandeis University, Emerson College, Harvard University, MIT, Northeastern University, Suffolk University, Tufts University and Wellesley College.Your Campus is aimed at the 360,000 college...

September 6, 2012

National Public Radio's WNPR-Connecticut Public Radio and The Connecticut Mirror opened a news bureau on the campus of Fairfield University.In addition to covering news in Fairfield County, the collaboration offers opportunities for Fairfield University students to be interns in a working newsroom.The Connecticut Mirror is the website of the nonprofit Connecticut News Project (CNP). The project was created to ensure...

September 4, 2012

Beyond the deluge of campaign ads and Super PAC propaganda, the upcoming months promise some more thoughtful political events in New England. Consider ...Northeastern University's Open Classroom Series will feature 'Campaign 2012: Policy Advice to the President.' to be held every Wednesday evening from Sept. 5 through Dec. 12, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., in the university's West Village...

August 31, 2012

Yale University President Richard C. Levin announced he will step down at the end of the current academic year, after 20 years of service—a longer tenure than any other president in the Ivy League or the 61-member Association of American Universities.University System of New Hampshire Chancellor Edward MacKay will step down from the post in March after 36 years with...

August 28, 2012

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) seeks institutions that are interested in serving as pilot sites for using unused television channels (TV band 'white spaces' referred to as Super Wi-Fi), to expand the coverage and capacity of high-speed wireless connectivity both on and off campus.NEBHE recently hosted a webinar on AIR.U (Advanced Internet Regions), a consortium of higher...

August 7, 2012

Though New England state revenues have rebounded slightly during FY 2012, the states held the line on new spending for FY 2013 and, in some cases, made further cuts. The outlook for future state spending is uncertain as the economy continues to grow at a sluggish pace, and national and state elections signal new challenges. CONNECTICUT The Connecticut General Assembly adjourned...

August 6, 2012

On Monday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee released a report on the for-profit college sector. The report, entitled "For Profit Higher Education: The Failure to Safeguard the Federal Investment and Ensure Student Success" is critical of industry practices and details marketing and recruiting strategies as well as graduation rates and debt burdens. According to the report,...

July 30, 2012

On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees and Border Security held a hearing on preventing student visa fraud and addressing "sham" institutions that commit fraud to attain visas and enroll foreign students. The hearing was held in response to a report released last month by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) criticizing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)...

July 24, 2012

NEBHE renamed its headquarters at 45 Temple Place in Boston, Mass., in honor of its former chair, the late New Hampshire Gov. Walter Rutherford Peterson. A ceremony held July 23 at the NEBHE office featured remembrances by distinguished leaders of government and higher education around New England and the unveiling of a plaque honoring Peterson, who died June 1, 2011,...

July 23, 2012

The FY 2013 Labor-HHS-Education spending bill adopted by a House Appropriations subcommittee panel on Wednesday would reduce funding for the U.S. Department of Education by $1.1 billion from 2012 levels and eliminate funding for the Obama administration's Race to the Top Program. It would also rescind $400 million in unspent appropriations for the Race to the Top program in 2012....

July 16, 2012

On July 6, the states of Washington and Wisconsin were granted waivers by the U.S. Department of Education from the mandates of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Virginia, Arkansas, Missouri, South Dakota and Utah had waivers approved on June 29. Twenty-six states have now been granted waivers while 10 states and the District of Columbia still await decisions...

July 11, 2012

The New England Board of Higher Education will co-host the New England Campus Sustainability Forum on Friday, Sept. 21, 2012 at the Colleges of the Fenway in Boston.The conference, titled "Leveraging Collective Resources for the Future" is designed to build the skills that will help campus change agents advance sustainability programs at their institutions, including skills uniquely tailored to our...

July 5, 2012

Longtime University of Maine at Farmington President Theo Kalikow will succeed Selma Botman as president of the University of Southern Maine, effective July 10, the system office announced. Botman will stay in the system, leading efforts to expand its international programs.Christine Plunkett, Burlington College's vice president of administration and finance, was named president of the college, succeeding Jane Sanders.Rhode Island...

July 2, 2012

With time ticking down, lawmakers voted to keep student loan interest rate for federally subsidized Stafford loans at 3.4% for another year, attaching the compromise language, formerly H.R. 4628, to the highway bill (H.R. 4348). The measure passed the House and Senate on Friday. Had Congress not acted, the current authorization subsidizing student loan rates was set to expire June...

June 26, 2012

A consortium of higher education associations, public interest groups and high-tech companies today announced a new partnership called AIR.U (Advanced Internet Regions) to deploy Super Wi-Fi networks in university communities by taking advantage of unused television channels, known as white spaces.Home to 291 two- and four-year postsecondary institutions that enrolled more than 990,000 students in fall 2010, New England could...

June 25, 2012

With a June 30 deadline quickly approaching, lawmakers are running out of time to prevent student loan rates from doubling. Leadership from both parties has said that a compromise will be coming before the deadline and suggested on Friday that they are close to a deal. In 2007, Congress approved PL 110-84, which gradually reduced loan interest rates over four...

June 21, 2012

Next Generation Learning Challenges awarded Southern New Hampshire University's (SNHU) Innovation Lab a $1 million grant to develop online and blended programs designed to improve student access and college completion through the use of technology. SNHU's Pathways Project targets include low-income and minority students, and will initially offer an associate degree with content and assessment delivered online in a self-paced,...

June 20, 2012

The Massachusetts Board of Higher Education confirmed the appointment of Ellen Kennedy as the next president of Berkshire Community College, effective July 1. Kennedy has been serving as interim president at the college since January, following the retirement of Paul Raverta. Kennedy previously served as the college's vice president for administration and finance....

June 18, 2012

On Thursday, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted along party lines to approve FY2013 authorization for Labor-HHS-Education programs, including $68.5 billion for the Department of Education. This includes an $85 increase in the maximum Pell Grant award level, from $5,550 to $5,635, beginning in the 2013-14 school year. Funding for most other student financial aid programs would remain at current levels....

June 15, 2012

The University of Massachusetts Amherst will host the third annual New England Conference for Student Success, 'What Do We Mean By Student Success?,' on Friday, Sept. 21. The program committee seeks proposals for conference sessions from practitioners and scholars that emphasize programs aimed at fostering student success.Proposals highlight promising ways of defining student success, interventions that enhance success, and assessment...

June 11, 2012

On Tuesday, administration officials announced a White House partnership with 10 colleges and universities to give students better information on the cost of higher education and financial aid options. The schools, which include the University of Massachusetts System, have voluntarily committed to adopting an information sheet for incoming students to help them understand the costs of college and their financial...

June 7, 2012

The OECD invites New England higher education leaders to attend its Programme for Institutional Management in Higher Education's 2012 General Conference on 'Attaining and Sustaining Mass Higher Education' to be held from Sept. 17 to Sept. 19 in Paris.The conference will examine: Where have we got to in attaining and sustaining mass higher education? What can higher education contribute to...

June 4, 2012

In a bid to break the stalemate over offsets for student loan interest rate legislation, Republican leadership in the House and Senate proposed two alternative proposals on Thursday. While general agreement exists on the desire to extend the current 3.4% interest rate on federal student loans for one year, delaying an increase to 6.8% scheduled for July 1, lawmakers have...

May 24, 2012

Massachusetts Bay Community College named Francesca Purcell, formerly associate commissioner for academic and P-16 policy with the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, to be the Wellesley, Mass-based community college's next provost/chief academic officer. Purcell wrote Smooth Transfer: A Once Mundane Administrative Issue Re-emerges as a Key Tool for Equity for the Summer 2006 issues of NEJHE....

May 22, 2012

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) is pleased to announce its 11th annual New England Higher Education Excellence Awards. We are seeking nominations for individuals, programs or organizations in New England higher education, government or business that exemplify excellence in leadership, innovation, diversity and partnerships and collaborations.Four Regional Awards The Governor Walter R. Peterson Award for Leadership The...

May 21, 2012

Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) introduced legislation Wednesday to create a new category of student visas for those studying in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. The bill would create a new category of non-immigrant visa for foreign students pursuing a master's degree or doctorate in the STEM fields in the U.S. Those students would...

May 18, 2012

Ronald Noble, the first American to head the international policing organization INTERPOL, will keynote the University of New Hampshire's 142nd commencement ceremony on Saturday May 19 at 10 a.m. on Memorial Field.Paul S. Grogan, president of The Boston Foundation, will deliver the commencement address at the Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology's 104th commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 19 at 10...

May 16, 2012

The Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission will hold a symposium on Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury Ensuring Success in Higher Education, at Salem State University on Wednesday, June 6 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.The symposium is designed to educate college and university staff who work with veterans to ensure their success in pursuing higher education. The event is open to all...

May 16, 2012

David Coleman, a former McKinsey & Co. consultant and co-founder of Student Achievement Partners, will become president of the College Board in October 2012, succeeding Gaston Caperton, who announced plans to step down.Maine Development Foundation President Laurie Lachance announced she would leave the position to become president of Thomas College in Waterville, Maine, effective July 1. The foundation named Ed...

May 15, 2012

On Tuesday, Senate Republicans blocked a motion to proceed on the Senate Democrats' bill (S. 2343) to extend current interest rates on federal student loans for one year. With a vote of 52-45, the cloture motion failed to garner the needed 60 votes to proceed. Republicans objected to Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-NV) refusal to allow a vote on the...

May 15, 2012

NEBHE conducted a Student Vacancy Survey every spring from 1960 to 2009 as a public service for New England residents still looking for college space as of the traditional May 1 admissions deadline and as a measure of college application trends. A few years ago, we determined to ease out of the vacancy survey business and its vagaries; some respondents...

May 10, 2012

It was quite a week for student financial aid news.On the very day that a Republican filibuster halted a Democrat-backed student loan bill that would have extended the 3.4% interest rates on subsidized Stafford loans, a key administration official went to Boston to pitch the president's goals on higher ed funding and a national think tank delivered recommendations on refocusing aid.On the...

May 3, 2012

We began covering Spring 2012 commencements back in December 2011, when Northeastern University announced (via Twitter no less) that former Secretary of State Colin L. Powell would keynote Northeastern's 110th commencement on May 4. ... From there, we reported on Gov. Malloy, Sen. Kerry, Victoria Reggie Kennedy Among Newly Announced NE Commencement Speakers (before, that is, the Catholic college withdrew...

April 30, 2012

On Wednesday, Senate Democrats introduced a bill (S. 2343) to extend the current interest rate on subsidized student loans for one year beyond the July 1 expiration date. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated the cost of a one-year extension to be $6 billion, which the bill would pay for by ending a tax benefit for S corporations. Under the...

April 26, 2012

Mount Ida College announced that Barry Brown, provost, professor and former acting president of Suffolk University, would become president of the Newton, Mass. college, effective July 1.University of Maine System trustees approved two new campus presidents. Kathryn A. Foster, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., was appointed president of the University of Maine at Farmington. Linda...

April 25, 2012

The nonprofit Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) will hold a conference on "Science and Democracy in Turmoil" on Thursday, May 17, at the Norton Woods Conference Center of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) in Somerville, Mass.The UCS will also launch a new Center for Science and Democracy designed to strengthen American democracy by restoring the essential role...

April 24, 2012

Americans now owe more on student loans than on credit cards, auto loans and mortgages, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the U.S. Department of Education. For the first time, student loans taken out in 2011 exceeded $100 billion with total student loans surpassing $1 trillion. Mounting student debt has forced many students to drop out,...

April 24, 2012

University of Connecticut President Susan Herbst and Connecticut's State Department of Children and Families Commissioner Joette Katz will be among 14 speakers to address UConn graduates on Sunday, May 6. Herbst, will speak at 12:30 p.m., and Katz at 5 p.m. in UConn's Harry A. Gampel Pavilion.Carolyn Lynch, CEO of the Lynch Foundation established by she and her husband Peter...

April 23, 2012

More than 6,500 leaders in academic pediatrics from around the world will converge on Boston for the 2012 annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies to be held Saturday, April 28 through Tuesday, May 1, at the Hynes Convention Center.Speakers will address topics such as: how a child's genes, early environment, nutrition and other factors affect future disease risk; signs...

April 23, 2012

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chair Tom Harkin (D-IA) is sponsoring legislation to prevent colleges from using federal student aid revenue, including Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits, to fund marketing activities. Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC), who is also sponsoring the not yet introduced bill, said that it would "protect taxpayers' investment of billions of dollars in student...

April 17, 2012

U.S. Department of Education Under Secretary Martha Kanter and other senior officials will discuss the Obama administration's college affordability and higher education policy reform proposals at a "town meeting" scheduled for Tuesday, May 8, at 4 p.m. at Northeastern University's Cabral Student Center.The meeting will offer an opportunity for students, families, advocates, financial aid counselors and other interested parties to...

April 13, 2012

The National Association for Workforce Improvement (NAWI) will hold its 2012 conference at the Boston Park Plaza, on Thursday, May 24 and Friday, May 25.The NAWI audience consists of educators, administrators, government personnel, and workforce development professionals in career and technical education. This year's conference focusing on 'Innovation for the 21st Century Workforce' will feature: Sustainable and interdisciplinary product design;...

April 12, 2012

Carole Cornelison, commissioner of the Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management, will deliver the commencement address at Wentworth Institute of Technology, on Sunday, May 6, at 10 a.m., on the Wentworth campus's main quadrangle.Author Andre Dubus III will speak at New England College's 65th commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 12, at 11 a.m. on the college's Simon Green.Author Tom De...

April 2, 2012

At a hearing of the House Education and Workforce Committee on Wednesday, U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan defended the administration's budget proposal for FY2013. Committee Chair John Kline (R-MN) repeated the charges from a March 20 House Appropriations hearing: that the administration's decision to pour billions in new spending into competitive grant programs while maintaining current funding for traditional formula...

March 27, 2012

The American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) will hold its fifth annual Climate Leadership Summit at American University in Washington, D.C., from Thursday, June 21 at 4 p.m. to Friday, June 22 at 4 p.m.In 2006, 12 college and university presidents agreed to become founding members of the ACUPCC. Today, nearly 700 institutions are actively engaged in creating...

March 26, 2012

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan testified in support of the administration's recent proposed higher education reforms at a Tuesday hearing of the House Appropriations Committee's subcommittee with jurisdiction over education. Subcommittee Chair Denny Rehberg (R-MT) and Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) both criticized the administration for proposing level-funding for major formula grants while directing funding increases toward new, untested programs....

March 23, 2012

Former University of Connecticut President Michael Hogan resigned as president of the University of Illinois less than two years after he was hired to repair damage done by an admissions scandal. He will be succeeded by longtime university administrator Robert Easter, who reportedly agreed to do the job for two years.****University of Vermont trustees selected E. Thomas Sullivan, currently senior...

March 19, 2012

State and local spending on higher education fell to an average of $6,290 per full-time student in 2011—its lowest level in 25 years, according to a study released by the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO). Total funding for higher education from state and local sources fell by $1.3 billion between FY2008 at the beginning of the recession and...

March 14, 2012

The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, in its recently released fourth quarter 2011 New England Community Survey, cited an emerging concern facing low- and moderate-income communities: the escalating cost of higher education.The New England region has the highest average tuition and fee rates for 2011-12 across institutional sectors, according to the College Board's most recent report on Trends in College...

March 13, 2012

American writer, commentator and bioethicist Ruth Levy Guyer will keynote Southern Vermont College's 85th commencement on Saturday, May 12. Working as a consultant for the President's Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, Guyer is developing a guide for the commission's recent report on unethical experiments conducted by U.S. Public Health Service researchers in Guatemala after World War II.Connecticut Gov....

March 13, 2012

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced March 5 that it will now accept complaints from borrowers about problems with their private student loans. These problems could include difficulty with taking out a loan, repaying an existing loan or handling a loan which has gone into default. Under the Dodd-Frank financial reform law, the CFPB has the authority to oversee...

March 5, 2012

On Tuesday, the House voted 303 to 114 to pass legislation (H.R. 2117) repealing two recent Education Department regulations, with 69 Democrats voting for the bill. As part of its program integrity proposal, the Education Department included a definition of a credit hour for the purposes of distributing federal student financial aid. The bill would rescind that definition and prevent...

March 2, 2012

Playing up its activist roots, Goddard College announced it will host a conference to explore the role of higher education in the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) movement. The conference will take place on Saturday, March 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Haybarn Theatre on Goddard's Plainfield, Vt. campus.****Robert Kuttner, co-editor of The American Prospect (which he co-founded with Paul...

March 1, 2012

One-third of all students who began their postsecondary education in 2006 transferred (before earning a degree or certificate) to a different institution within a five-year period, according to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.The report reveals that the majority of transfers occurred in students' second year, regardless of the direction of transfer (vertical, lateral or reverse)....

February 21, 2012

A new $5 billion Education Department program aims to improve teacher training and career paths. The Recognizing Educational Success, Professional Excellence and Collaborative Teaching (RESPECT) project encourages states and districts to work with teachers and education colleges to reform teacher training, compensation and professional development. Education Secretary Arne Duncan introduced the program, part of President Obama's FY2013 budget proposal, on...

February 16, 2012

MIT President Susan Hockfield announced she would leave the position she has held for more than seven years once a new president takes office.As the first woman president of MIT, Hockfield presided over significant strides in hiring and promotion of women scientists and engineers after a faculty report brought national attention to inequity in campus. Among students, the MIT Class...

February 16, 2012

The University of Maine System Board of Trustees named James H. Page as the system's next chancellor.Page, a 59-year-old Maine native. is principal and CEO of the James W. Sewall Co., in Old Town, Maine, and an adjunct professor in UMaine's Department of Philosophy. Sewall Co. provides consulting in the areas of energy, infrastructure and natural resources.Page holds a bachelor's...

February 13, 2012

On Thursday, the White House granted the waiver requests of 10 states, including Massachusetts, to opt out from the requirements of the "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) law. As passed, NCLB requires school districts to demonstrate through testing proficiency in reading and math skills for all grades by 2014. Many have called the NCLB law too unrealistic to implement, and...

February 7, 2012

The term "Access" has acquired a bit of a Rodney Dangerfield complex since back in the day when I suggested: "If one word captures the range of compelling issues that the New England Board of Higher Education should focus its energy on at the start of the new century, the word is access." The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC)...

February 6, 2012

Members on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) took advantage of a hearing Thursday on containing the cost of higher education to voice their thoughts on President Obama's plan to reward colleges who keep costs down with increased federal support. Several Republican members were concerned that the administration was effectively "picking winners and losers" by determining...

February 6, 2012

The Maine Compact for Higher Education merged with the Maine Coalition for Excellence in Education to form "Educate Maine," a new organization whose mission is to champion college and career readiness and increased education attainment for Maine people. Educate Maine's executive director will be Tanna Clews, former director of the Coalition. Mike Dubyak, president of Wright Express, will chair Educate...

January 31, 2012

More than one in four U.S. households are asset poor, meaning they lack savings or other assets to cover basic expenses for three months if a layoff or other emergency leads to loss of income, according to the 2012 Assets & Opportunity Scorecard published by the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED).The Scorecard also shows 43% of households are "liquid asset...

January 30, 2012

During a Friday morning speech at the University of Michigan, President Obama announced a set of initiatives to improve the quality and affordability of higher education. His proposals include tying federal financial aid to colleges' efforts to contain costs; new competitive grant programs for states, colleges, and organizations to improve college outcomes; and making colleges' financial and work placement information...

January 30, 2012

New England's public and private two- and four years colleges continue to charge higher prices than the U.S. average, according to new data posted to the Financing Higher Education section of NEBHE's Trends & Indicators. To view the latest updates to our Higher Education Financing section, visit Trends & Indicators: Continually Updated Stats on New England's Education and Economy. For...