Newslink

March 13, 2017

DC Shuttle ... Senate Overturns Teacher-Preparation Regulation Under CRA. In a 59-40 vote, the Senate passed a resolution (HJ Res 58) to repeal a rule requiring states to report and evaluate teacher-training programs. The Senate vote will halt the new requirements for teacher-training programs, finalized by the Obama administration in October, before they would go into effect in the summer....

March 7, 2017

Johnson Comings and Goings ... The University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees tapped Becker College President Robert E. Johnson to be chancellor of UMass Dartmouth, succeeding Peyton Randolph Helm, who served as interim chancellor after the departure of Chancellor Divina Grossman. In a letter to Becker faculty and staff, Johnson said Nancy Crimmin, Becker's senior vice president and chief academic and...

March 6, 2017

DC Shuttle ... Hearing on Education Budget. The House Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies held a hearing to discuss potential budget action. Subcommittee Chair Tom Cole (R-OK) said that $20 billion in cuts is expected to spending on labor, education and health programs. "There's no part of this budget that can escape...

March 1, 2017

Herbert Comings and Goings ... The University of New England named Drexel University Executive Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate College James Herbert to be the Biddeford, Maine-based university's next president, effective July 1. He will succeed Danielle Ripich, who has led the university for 11 years. Saint Anselm College appointed Allegheny College Associate Provost for Diversity and Organizational Development...

February 21, 2017

DC Shuttle ... DeVos Outlines Policy Intentions. U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos gave remarks to the Association of Community College Trustees' National Legislative Summit. During her remarks, DeVos praised the work of community colleges, calling them "essential engines of workforce and economic development." Diverse: Issues In Higher Education reports that she promised that community colleges will play a key role in...

February 13, 2017

DC Shuttle ... House Approves Bills to Limit Role of Ed Dept. and ESSA. Under the Congressional Review Act, the House voted to overturn to Obama administration regulations. The House passed two resolutions to end department regulations dealing with state assessments (H.J. Res. 57) and teacher-preparation programs (H.J. Res. 58). H.J. Res. 57, which passed 234-190, would nullify an Education...

February 7, 2017

DC Shuttle ... Jerry Falwell to Lead Higher Ed Task Force. Liberty University President Jerry Falwell has been asked by President Donald Trump to lead a task force that will identify changes that should be made to the U.S. Department of Education, the Chronicle of Higher Education reports. Falwell said he sees "overreaching regulation" as a target of his work....

February 3, 2017

Kendrick Comings and Goings ... Dorsey Kendrick announced she plans to retire June 30 as president of Gateway Community College, a post she has held since 1999. She boosted enrollment by 100% in her first eight years and presided over Gateway's consolidation of two campuses into a new $198 million, 3.7-acre central location in downtown New Haven in 2012. Charles...

January 30, 2017

By 2032, the number of new high school graduates in New England is projected to decline by 22,000 to a total 140,273, according to the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education’s (WICHE) most recent Knocking at the College Door report. New England’s challenge with an aging population and falling birth rates has been well chronicled. With fresh projections and an...

January 30, 2017

DC Shuttle ... New House Education Committee Holds First Meeting. The House Committee on Education and the Workforce met for the first time in the 115th Congress under the new leadership of Chair Virginia Foxx (R-NC). Lawmakers voted on rules for the committee, and considered and adopted an "oversight and investigation" plan for the next two years. Republicans targeted the...

January 23, 2017

Comings and Goings ... New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu tapped one-term state Rep. Frank Edelblut, a Wilton businessman who homeschooled his seven children, to be the state's education commissioner. Partners In Health CEO Gary L. Gottlieb, M.D., was named chair of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. (NEJHE has featured Gottlieb's thoughts drawing parallels between healthcare and higher ed.) MIT former...

January 23, 2017

DC Shuttle ... Temporary U.S. Secretary of Education. Former U.S. Secretary of Education John King stepped down on Thursday, sending a letter of farewell that outlined his quick year of work at the department. Phil Rosenfelt, deputy general counsel at the Education Department's Office of the General Counsel, has been named acting education secretary until a new secretary is confirmed....

January 19, 2017

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE presents a podcast about the value and nuances of adopting a "student unit record" system. The podcast features an interview with Aimee Guidera, president & CEO of the Data Quality Campaign, and Mamie Voight, director of policy research at the Institute for Higher Education Policy. It is the third in a three-part series on student...

January 17, 2017

DC Shuttle ... Confirmation Hearing for Betsy DeVos. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee planned to begin its confirmation hearing for Betsy DeVos, the nomination for secretary of education on Jan. 17. The hearing was originally scheduled for the previouss week but was delayed over concerns that an ethics review had not been completed. Democrats criticized Republican leaders...

January 11, 2017

Register Today for NEEP Conference, Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2017 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston! The New England Economic Partnership (NEEP) will explore "What's Ahead After This Historic Election?" at the group's outlook conference to be held Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2017 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Jeffry Frieden, professor of government at Harvard University, will deliver a...

January 9, 2017

DC Shuttle ... Education Secretary Hearing Set. The Senate Health Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee will hold a confirmation hearing this week to consider the nomination of Betsy DeVos to be education secretary. Democrats have raised concerns about her previous financial contributions to the campaigns of lawmakers that will now be considering her nomination. Six Democrats on the HELP...

January 9, 2017

Meotti Comings and Goings ... Michael Meotti, former commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Higher Education and executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education, was appointed executive director of the Washington Student Achievement Council, which coordinates the state's higher education system with workforce and education needs. Salem State University President Patricia Maguire...

January 6, 2017

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) is launching a new interstate initiative to facilitate transfer from community colleges to out-of-state bachelor's degree programs offered under NEBHE's Regional Student Program (RSP), also known as Tuition Break. NEBHE's RSP Community College Transfer Initiative is supported by a four-year $300,000 grant from the Lloyd G. Balfour Foundation. Through the RSP Tuition...

January 3, 2017

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE presents the release of Federal Student Loan Servicing: Strengths and Weaknesses/The Borrower Perspective. The podcast features Jennifer Wang, the D.C. Office Director for The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS). It is the fourth in a series of podcasts produced in partnership with the Postsecondary National Policy Institute, the leading source of professional development...

December 16, 2016

Comings and Goings ... The Massachusetts Board of Higher Education tapped Christina Royal, the provost and vice president for academic affairs at Inver Hills Community College in Minnesota, to be the first woman president of Holyoke Community College. She will succeed William Messner, who retired in August after 12 years as the Massachusetts community college's president. The Bristol Community College...

December 16, 2016

The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE), in association with Boston magazine, has produced the 2017 Guide to New England Colleges & Universities, the sixth edition of the annual guide. Boston magazine published and distributed the 2017 Guide in combination with its December 2016 issue. NEBHE is distributing complimentary copies of the 2017 Guide throughout New England, including to school guidance offices, public libraries, GEAR UP...

December 12, 2016

DC Shuttle ... International Student Data. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released new data detailing the number of international students studying science, technology, engineering and math fields in the U.S. The data suggests that international STEM students jumped a full 10% over the past year alone. There are 1.23 million international students with F (academic) or M (vocational) status studying...

December 9, 2016

State Capital Notes ... All six New England states voted for Hillary Clinton in the race for the White House, despite her loss nationally in the electoral college. It's unclear how the 115th Congress and President-Elect Donald Trump will act on proposals by Clinton and her Democratic rival Bernie Sanders for free college and reduced student debt. Among highlights of...

December 5, 2016

DC Shuttle ... President-elect Trump Nominates Betsy DeVos as Education Secretary. President-elect Donald Trump announced in a statement that he is nominating Betsy DeVos to be the secretary of education. She followed with an announcement of acceptance. Betsy Davos is an activist, philanthropist and former chair of the Michigan Republican Party. She has traditionally advocated for conservative approaches and supported...

December 1, 2016

Flynn Comings and Goings ... Jobs for the Future (JFF) named Maria K. Flynn to be its president and CEO, effective Dec. 15, 2016. Flynn joined JFF nine years ago, serving as vice president of JFF's Building Economic Opportunity Group, and then senior vice president. She has spearheaded JFF's economic mobility and equity work. She was a speaker at NEBHE's...

December 1, 2016

The Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Massachusetts (AICUM) will honor Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker at its annual dinner on Monday, Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. at the Seaport Hotel in Boston. The New Hampshire College & University Council (NHCUC) will hold the annual NH Scholars Breakfast of Champions to explore ways to better prepare today's students for tomorrow's...

November 29, 2016

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE is pleased to present the release of Federal Student Loan Servicing: Strengths and Weaknesses/The Financial Aid Administrator Perspective. The podcast features Justin Draeger, president of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. It is the third in a series of podcasts produced in partnership with the Postsecondary National Policy Institute, the leading source of...

November 21, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Transition Team Expected to Visit Education Department this Week. President-Elect Donald Trump's transition team is expected to visit the U.S. Education Department this week. Landing teams will work with federal agencies on the transition and are being launched in three waves. The Education Department and other domestic agencies such as the Department of Labor and the EPA...

October 21, 2016

University System of New Hampshire (USNH) Chancellor Todd J. Leach was named the next chair of the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) at the board's annual fall meeting. Leach is the seventh chancellor of USNH, New Hampshire's four-year public higher education system comprising the University of New Hampshire, Plymouth State University, Keene State College and Granite State College. Prior to...

October 19, 2016

The New England Council (NEC) published its first edition of “Partnerships for the Talent Pipeline: Directory of New England Higher Education & Industry Partnerships.” In addition to traditional classroom training, New England educators and employers have forged partnerships to provide experiential learning opportunities that prepare students for future job opportunities and post-graduation career success. The partnerships listed in the directory...

October 18, 2016

The higher education policy world has been abuzz discussing and strategizing the best ways to serve adult learners—whether those adults are currently enrolled at a postsecondary institution, wish to be, or are stranded outside the system. In New England, the focus on adults is particularly relevant because experts increasingly believe economic success depends on workers with higher education credentials, yet...

October 11, 2016

Comings and Goings ... Timothy Connelly, most recently a partner at Brown Brothers Harriman, became executive director of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. The collaborative is known as the Massachusetts Technology Park Corporation, and oversees the Massachusetts Broadband Institute, electronic health initiatives and the John Adams Innovation Institute. Jon Carson was appointed CEO of CollegeVine, a new high school mentorship and...

October 3, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Report Estimates States' Costs for Free College. Eliminating tuition for all in-state undergraduates at public colleges would cost more than $1 billion in 15 different states, according to a report by Mark Schneider, vice president and institute fellow at the American Institute for Research and a former commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics. The report,...

September 27, 2016

Dual enrollment programs across the country share little in common with one another. Generally, they allow secondary students to take postsecondary courses while enrolled in high school. But the relevant terminology, eligibility requirements and transferability of credit varies nationally and here in in New England, where: Four of the six New England states' dual enrollment programs are managed by a...

September 26, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Bill on Federal Funding Introduced. U.S. Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) and Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) introduced a bill to reshuffle federal funding of colleges to encourage institutions to enroll and graduate low-income students. The bill would tie some federal student aid funding to new accountability metrics. The bill is aimed at providing incentives for colleges to boost...

September 21, 2016

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE is pleased to present the release of Federal Student Loan Servicing: A Podcast Primer, the second in a series of podcasts produced in partnership with the Postsecondary National Policy Institute, the leading source of professional development for federal policymakers working on higher education issues. Federal Student Loan Servicing explains the role of direct loan servicers,...

September 19, 2016

DC Shuttle ... New York Votes to Join SARA. New York state announced that it will join the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement, known as SARA. The interstate agreement will allow higher education institutions from other states to offer online courses in New York, and expand the opportunities for New York State colleges and universities to do the same in other...

September 12, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Momentum for Easing Student Loan Repayment. Both parties are looking to appeal to young voters this fall and student loan repayment has gained support as a result. Rep. Luke Messer, chair of the House Republican Policy Committee, plans to push for student loan tax breaks, such as a proposal (H.R. 5415) by Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) to...

September 12, 2016

Horgan Comings and Goings ... Thomas R. Horgan announced he will leave his post as president and CEO of the New Hampshire College & University Council, effective June 2017. A NEBHE delegate since 2006, Horgan has played a key role advancing New England collaborations, including work on NEBHE's Higher Education Innovation Challenge. Also see Labor Day and Some Crumbs from...

September 6, 2016

Too many students enter college without being ready, especially in math. Many of them are placed in a developmental noncredit course. Fully 68% of community college students and 40% of students at four-year public institutions were required to take one or more developmental education courses (sometimes called 'remedial' courses) before enrolling in credit-bearing college-level courses, according to recent data from...

August 29, 2016

Higher education institutions are major employers, purchasers of goods and services, managers of real estate, and attractors of external investment. In short, they are huge drivers of the New England economy. But research on how higher education contributes to regional economies is often narrowly focused or too technical; a broader conversation on attracting new resources and improving the productivity of...

August 29, 2016

Comings and Goings ... Mooney Kim Mooney, the provost and vice president for academic affairs of Franklin Pierce University, was named the sixth president of the university and the first alumna and first woman to lead the institution. She succeeds Andrew Card, the former chief of staff to U.S. President George W. Bush, who is stepping down at Franklin Pierce...

August 16, 2016

Kestenbaum Comings and Goings ... Maine's poet laureate Stuart Kestenbaum, the former director of the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, was named interim president of the Maine College of Art, succeeding Don Tuski, who left the Portland, Maine college after six years in July to become president at Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon. Rear Adm. Jeffrey A....

July 26, 2016

Bertolino Comings and Goings ... The Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education selected Lyndon State College President Joe Bertolino to be the 12th president of Southern Connecticut State University. A NEBHE delegate, Bertolino will succeed Mary Papazian who resigned as of July 1. The Rev. Jeffrey von Arx, president of Fairfield University since 2004, will leave the university for...

July 18, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Appropriations Committee Passes Education Funding Bill. The House Appropriations Committee passed the labor, HHS and education appropriations bill by a vote of 31 to 19. The bill would fund the U.S. Department of Education at $67 billion, which is $1.3 billion below the fiscal year 2016 enacted level and $2.4 billion below the president's budget request. Some...

July 11, 2016

DC Shuttle ... House Committee Passes Perkins Reauthorization. The House Education and the Workforce Committee unanimously approved a reauthorization of the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, introduced by Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA) and Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-PA) would make changes to the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical...

July 5, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Perkins CTE Reauthorization Bill Introduced. Republican and Democratic members of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce introduced a bill designed to reauthorize and reform the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act. The current laws promoting career and technical education were passed in 2006. The Career and Technical Education for the 21st...

July 5, 2016

Rice Comings and Goings ... University of Maine at Presque Isle (UMPI) Provost Raymond J. Rice was appointed interim president of UMPI, where he will remain as provost. The appointment follows the announcement that outgoing President Linda Schott was chosen to lead Southern Oregon University. New Hampshire's Keene Sentinel newspaper reported that the Antioch University system "terminated the respective boards...

June 28, 2016

SchottComings and Goings ...University of Maine at Presque Isle President Linda Schott accepted an offer to serve as president of Southern Oregon University. Schott began her service in UMPI in 2012. NEBHE recognized UMPI's achievements in personalized education with its 2016 Maine State Merit Award.Vermont Technical College President Dan Smith accepted the job of president and CEO of the Vermont Community...

June 27, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Supreme Court Rules to Uphold Affirmative Action. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the race-conscious admissions policy at the University of Texas at Austin is constitutional. The court ruled 4-to-3 in the case, Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin. The New York Times reported that the ruling says that admissions may continue to consider race as...

June 24, 2016

With changes to state policy in 2005, New Hampshire became one of the leading states in the nation in competency-based education school reform. The Granite State's approach requires school districts to award high school diplomas based on a mastery of competencies (rather than the traditional measure of seat-time). But state policy is only the first step in change: What makes...

June 24, 2016

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE is pleased to provide a conversation about the debate over federal unit records system in higher education with Sarah Flanagan, vice president for government relations & policy development with the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU). Radio Higher Ed's entire podcast collection can be accessed by visiting www.radiohighered.com or by subscribing through iTunes at www.iTunes.com....

June 20, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Accreditor Under Fire. The Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS), the accreditor for many for-profit institutions, was in front of the U.S. Department of Education last week for review and approval. The National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI), which advises the Education Department, is reviewing the performance of ACICS. Last week, NACIQI...

June 20, 2016

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE is pleased to present a conversation on "Using Data to Improve Student Outcomes" with Timothy M. Renick, vice president for enrollment management and student success and vice provost at Georgia State University. The podcast also includes bonus content from David A. Bergeron, senior fellow for postsecondary education at the Center for American Progress and former...

June 13, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Appropriations Bill Funds Ed Dept, Increases Pell Grants and Medical Research Funding. The Senate Appropriations Committee advanced the FY 2017 Labor-HHS-Education funding bill (S. 3040) through subcommittee and out of the full committee by a vote of 29 to 1. The measure would provide $161.9 billion in discretionary spending, which is $270 million less than the current...

June 13, 2016

Comings and Goings ... Don Tuski announced he is leaving the presidency of Maine College of Art in Portland, Maine, after six years to become president at the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Ore. David Daley, the editor-in-chief of Salon.com, was named CEO/publisher of the Connecticut News Project, publisher of the CTMirror and its sister websites TrendCT and...

June 8, 2016

Zimpher Comings and Goings ... Nancy L. Zimpher, chancellor of the State University of New York system, will resign on June 30, 2017, after seven years leading the nation's largest comprehensive system of higher education. Zimpher forged notable cross-sector partnerships in areas ranging from early college high schools to transfer and research commercialization. She keynoted NEBHE's October 2015 conference on...

June 3, 2016

That's a million-dollar question … with seemingly a million answers. And while this topic is routinely batted back and forth, the fact remains that inconsistencies in definitions and data persist. The national College & Career Readiness & Success Center at the American Institutes for Research reports that only three of the six New England states have defined what it means...

May 31, 2016

Comings and Goings ... Maine Gov. Paul LePage appointed former Republican state Sen. Debra Plowman of Hampden as 'temporary deputy education commissioner' to "exercise all of the powers and perform all of the duties of the commissioner of the Department of Education." She has been the Department of Education's legislative liaison in recent months. DeVry Education Group CEO Daniel Hamburger...

May 31, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Amendment Controversy Over For-Profits on Bases. The debate is intensifying on Capitol Hill over for-profit colleges' access to military bases. Democratic Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) announced an amendment to eliminate a provision recently inserted into the defense policy bill that would make it easier for-profit colleges to send recruiters and...

May 23, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Amendment Approved for Veteran Loan Forgiveness. The Senate approved an amendment to allow veterans access to loan forgiveness. Sen. Angus King (I-ME) had introduced the amendment to the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations bill to help permanently disabled veterans more easily get student loan forgiveness. King's amendment would require the federal Department of Veterans Affairs and...

May 20, 2016

Sannicandro Massachusetts state Rep. Tom Sannicandro is House Chair of the Joint Committee on Higher Education and a member of NEBHE's Legislative Advisory Committee. He is also the father of a child with Down syndrome. He chaired the Special Education Parent Advisory Council in Ashland, Mass., before becoming a school committee member in 2000 and state representative in 2005. In...

May 20, 2016

Comings and Goings ... Frank D. Sánchez Frank D. Sánchez, vice chancellor for student affairs at the City University of New York (CUNY), was named the next president of Rhode Island College, succeeding Nancy Carriuolo, who is stepping down May 21. Clark Green, the college's interim vice president for advancement, will serve as interim president. Danielle N. Ripich will step...

May 16, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Supreme Court May Consider Student Loan Case. The U.S. Supreme Court met privately to determine whether it will take up the case of Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency v. United States ex rel. Oberg on whether the agency, a large student-loan servicer for the government, is an independent body or part of the state of Pennsylvania. The...

May 16, 2016

As the price of college continues to surge, growing numbers of high school students are turning to dual enrollment as a way to take college-level courses while still in high school and earn college credit at little to no cost. Dual enrollment programs are often thought of as the bailiwick of public colleges—but in New England especially, private colleges are...

May 16, 2016

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE is pleased to provide a conversation with Paul Lingenfelter, former president of the State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO). In this podcast, Lingenfelter provides perspective on the debate surrounding a federal unit record system for higher education. Radio Higher Ed's entire podcast collection can be accessed by visiting www.radiohighered.com or by subscribing through iTunes at www.iTunes.com. It...

May 12, 2016

No wonder 'proficiency-based' high school transcripts are catching on in some states: By capturing habits of work, proficiency-based models provide increasingly relevant information regarding a student's ability to succeed in today's world. But will proficiency-based transcripts put students at a disadvantage in the college application and evaluation process? A new NEBHE Policy Spotlight examines the expansion of proficiency-based education in...

May 12, 2016

Over the early months of 2016, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker responded to employers' persistent calls for a more educated, highly skilled workforce by outlining a series of budgetary and policy initiatives that expand career pathways and make earning a college degree more affordable. In January, Baker released his FY17 budget recommendation, which increased funding for the Commonwealth Dual Enrollment Partnership...

May 11, 2016

A few calendar items ... Antioch University New England will host "In Bloom in Keene: Promising Practices in Nature-based Early Childhood Education," featuring nationally recognized keynote speakers and workshops by local practitioners on the education and health benefits of being in the natural world with children, on Thursday, May 12 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cartoonist, rapper and multimedia...

May 3, 2016

Rep. Roberta B. Willis Comings and Goings ... Connecticut state Rep. Roberta B. Willis (D-Salisbury), a stalwart NEBHE delegate and longtime co-chair of Connecticut's Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee, announced she will not seek re-election this November after 16 years in the General Assembly. Robert (Bob) W. Allen, president and CEO of the Windham Foundation of Grafton, Vt., was...

May 2, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Vice President Announces Competitive Grants for Community Colleges. Vice President Joe Biden announced a program to award $100 million in competitive grants to fund public-private partnerships among community colleges, job training programs and businesses. The America's Promise Job-Driven Training grants will fund innovative new partnerships that help provide education and job training for in-demand middle- and high-skilled...

April 26, 2016

We have tried to be fairly comprehensive in announcing New England college commencements in three posts: The Greatest Lecture Series on Earth? and The Show Goes On and Commencements … Last Call … Of course, with 250 or so higher ed institutions in the region, a few escaped. Among them ... Basketball Hall of Famer Bill Walton will give the...

April 25, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Updates to 2010 Child Nutrition Act Introduced. U.S. Rep. Todd Rokita (R-IN) introduced H.R. 5003, the Improving Child Nutrition and Education Act of 2016. The bill is a reauthorization of the 2010 child nutrition law. The bill makes many changes to the 2010 law, most notably in the requirements to qualify for free meals for students. Under...

April 19, 2016

Comings and Goings ... Marlene M. Johnson Marlene M. Johnson announced she will retire as president and CEO of NAFSA: Association of International Educators at the end of December 2016. The Massachusetts Bay Community College Board of Trustees recommended David Podell, vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty at Marymount Manhattan College in New York, to be the...

April 19, 2016

New England Commencements ... University of Connecticut schools and colleges will hold separate commencements on Saturday, May 7 and Sunday, May 8. Speakers include: National Science Foundation Director France A. Córdova, School of Engineering; screenwriter Oliver Stone, Graduate School; Judge Christopher F. Droney, School of Law; commentator Charles Osgood, Schools of Medicine and Dental Medicine; New York Life President John...

April 18, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Scrutinized Researchers Defend Their Work. Researchers from across the country converged on the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, DC. The researchers all had one thing in common: Their research had been included in Sen. Jeff Flake's (R-AZ) "wastebook." The wastebook outlines 100 projects receiving federal funding that Flake says are frivolous and wasteful. The researchers named...

April 11, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Education Under Secretary Announces Changes. The U.S. Department of Education Under Secretary Ted Mitchell posted two important blog posts on the department's website. One of the posts announced a new student loan servicing and repayment system that would streamline the loan process and allow borrowers to access all the necessary information via a single web portal while...

April 11, 2016

More Commencements ... Christine Keville, the first female national president and foundation chair of the Construction Management Association of America, will keynote Wentworth Institute of Technology's commencement on Saturday, April 23, beginning at 10 a.m. at the Boston Marriott Copley. Entrepreneur Frederick H. Kocher, the former president of the NH High Technology Council, will address Rivier University's 81st commencement at the...

April 5, 2016

Pulsipher Comings and Goings ... The Western Governors University (WGU) Board of Trustees named Scott D. Pulsipher to be its new president, effective April 11. The former president of Needle Inc. and general manager for Amazon Webstore, Pulsipher succeeds Robert Mendenhall, who led the nonprofit online WGU from its beginning in 1999, into a major university today with nearly 70,000...

April 5, 2016

A few calendar items ... Connecticut College will celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with a kickoff address by assistant professor of Japanese Takeshi Watanabe, followed by a student panel discussion on the role and representation of Asian Americans in the media. The event will takes place in the Cro's Nest in the College Center at Crozier-Williams on April 7...

March 30, 2016

New England Commencements ... Commencement season ... It's one of those rich aspects of traditional New England higher education that gets short shrift when all attention turns to no-nonsense quantified learning measures and returns on investment. Still, the annual spring descent on New England campuses of distinguished speakers, ranging from Nobel laureates to Pulitzer winners to grassroots miracle-workers, offers a...

March 28, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Senate Confirms King as Education Secretary. The Senate voted 49 to 40 to confirm John King as the secretary of education. King had been serving as acting secretary since the beginning of the year, but President Obama officially nominated him in February after calls to do so from Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chair Lamar...

March 28, 2016

Chard Comings and Goings ... David J. Chard, dean of the Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education and Human Development at Southern Methodist University, was named the 14th president of Wheelock College, effective July 1. The Maine Community College System Board of Trustees appointed Lisa Larson, who currently serves as vice president for academic and student affairs at Minnesota's Hennepin Technical College, to...

March 15, 2016

Williams Comings and Goings ... Epidemiologist Michelle A. Williams, a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health, will become the first black person to head a faculty at Harvard and the first female dean of the school, beginning in July. Susan D. Stuebner, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Pennsylvania's Allegheny College, was named the ninth president...

March 14, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Senate Committee Recommends King Confirmation. The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee voted 16-6 to recommend that the Senate confirm Acting Secretary John King as secretary of education. Committee Chair Lamar Alexander (R-TN) said he believed King would be confirmed before the Senate leaves town for its Easter Recess. Senate Appropriators Question Department of Education...

February 29, 2016

Insights and recommendations from NEBHE's Redesigning Student Aid in New England project ... College affordability has taken center stage for students, their families, legislators and higher education institutions. Nowhere is this truer than in New England. A new report from NEBHE's Redesigning Student Aid in New England project suggests several strategies for how higher education leaders can strengthen state investment...

February 29, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Senate Committee Holds King Confirmation Hearing. The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a confirmation hearing for Acting Secretary of Education John King. The acting secretary testified in front of the committee for about two hours and answered questions on topics including the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), campus sexual assault...

February 24, 2016

Through its partnership with RadioHigherEd.com, NEJHE is pleased to provide a conversation with Anthony Carnevale, director of the Center for Education and the Workforce at Georgetown University. In this podcast, Carnevale discusses the center's most recent report, Six Million Missing Jobs: The Lingering Pain of the Great Recession. Radio Higher Ed's entire podcast collection can be accessed by visiting www.radiohighered.com or by...

February 23, 2016

Enrollment through the Regional Student Program (RSP) remained steady this year in undergraduate programs at New England's state colleges and universities, according to NEBHE's Annual RSP Report, but decreased overall at the community colleges and at the graduate schools. Notably, RSP undergraduate enrollment reached record highs at the University of Connecticut, University of Maine and University of Vermont. Other institutions with significant increases...

February 23, 2016

O'Rourke Comings and Goings ... Syracuse University fundraising expert Elizabeth 'Lil' Breul O'Rourke was named president of the University of Rhode Island Foundation. Michael Gargano, former provost of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system, was named president of St. Vincent's College in Bridgeport, Conn. Colleen Fitzpatrick, an assistant vice president at Duke University, was named vice president for advancement at...

February 16, 2016

DC Shuttle ... White House Budget Includes Education Proposals. President Obama sent his final budget request to Congress. The budget includes many education-focused proposals including expanding Pell Grants, new tax credits for companies that invest in community colleges, and hiring new enforcement officials at the Department of Education. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that the budget has drawn criticism...

February 11, 2016

Johnson Comings and Goings ... Paula A. Johnson, a professor at Harvard Medical School and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, was named the 14th president of Wellesley College. Johnson is chief of the Division of Women's Health at Harvard Medical School and Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital, where she founded the Connors Center for Women's Health and...

February 8, 2016

McKenna Comings and Goings ... Suffolk University President Margaret McKenna and Board of Trustees Chair Drew Meyer both announced they would resign after a season of increasing turmoil at the downtown Boston college, which has had three presidents since 2010. Meyer will step down in May, McKenna by the start of the 2017-18 academic year. McKenna wrote for NEBHE's journal...

February 8, 2016

DC Shuttle ... UN Panel Assesses Race in U.S. Schools. The United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent recommended several changes to U.S. schools following a 10-day visit to several U.S. cities to assess the African American educational experience. The working group questioned the practice of stationing police officers in schools and called on leaders to...

February 1, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Federal Agencies Take Action Against DeVry. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Education both took action against DeVry University last week for making misleading and deceptive claims. The FTC filed a lawsuit against DeVry, claiming that the institution made unsubstantiated claims about post-graduation job rates and wages. The Department of Education sent a notice...

January 26, 2016

Comings and Goings ... Ball State University President Paul Ferguson resigned unexpectedly from the helm of the Indiana college. Ferguson was president of the University of Maine until he signed a five-year contract at Ball State in August 2014.Massachusetts College of Art and Design named University of North Carolina School of the Arts Provost David Nelson to be the 12th...

January 25, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Supreme Court to Hear Religious School Case. The Supreme Court agreed to hear the case of Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia v. Pauley. Trinity Lutheran had requested a grant from the state of Missouri for recycled tire scraps to resurface its preschool playground, but the state denied the request, arguing that state aid to a church violates...

January 19, 2016

DC Shuttle ... Department of Ed Urges Schools to Protect Muslim Students from Harassment. The U.S. Department of Education published a "Dear Colleague" letter urging schools to take extra steps to protect Muslim students from harassment and discrimination. Schools are always obligated to address any harassment or bullying students face, regardless of race, religion, ethnicity or national origin. However, the...

January 19, 2016

Comings and Goings ... John N. Short The University of Maine System named University of Wisconsin-Fond du Lac CEO and Dean John N. Short to be the new president of the University of Maine at Fort Kent, starting April 1. He succeeds Wilson Hess, who announced his retirement in May. The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth appointed its senior vice chancellor...

January 15, 2016

The University of New Hampshire is one of 14 higher education institutions throughout the U.S. that have been selected by the National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation (Epicenter) to participate in the Pathways to Innovation, a program funded by the National Science Foundation and run by Epicenter. Epicenter is directed by Stanford University and VentureWell. The Pathways program is...