Protesters Take Over Academic Building at Berkeley

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:22:00 -0500

About 50 to 100 protesters took over a prominent building at the University of California at Berkeley this morning and barricaded themselves inside, The Daily Californian reported. The action, one day after the system's Board of Regents approved a 32-percent increase in tuition, culminated

U. of Nebraska Regents Reject New Limits on Stem-Cell Research

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:05:00 -0500

The University of Nebraska's Board of Regents, despite heavy lobbying by religious groups, narrowly voted today to uphold the expansion of research on human embryonic stem cells as permitted by the Obama administration. The regents voted, 4 to 4, on a

Judge Grants Preliminary Approval to Revised Google Book Settlement

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:18:37 -0500

The federal judge overseeing the Google Book Search case has given preliminary approval to the revised settlement submitted late last Friday by the parties to the lawsuit. The new version is "within the range of possible approval," according to a court order issued yesterday. The order also set February

Nothing Improper in Payments Flagged by Audit, Kansas State U. President Says

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:56:48 -0500

In the aftermath of an audit that raised questions about spending practices at Kansas State University, the institution's president, Kirk H. Schulz, reported to the Kansas Board of Regents today on what his administration has done to ensure that sound business and management practices are in place. The regents had commissioned the audit as an

Education Department Needs Better Ways to Monitor Grant Recipients, GAO Says

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:18:13 -0500

The Education Department has made efforts to create risk-based ways to monitor grants for fraud and abuse, but more work needs to be done, says a report from the Government Accountability Office. The GAO found that the department's staff members need more financial expertise and training in order to accomplish their work, and that information on grant recipients should be shared systematically throughout the department for monitoring to

GAO Raises New Doubts About Job-Creation Claims From Stimulus Spending

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:51:00 -0500

About 22 percent of economic-stimulus funds have been paid out by the federal government, the Government Accountability Office reported today, but the job-creation data posted on the Web site Recovery.gov to highlight the effect of the $787-billion legislation, officially the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, has "significant reporting and quality issues that need to be addressed." As

In Close Vote, Faculty Members at UConn Health Center Form a Union

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:21:03 -0500

Faculty members at the University of Connecticut Health Center voted this week by a two-vote margin, 223 to 221, to unionize, the Hartford Courant reports. This is the first vote on the issue since the faculty twice defeated union bids, in 1999 and 2000, and some observers feel the affirmative vote demonstrates a growing uncertainty about the future of faculty job security.

U. of Massachusetts' Law-School Proposal Clears Its First Hurdle

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:36:00 -0500

A committee of the University of Massachusetts approved today a proposal for the system's Dartmouth campus to acquire the Southern New England School of Law, which would give the state its first public law school, The Boston Globe reported. That approval, however, is only the first step for the controversial proposal, which critics have questioned on academic and financial grounds. The private

Former University President Urges Oregon to Give Its 3 Largest Universities More Autonomy

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:47:00 -0500

In the face of dwindling state support for higher education, Oregon should convert its three largest public universities into public corporations to make it easier for them to raise money, David B. Frohnmayer, who recently retired as president of the University of Oregon, recommends in a report released today by the Oregon University System. The report calls for giving the University of Oregon and

California Community Colleges May Adopt Common Assessment by 2010

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:09:22 -0500

Community colleges in California will be encouraged to offer a common assessment in mathematics and English for incoming students starting in the fall of 2010, the system's chancellor, Jack Scott, said today at a news conference. The system's 110 campuses have long offered dozens of incompatible assessment tests, which Mr. Scott said had wasted money, muddied transfer pathways to universities, and made it more

Key Congressman Reiterates Warning to Colleges on Direct Loans

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:50:00 -0500

With legislation to overhaul the health-care system bogging down the U.S. Senate and delaying consideration of a student-loan-reform bill, the chairman of the House education committee, Rep. George Miller of California, wrote today to college presidents reiterating the

Obama Pledges to Send 100,000 Students to China in the Next 4 Years

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:09:00 -0500

During his trip to China this week, President Obama pledged to send 100,000 students to China over the next four years. How he plans to do that, though, remains to be determined. In a U.S.-China joint statement, the White House noted that nearly 100,000 Chinese students come to the United States each year, while the United States sends about 20,000 students to China. (The actual number,

College-Health Group Reports First Deaths in National Flu Survey

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:05:00 -0500

The American College Health Association's weekly survey of "influenza-like illnesses" on American campuses reported its first deaths today. The survey, which covers 263 colleges accounting for nearly three million students, does not provide a complete look at the incidence of the illness, widely assumed to be H1N1 or swine flu, and other campus deaths elsewhere have previously been reported. The association's new report found two deaths

Goldman Sachs to Give Colleges $200-Million to Expand Business Education

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:01:25 -0500

The investment bank of Goldman Sachs has announced a $500-million effort to help thousands of small businesses recover from the recession, and the initiative will include $200-million to expand access to business-education programs at community colleges, universities, and other institutions. The money will be given to institutions to provide scholarships to small-business owners and to increase

Under Fire From Students and Colleges, Apparel Company Rehires Workers

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:53:21 -0500

A leading sportswear manufacturer and university licensee, Russell Athletic, will rehire 1,200 workers who lost their jobs after the company closed a plant in Honduras, The New York Times reported today. Critics said that the company had shut down the plant after its workers unionized and that it has a history of mistreating its employees. Russell's move followed furious lobbying and protests by student activists

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