Current Issue

News and Commentary

• Turnaround President Makes the Most of His College’s Small Size

  For "President Buck," as G.T. Smith is known at Davis & Elkins College, "hardly anything important happens that doesn't have to do with relationships."

• Teaching Experiment Decodes a Discipline

  History professors at Indiana U. are redesigning courses to break through conceptual barriers by focusing on evidence and analysis.

• In Appalachia, a Researcher Makes Honey From Coal

  Tammy Horn, aka the Bee Lady, has a plan to sweeten the region's economy by planting beehives on reclaimed mining land.

• Number of Foreign Students in U.S. Hit a New High Last Year

  India and China led the way as more foreign students than ever, and particularly more undergraduates, enrolled in American colleges.

  • Chart: U.S. Colleges With the Most International Students, 2008-9
  • Chart: Top Countries of Origin of Foreign Students in the United States, 2008-9

• Study Abroad Diversifies as Its Popularity Grows

  More students than ever are going overseas, a study finds, and a growing percentage of them choose destinations other than the traditional ones in Europe.

• Top Destinations Compete for Growing Numbers of Foreign Students

  International enrollments seem to be holding fairly steady or even growing in the United States, Canada, Australia, and Britain.

• Lecturing Aboard the 9:04 to Tel Aviv, Israel's Train of Thought

  Hebrew University professors are giving a series of lectures to Israel commuters aboard the 9:04 to Tel Aviv.

• Chart: Are U.S. Teenagers 'Green' Enough?

  The U.S. ranks behind 21 other nations in an Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development study of 15-year-old students' preparedness in the environmental...

• The (Cheap) Shot Heard Round the World

  Elizabeth Lambert is quite possibly the most recognizable athlete in college sports. Poor her.

• A Defender of the Liberal Arts Contemplates Their Changing Role

  Azar Nafisi, who is working on a book that stands up for the liberal arts, spoke at a meeting of provosts of independent colleges.

• News Analysis: Conversion of Adjuncts to the Tenure Track Won't Occur Easily

  The AAUP's toughest task will be getting colleges that rely on the flexibility of employing adjuncts to actually do what it takes to stabilize the faculty.

• Business Software, Built by Colleges for Colleges, Challenges Commercial Giants

  The Kuali Foundation's new free programs for finance and research administration go up against Big Software.

• Legality of Racial-Preference Bans Disputed in Federal Court

  A federal appeals court is scheduled to hear arguments in a challenge to Michigan's ban on affirmative-action preferences.

• Rape-Prevention Programs Proliferate, but No One Knows If They Work

  Urged on by victims and parents, colleges try to stop sexual violence with a variety of strategies. Their effectiveness is hard to measure.

• Connecting With Part-Timers Is Key Challenge for Community Colleges, Survey Finds

  The 2009 Community College Survey of Student Engagement focused on the importance of connections online, in the classroom, on campus, and beyond.

• The Chinese Are Coming, and They Need Help With the Admissions Process

  Misconceptions are rampant among Chinese families who want their children to attend U.S. institutions, Bruce G. Hammond writes.

• Student-Survey Results: Too Useful to Keep Private

  It's time for higher education to adopt customer-performance measures, writes Robert D. Atkinson.

• A Florida Professor Helps Launch a New Space Industry

  Joshua E. Colwell is working with companies that are building spacecraft intended to carry tourists and scientific experiments.

• 4 Faulty Assumptions About American Higher Education

  Problems in degree completion and attainment among Americans run deeper than the country's slipping international rank, Arthur M. Hauptman writes.

• Respect Is the Difference Between the U.S. and Asia

  "Most Asian nations consider higher education a highly valued privilege. As a result, students tend to take it seriously."

• In Athletics, No Disclosure Means No Reform

  "Disclosure is not about student behavior; it is about faculty behavior; it is about fraudulent institutional behavior."