In this week's roundup:
student loan relief will persist, tuition prices rose modestly and most Americans surveyed prefer race-neutral admissions decisions.
October 20-26
- U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona says student loan relief will move ahead. A federal appeals court blocked immediate debt relief, but Cardona said lawsuits are baseless and the Biden administration is moving “full speed ahead.”
- Voters in Arizona will decide whether undocumented students can receive in-state tuition. Proposition 308 would reverse a previous decision where in-state tuition was only guaranteed for documented immigrants.
- Activists at the University of Alabama want the word “Dixie” removed from their fight song, which is played at athletic events and on other occasions at the university.
- Penn State University canceled an event featuring Proud Boys founders Gavin McInnes and Alex Stein. The event was canceled the day it was scheduled to take place amid concerns about public safety and potential violence.
- A poll from The Washington Post-Schar School found that six out of 10 Americans want race to be removed as a consideration with college admissions. The poll finds that most White, Hispanic, and Asian Americans support institutions removing race from admissions decisions while Black Americans are more evenly split.
- Two Texas institutions argued for the authority to revoke degrees from graduates accused of cheating on dissertations. The University of Texas at Austin and Texas State University made the arguments in order to preserve their reputations and the value of degrees.
- Citing religious values, Samford University denied a request for an LGBTQ+ student organization.
- Steven A. Sviggum, a regent at the University of Minnesota who asked if a campus was too diverse, has resigned from his leadership post. His resignation follows two weeks of backlash over the question he posed.
- A report from the College Board found that the average sticker price of tuition rose modestly before adjusting for inflation in the 2022-23 academic year. This marks the third year in a row of more minimal cost increases.
- The University of Maryland is pledging to expand tuition aid for low-income students. The program is aimed at Maryland residents who receive Pell Grants.
