American colleges and universities are increasingly firing or punishing professors and other employees for what they say, whether it’s on social media or in the classroom. After the Sept. 10, 2025, killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, several universities, including Iowa State University, Clemson University, Ball State University and others, fired or suspended employees for making negative online comments about Kirk. Some of […] … learn more→
Blog Archives
What the First Amendment doesn’t protect when it comes to professors speaking out on politics
Claims vs contributions
If you’re deep in the throes of doctoral work, you’ve probably had that moment where someone asks you about your “contribution to knowledge” and you freeze up like a deer in headlights. You might have solid claims emerging from your research, but somehow articulating your actual contribution feels impossibly abstract. Claims and contributions are related […] … learn more→
A fragmented legal system and threat of deportation are pushing higher education out of reach for many undocumented students
How large is the population of students who are living in the U.S. without legal authorization? There are 408,000 undocumented students enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities – that’s about 2% of the entire U.S. college population. California and Texas have the greatest number, with about 21% of all undocumented college students living in California and 14% in […] … learn more→
AI in the classroom is hard to detect – time to bring back oral tests
News that several New Zealand universities have given up using detection software to expose student use of artificial intelligence (AI) underlines the challenge higher education is facing. With AI tools such as ChatGPT now able to produce essays, reports and case studies in seconds, the old assessment model is breaking down. For decades, that model was valued […] … learn more→
McCarthyism’s shadow looms over controversial firing of Texas professor who taught about gender identity
Texas A&M University announced the resignation of its president, Mark A. Welsh III, on Sept. 18, 2025, following a controversial decision earlier in the month to fire a professor over a classroom exchange with a student about gender identity. The university – a public school in College Station, Texas – fired Melissa McCoul, a children’s literature professor, […] … learn more→
Are business schools priming students for a world that no longer exists?
Endless economic expansion isn’t sustainable. Scientists are telling us our planet is already beyond its limits, with the risks to communities and the economy made clear in the federal government’s recent climate risk assessment. Sustainability is a hot topic in Australian business schools. However, teaching about the possible need to limit economic growth – whether directly or […] … learn more→
Fewer foreign students in the United States : a decline that is costing universities dearly
The number of international students on U.S. campuses is estimated to have declined by 150,000 this fall due to policies implemented by the Trump administration. This reversal of fortune will weigh heavily on campuses and their local economies. It’s the time when students are returning to college, and like every year, campuses across the United […] … learn more→
Trump isn’t cutting Pell Grants, after all − but other changes could complicate financial aid for some students
As an education researcher who has studied the economic returns of higher education, I know that college degrees remain cost-effective investments for most students. But college tuition has risen at roughly twice the rate of inflation during the past two decades, and federal student debt climbed 500% to US$1.6 trillion during that same period. The Biden administration sought to address this problem with plans that accelerated […] … learn more→
Title IX’s effectiveness in addressing campus sexual assault is at risk − a law professor explains why
Most Americans assume that schools are legally required to protect students from sexual harassment and assault under Title IX – the federal law enacted in 1972 that bans sexual discrimination in education. I am a law professor and researcher who has spent more than a decade examining the disconnect between what Title IX promises on paper and what students […] … learn more→
Baccalaureate grading: why is it so difficult to find the right exam formula?
Will the 2026 baccalaureate resemble the 2025 baccalaureate? The Ministry of National Education announced at the start of the school year its intention to adjust the current methods of continuous assessment, sparking new debates surrounding an exam that has been revised several times since 2018. But why is it so difficult in France to determine […] … learn more→
