Higher education in the news
From Pittsburgh Tribune – Review Nov. 30, 2009
Dozens of college students went to Pittsburgh’s city hall to protest the one percent tuition “Fair Share Tax” proposed by Mayor Luke Ravenstahl. Students hoped to sway at least one council member’s mind on the tax, which would tip the scales against the proposed tax. Currently five members of a nine member council support the tax, with four opposing it, so a single vote would mean stopping the tax. More than 40 students had signed up to speak at a public hearing and citizen participation meeting on the tuition tax.
From The New York Times Nov. 30, 2009
Black male college graduates 25 and older are facing an unemployment rate of 8.4 percent, nearly twice the white male college graduate unemployment rate of 4.4 percent, according to the figures from the Bureau of Labor statistics. A study from some years ago titled “Are Emily and Greg More Employable than Lakisha and Jamal?” found that applicants with African-American-sounding names received 50 percent fewer callback than applicants with traditional white names.
From The New York Times Dec. 1, 2009
Hundreds of students from across the state gathered at the University of California to protest a 32 percent tuition increase approved by the University’s Board of Regents. Students from campuses across the state beat drums and chanted slogans to protest the increase. The university president, Mark Yudof, said that the university had little choice but to raise fees due to state budget cuts which left the state system with half as much money per student this year as in 1990.
From Inside Higher Ed Dec. 1, 2009
Trustees at Tufts University have declared that “freedom of expression and inquiry are not absolute” following a charged First Amendment debate on campus sparked by two pieces printed in The Primary Source, a conservative publication that is funded largely with Tuft’s resources. The two pieces, one titled “O Come All Ye Black Folk,” and another article which parodied Islamic Awareness Week advertisements drew heavy criticism. Tufts, as a private university, is not bound by the First Amendment like public institutions.
