The Fatal Meeting: Death, Heroism, and a Campus Changed Forever

The Fatal Meeting: Death, Heroism, and a Campus Changed Forever | Thomas Bartlett and Robin Wilson | The Chronicle of Higher Education | 26 February, 2010

Who was Amy Bishop, the biology professor at the Unversity of Alabama at Huntsville, who, witnesses say, methodically shot and killed three of her colleagues and severely injured two more? Was she an innovative scientist or an academic who couldn’t quite cut it? Was her violent outburst and aberration or part of a pattern? And does her case tell us something about tenure, or is it simply the story of a troubled women who brought a gun to a faculty meeting and opened fire?

HEA cuts threaten future of subject centres

HEA cuts threaten future of subject centres | Rebecca Attwood | Times Higher Education | 25 February 2010

Fears grow for teaching development as budget reductions are confirmed. The fruit of decades of effort to improve university teaching is under threat at the very time it is needed most as a result of cuts to the higher education budget, it was claimed this week.

Climate wars give science bad name

Climate wars give science bad name | Luke Slattery | The Australian Higher Education Supplement | 24 February, 2010

UNIVERSITY leaders are pressing for a public campaign to restore the intellectual and moral authority of Australian science in the wake of the climate wars. Peter Coaldrake, chairman of Universities Australia and vice-chancellor of Queensland University of Technology, told the HES yesterday he was “concerned about the way the climate change debate has flowed”, and would address the role of science in the formation of public policy at his National Press Club address next week.

Wal-Mart’s $10-Million Diplomas

Wal-Mart’s $10-Million Diplomas | Sara Lipka | The Chronicle of Higher Education |  19 February, 2010

Grants to colleges help first-generation students graduate. Students quit college for all kinds of reasons. They can’t pay; they have to work; they struggle academically. When they’re the first in their families to pursue higher education, the hurdles can seem higher. Just getting to college does not guarantee success.

Radical measures to bridge gap between supply and demand

Radical measures to bridge gap between supply and demand | Melanie Newman | Times Higher Education | 18 February 2010

Guild HE v-cs’ plans to beat cap: unfunded places or ‘foreign’ fees for rich. Vice-chancellors have proposed radical steps to address the gulf between surging demand for higher education and the number of places available under government restrictions.

Report highlights nanotech retreat

Report highlights nanotech retreat | Cheryl Jones | The Australian |17  February, 2010

THE number of Australian companies in a nanotechnology market likely to be worth trillions of dollars within a decade has plummeted, according to an Australian Academy of Science report. Federal government reports previously put at about 80 the number of companies engaged in the technology underlying a burgeoning global market.

For-Profit Colleges Change Higher Education’s Landscape

For-Profit Colleges Change Higher Education’s Landscape | Robin Wilson | The Chronicle of Higher Education | 12 February 2010

At a time when American public higher education is cutting budgets, laying off people, and turning away students, the rise of for-profit universities has been meteoric.

Enrollment in the country’s nearly 3,000 career colleges has grown far faster than in the rest of higher education—by an average of 9 percent per year over the past 30 years, compared with only 1.5 percent per year for all institutions, according to an industry analyst.

How high? ‘Reasonable number’ would accept fees hike

How high? ‘Reasonable number’ would accept fees hike | Rebecca Attwood | Times Higher Education | 11 February 2010

Survey responses vary on subject, institution, class, race and gender lines.
More than half of students would be willing to pay university fees of £5,000 and one in five would be prepared to go as high as £10,000, a survey of tens of thousands of students suggests.

Universities told to boost English programs

Universities told to boost English programs | Guy Healy and Andrew Trounson | The Australian Higher Education Supplement | 10 February 10, 2010

UNIVERSITIES are being warned to increase their English language programs for international students given the potential for a review of the migration points system to recommend higher levels of proficiency.

While universities are set to benefit from the Rudd government’s move to refocus skilled migration on higher skills and qualifications, experts are warning it could put pressure on the sector to lift English standards.

Towns, Gowns, and Taxes

Towns, Gowns, and Taxes |Karin Fischer |The Chronicle of Higher Education | 5 February 2010

Debate Over Taxes Sullies Town-Gown Relations in Pittsburgh. Higher education helped save Pittsburgh, so why are the two sides still fighting? When Pittsburgh played host to a summit of the world’s 20 largest economies last fall, local politicians proclaimed it “Transformation City,” trumpeting its evolution from sooty steel town to booming high-tech hub.