Notes in the Margins: Cheating, modernizing a library, and Obama's college fund

Court hears challenge to CA affirmative action ban Backers of affirmative action asked a federal appeals court Monday to overturn California’s 15-year-old ban on considering race in public college admissions, citing a steep drop in black, Latino and Native American students at the state’s elite campuses. (Associated Press via The Boston Globe)

Obama emphasizes education in economic recovery Central to his plan is a new $8 billion Community College to Career Fund to train 2 million workers for good-paying jobs in high-demand, fast-growing industries such as health care, clean energy and information technology. The initiative would forge partnerships between community colleges and businesses and provide entrepreneurship training for small-business owners. (USA Today)

Harvard to offer voluntary buyouts to 275 as part of push to modernize library Some 275 Harvard University employees will be offered voluntary buyouts in the school’s first concrete move toward modernizing its decentralized library system, university officials said today. (The Boston Globe)

College Apps Cheating Scandal Is A Learning Moment For China Cheating on college apps is a complex problem confronting the US and other parts of the world. Although cheating seems rampant, especially in the East, the situation represents a wonderful growth opportunity for business and humanity globally. By improving value systems globally, we can tackle the root causes of cheating and restore integrity to the US college applications system. (Forbes via NAICU)

S&P Warns Student Loans May Be The Next Bubble To Burst In US Economy The problem: colleges and universities are hamstrung with lower endowments, while students have increasingly lower prospects of ever paying back their loans. Student debt now outpaces credit-card debt, approaching $1 trillion for the first time. The Project on Student Debt found that in 2008, 67 percent of college students at four-year universities were graduating with student-loan debt. That number is even higher for students at private nonprofit and for-profit colleges and universities. (The Huffington Post)

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