Alex FriedrichThe state Office of Higher Education would be able to refinance student and parent loans under recently proposed legislation. The bill’s author, Sen. Greg Clausen of Apple Valley, says he has heard complaints that interest rates on many private loans are too high, and repayment plans too inflexible. “We talked to students who are carrying Read more →
MPR News Intelligence on higher education
Archives for February 2014
Medtronic executive Rebecca Bergman has been named the first female president of Gustavus Adolphus College. The Lutheran college in St. Peter announced today she will take office July 1. She will succeed Jack Ohle, who is retiring after serving since 2008. Last year, Ohle faced calls for his ouster from students and alumni. Bergman has Read more →
Some Gopher fans may have had their share of frustration in recent years with the state of their football and basketball teams, but the University of Minnesota was on top in the winter Olympic Games in Sochi. As nerdwallet.com points out, the U’s students took home five silver medals, tying Westminster College. You can see Read more →
When May I Shoot a Student? I am a biology professor, and I had never considered bringing a gun to work until now. But since many of my students are likely to be armed, I thought it would be a good idea to even the playing field. I have had encounters with disgruntled students over the years, Read more →
Student research is booming where you might not expect it – Minnesota’s two-year community colleges. Once known as places that taught only introductory science courses, they’re conducting research with a level of sophistication that faculty members say wasn’t seen as recently as five years ago. The surge is part of a national movement that faculty Read more →
Community college grads out-earn bachelor’s degree holders Many newly minted graduates of community colleges are defying history and stereotypes by proving that a bachelor’s degree is not, as widely believed, the only ticket to a middle-class income. (CNN Money via University Business) How Exactly Do Colleges Allocate Their Financial Aid? They Won’t Say. Universities rarely release the Read more →
The University of Minnesota-Duluth will cut up to $1.1 million in programs and services this spring in an initial round of budget reductions to help close a deficit of about $9.4 million over five years. The proposed reductions (see full list below), which campus leaders discussed Monday, include cuts to the IT department, library staffing Read more →
Soon after a Macalester College alumnus wrote about why he finds it hard to give to his alma mater, higher-education economist and Bloomberg columnist Richard Vedder writes in the Star Tribune why people shouldn’t donate to elite colleges: Before endowments were large, professors sometimes had to earn their salaries by collecting tuition fees from students. Read more →
Colorblind Notion Aside, Colleges Grapple With Racial Tension The notion persists that millennials — born after the overt racial debates and divisions that shaped their parents’ lives — are growing up in a colorblind society. But interviews with dozens of students, professors and administrators at the University of Michigan and elsewhere indicate that the reality is far Read more →
University of Minnesota head football coach Jerry Kill said Monday he appreciates the restructured contract that has almost doubled his pay to $2.1 million this year. At his first press conference after Saturday’s announcement of the pay raise, he said such salaries are part of the entertainment business and will continue to climb. But Kill Read more →