Robert Kelchen

Research Funding Starts to Flow Back to Columbia, Brown About half of the frozen federal research grants and contracts at Columbia resumed in the last week. Brown officials say payments should resume in 30 days.

Columbia University says that some federal grants* are starting to be restored, but it's not clear how much money has actually reached the university. Expect this to be a trickle, and keep asking.

*Offer only applies to HHS and NIH grants. Teachers College got left out in the cold.

According to Harvard, reports of an impending $500 million payment to the Trump administration are fake news from the White House. That would fit with the type of maximum pressure campaign that they are trying to run.

www.thecrimson.com/article/2025...

Playing around with an idea which basically goes: faculty have lost (as in, these things have been cut, undermined or eroded) many of the incentives that might encourage them to work very hard.

White Lily biscuits, made with love (and with lots of help from the kids).

There are few better ways to start a Sunday than by making biscuits with the kids. This recipe is even better than the Hardee's biscuits that I made in high school.

www.whitelily.com/recipe/white...

Buying time: Financial aid allows college students to work less while enrolled Many empirical studies have found that financial aid improves college attainment. Few have been able to test why. This study used administrative recor…

New in Econ of Ed Review: my paper w/ Drew Anderson extending our work on NJ TAG fin aid. Free access here until Sept: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Nickel summary: need-based grant aid replaces work earnings 1:1 (possible mechanism for our prior finding of faster graduation w/ more aid!)

The Bluesky for Dummies book appears to actually be a real thing.

Here's a suggestion to Bill Gates as he begins to wind down his foundation.

Endow an independent non-profit social and economic data measurement organization. It could provide a non-political alternative to the BLS, BEA, and census, giving the facts for people to see and use. It could also be a

Senate confirms Trump's pick to oversee higher ed, a man tied to for-profit colleges The under secretary at the Department of Education oversees billions in federal financial aid.

It was the Senate's last vote on Friday night, but Trump's pick to oversee higher ed was confirmed in a 50-45 vote. More on Nicholas Kent, his time working with Gov. Glenn Youngkin, and his ties to for-profit colleges here: www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...

I typically use almonds for the same reason.

And still more news...

Cornell possibly agreeing to pay $100 million to the Trump administration is going to dominate the Friday evening news cycle (just let me cut the grass in peace!), but this is an even bigger story as it will likely play out elsewhere.

NEW: Trump's suspensions of UCLA's research grants is around 800 -- the ~300 we knew about for NSF and *500* NIH grants. That's according to a memo a UCLA administrator sent to the campus's researchers with grants two hours ago.

Trump is planning on firing the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Politicizing agencies that collect employment and economic data is exactly what the Soviets did to conceal an economy that wasn’t working. And it looks Trump is headed in this direction.

I didn't see this one coming. It's a bit of good news for higher education leadership.

You don't mess with Daniel Tiger in this house.

The Small College Waiting for a Miracle The usual suspects — finances and enrollment — spelled the end of Limestone University in rural South Carolina. But some hope it’s not the end.

This is a really good piece on the demise of Limestone University--and an effort from a well-meaning group of alumni to reopen the institution that faces lots of challenges.

Today is the final day of work for many dedicated, talented employees at the Institute of Education Sciences. I am thankful for their service, and I hope that they find new roles that continue their mission of supporting education research that serves as a public good.

Donors may be less willing to give money, fearing the tax could increase in the future. “If you’re giving money for a scholarship and the proceeds get taxed, it means there’s just less money for that scholarship,” said professor Robert Kelchen, who researches higher education finance at the University of Tennessee.

I may have failed out of an economics PhD program, but I was a pretty good TA in Econ 101 eighteen years ago.

www.ajc.com/education/20...

🗓️ We’ve recently published a series of six research papers and a synthesis paper that provides a brief overview of each paper, identifies key themes across findings, and concludes with policy implications and recommendations. Check them out here: ow.ly/wxAI50WyjbY

The best thing about today is that pay deferral for next summer begins to accrue.

My annual back to school picture.

Today starts my fifth year as a department head at Tennessee and my thirteenth year as a faculty member. Let's go!!!

CT’s student loan forgiveness program reimburses $1.4 million in the first year A Connecticut student loan forgiveness program that was allocated $6 million in its first year has paid out $1.4 million, according to state officials.

Connecticut spent only one-fourth of the $6 million it budgeted for a student loan forgiveness program. Someone got eight dollars in forgiveness after meeting the requirement of 50 community service hours.

I think they feel like they can use the topline appropriation for all of government as they see fit, not looking at agency by agency budgets or directives.

Congress puts a ceiling on total funding available, although they didn't anticipate the ability of a president to gain funding through settlements with the private sector. That's about it.

Senate Appropriators Reject Trump’s Education Dept. Cuts The spending plan protects TRIO from Trump’s chopping block and boosts funding for the National Institutes of Health.

The likely budget steps for FY26:

(1) Congress passes a few continuing resolutions with flat funding through December.
(2) The Senate passes a House bill with big cuts because Dems fear what Trump will do during a shutdown.
(3) Trump/Voight continue to withhold funds regardless of Congress.

That's a great question.

I think they're looking for a number over $1 billion, although they may settle for less if they need to change the news cycle at some point in the next few weeks.

Belle Whelan will be dearly missed in the field of higher education. She was also kind enough to send me a nice handwritten note when I arrived in Knoxville four years ago.

That's easy compared to trying to touch one's toes.

Trump set to revive the Presidential Fitness Test while hosting professional athletes at White House | CNN Politics President Donald Trump will be joined by professional athletes on Thursday to sign an executive order that will expand on his council on sports, fitness and nutrition, including by reviving the Presid...

The Presidential Fitness Test is making a return, which reminds me how much I hated as a kid that the sit and reach was the only thing between me and a nice certificate. www.cnn.com/2025/07/31/p...