Meredith Kolodner

oops -- sorry about that!

NAEP, the Nation's Report Card, was supposed to be safe. It's not Funding pauses, layoffs and looming budget cuts threaten a critical test

I remember when states were making it easier to do well on their math and English tests and scores skyrocketing. Then NAEP scores came out and showed that kids weren't actually learning more. So what happens if we lose that accountability?
hechingerreport.org/proof-points...

Ruling is here:

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

"the Court is left with little confidence that the defense can be trusted to tell the truth about anything."

Strong language from the judge overseeing the lawsuit trying to prevent the Trump administration, which is "the defense," from dismantling of the CFPB (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau).

ROI Tool Highlights Substantial Value of Regional Public Universities - CEW Georgetown Several regional public universities have return on investment (ROI) values that are comparable to flagship institutions.

Prospective college students may think that a college degree from a state’s flagship public institution yields a significantly higher payoff than other public universities in that state. Our newly updated ROI data tool reveals that is not always the case. Read more: bit.ly/4hRaEUT

#AcademicSky

New Trump demand to colleges: Name protesters — and their nationalities The demand for student information came after the administration promised to deport non-citizens who participated in what it called “pro-jihadist protests.”

This may seem in the weeds, but in light of attempted deportations of legal residents, asking for the nationalities of protesters is a big shift.
www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...

Chaos and confusion as the statistics arm of the Education Department is reduced to a skeletal staff of 3 Acting stats chief booted after only 15 days in the job; fate of the Nation’s Report Card unclear

"President Donald Trump promises he’ll make American schools great again. He has fired nearly everyone who might objectively measure whether he succeeds." @jillbarshay.bsky.social 's latest
hechingerreport.org/proof-points...

Office for Civil Rights Initiates Title VI Investigations into Institutions of Higher Education Office for Civil Rights Initiates Title VI Investigations into Institutions of Higher Education

The Education Department's announcement is here:

www.ed.gov/about/news/p...

And our story about Alabama, and other universities, getting rid of their race-conscious scholarships is here: hechingerreport.org/cutting-race...

Office for Civil Rights Initiates Title VI Investigations into Institutions of Higher Education Office for Civil Rights Initiates Title VI Investigations into Institutions of Higher Education

The Education Dept's latest effort to end race-conscious policies includes an investigation into scholarships at the University of Alabama -- but they cancelled theirs last year. I'm curious how universities will respond to this -- and I'm on Signal at merkolodner.04 if anyone wants to chat there.

Federal layoffs upended work to help misled student borrowers Federal layoffs that included workers at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau short-circuited work to help student loan borrowers with private loans who were victims of fraud

Students who owe money because they were misled by for-profit colleges were on the brink of getting relief -- when Trump fired the people put in charge of helping them.
hechingerreport.org/student-loan...

The latest roundup of DEI cuts across the country From liberal arts colleges to massive public flagships, institutions of all kinds are moving to comply with changing federal expectations.

Useful round-up here of all of the cuts to DEI programs and race-conscious academic centers at colleges and universities www.highereddive.com/news/roundup...

Got it -- thanks for flagging!

Looking to understand this further. Do you think this is an attack on 504 broadly or more specifically on gender dysphoria being included in 504 and therefore subject to ADA protections?

“Put Them in Trauma”: Inside a Key MAGA Leader’s Plans for a New Trump Agenda Private videos reveal Trump adviser Russ Vought’s “shadow” plans for using the military on protesters, defunding the EPA and villainizing civil servants.

Remarkable statement of intent:
“We want their funding to be shut down so that the EPA can’t do all of the rules against our energy industry because they have no bandwidth financially to do so. We want to put them in trauma.”
www.propublica.org/article/vide...

Hundreds of thousands of students with disabilities should be getting trained for work through pre-employment transition services — but aren't At a time when Americans have made clear that access to training and good jobs is a top priority, the Pre-Employment Transition Services program, intended to provide that training for students with di...

This program is supposed to help students with disabilities get into the workforce, which you would think would be a bi-partisan goal. But we found that's it's serving a tiny fraction of eligible young people -- and parents told me it's like a "secret society."

hechingerreport.org/hundreds-of-...

Florida board approves extensive gen ed overhaul The Florida Board of Governors voted to remove hundreds of classes, many touching on race and gender, from general education offerings at all 12 state universities.

Big ideological changes coming to Florida's universities, likely other states as well:
Florida State University has removed hundreds of classes from their general education curriculum, like Black Women in America, while three classes on Bible Studies remain.
www.insidehighered.com/news/governa...

UPDATE: California bill proposes Black-serving institutions grant program The latest education news updates from EdSource.

The Trump administration has vowed to get rid of all race-conscious education programs, but California is hoping to get more resources to its colleges that excel at serving Black students
edsource.org/updates/cali...

Migrant Vendors Park Carts as Their American Dreams Slip Away Enforcement was already on the rise before Trump’s inauguration. Now street sellers are avoiding any risk of getting a criminal ticket that could make them ICE targets.

Not your imagination: fewer food vendor carts are on the streets because vendors are staying home to avoid receiving NYPD tickets that could get them deported. @haidee.bsky.social reports from a very full Manhattan garage.

A dismal report card in math and reading 2024 NAEP test results document large increases in students who lack basic skills

Super clear breakdown of the NAEP results here, with a focus on the inequity:
“The rich get richer and the poor are getting shafted,” said a NAEP board member. “It’s almost criminal.”
hechingerreport.org/naep-test-20...

I’m not sure if I were to be thrown in jail based on a “you ain’t from around here” vibe warrant, that I could speedily find and furnish my birth certificate

Federal investigation into a Denver public school for having a boys-only bathroom but no girls-only bathroom on its second floor. The first of many, I imagine...
ocrcas.ed.gov/sites/defaul...

4 ways for-profit colleges could benefit from a new Trump term - The Hechinger Report Regulation may ease in some cases, but some accountability measures may remain

Here are some reasons for-profit college growth may continue under Trump: hechingerreport.org/four-ways-fo...

New data shows college enrollment is up and increased the most at for-profit colleges, driven by a spike in Black and Hispanic students (13 percent). For-profit enrollment was flat for white students. nscresearchcenter.org/current-term...

National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reveals error in fall first-year student count A methodology error resulted in an undercount of first-year students and an overcount of dual enrollees, the research center’s executive director said.

Well this is kind of big news -- freshmen enrollment didn't actually drop this fall. Final numbers will be out next week...
www.highereddive.com/news/nationa...

At large online colleges, students struggle to earn degrees Fewer than half of students at the largest nonprofit online institutions earn a degree after eight years. Is it an unfortunate reality or a cry for accountability?

New data shows terrible graduation rates for some online programs.
Fierce competition for students "can mean more spending on marketing and recruitment than on instruction and support." www.insidehighered.com/news/tech-in...

Meta Moves to End Fact-Checking Program The social networking giant will stop using third-party fact checkers and instead rely on users to add notes or corrections to posts. It is likely to please the Trump administration.

I'm concerned about confusing fact-checking and free speech. Both can exist simultaneously, and I am grateful to all the fact-checkers I have worked with who have caught my errors. In fact, one could argue that fact-checking is an essential component of free speech.
www.nytimes.com/2025/01/07/b...

Students with disabilities are spending more time in general education. Are teachers being prepared? University teacher prep programs are changing to meet the expectations of more inclusive classrooms.

Such an important issue covered here:
“When we think about students with disabilities, I want you to think about them as all of our students."
www.kosu.org/show/stateim...
#edusky

Black Student Enrollment at Harvard Law Drops by More Than Half After a Supreme Court decision ended race-based admissions, some law schools saw a decline in Black and Hispanic students entering this fall. Harvard appeared to have the steepest drop.

Harvard Law School enrolled 19 first-year Black students, or 3.4 percent of the class, the lowest number since the 1960s.
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/16/u...

Amazon Delivery Drivers at Seven Hubs Walk Out The retail giant said it expected its operations to be largely unaffected by the strike of some drivers at contracting firms Amazon uses to deliver packages.

It will be interesting to see if anyone in the incoming Trump administration comments on this, given Teamsters president Sean O'Brien's approach to the election
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/19/b...

Will filling out student aid form target undocumented parents for Trump's mass deportations? Typically, FAFSA information from students with undocumented parents isn’t shared with immigration officials. That may change under Trump.

California's financial aid application doesn't go to the federal government, easing fears of students with undocumented parents that applying for aid could result in their parents' deportation, via @mzinshteyn.bsky.social
calmatters.org/education/hi...