Sophia Wedeen

The Promise of American Higher Education No government—regardless of which party is in power—should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue

"The university will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights. Neither Harvard nor any other private university can allow itself to be taken over by the federal government."

www.harvard.edu/president/ne...

Interactive Tool Highlights Disparities in Remodeling Spending Our latest report, Improving America’s Housing 2025, finds significant disparities in remodeling spending. What owners spend on both professional an

What homeowners spend on professional vs. DIY projects varies considerably by income, age, race, how long they’ve lived in the home, the year the home was built, etc., says @sophiawedeen.bsky.social. Our interactive tool illustrates these disparaties.

www.jchs.harvard.edu/blog/interac...

d4

strategic underpromotion

Tomorrow (March 20) at 2pm ET: Join us for a conversation about our new report on the state of the US remodeling industry with @carlosonhousing.bsky.social @sophiawedeen.bsky.social @rewiringamerica.bsky.social and others. Registration required.

www.jchs.harvard.edu/calendar/imp...

Fact check: Liberals say that Trump is like Hitler but Trump is only planning a reich that lasts 100 years.

NLIHC released today its annual report, "The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes." The report finds that the lowest-income renters in the U.S. face a shortage of 7.1 million affordable and available rental homes.

Download "The Gap:" https://nlihc.org/gap

Key insights 🧵

Trump administration plans mass firing at office that funds homelessness programs Staffing at the HUD office that pays for housing and support services across the country is slated to be cut by 84%. Advocates warn such heavy cuts could make record-high homelessness even worse.

At a time of record-high homelessness, DOGE wants to gut staff at the office that does the most to prevent it. www.npr.org/2025/02/22/g...

Data preservation and documentation is our love language ❤️

Like actually! Can someone make this?

qxg2, rxg2 forced, win with battery on f1 vs newly pinned rook

If you are interested or want to plan a data rescue event, get in touch with us. While our work has been asynchronous out of necessity, we'd love to hear about other efforts and get you hooked up with others in the community who might have suggestions for activities. #DataRescue

"... not having enough staff to process applications to allow for more housing to be built faster... At the start of your tenure as Secretary, HUD’s staffing capacity was near its 2012 levels with a dedicated workforce... So much hard-fought progress has been wiped away in less than three weeks."

"Independent audits...have repeatedly pointed to capacity gaps across HUD. This includes not having enough staff to support communities devastated by disasters, not having enough staff to meet HUD’s legal obligations under the Fair Housing Act..."

"Some of the most drastic reductions impact areas that support highly vulnerable people, including seniors, homeless veterans and families, and people with disabilities."

Warren, Murray, Gillibrand, Smith, and Schumer Demand Trump & Musk Halt Cuts to HUD Workforce, Warn that Cuts Could Jeopardize Seniors, Homeless Veterans, and HUD’s Capacity to Address the Nation’s H... The Official website of The United States Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

The Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs minority letter begins: "We are deeply alarmed and troubled by reports that you terminated hundreds of probationary employees on Friday and are planning to cut HUD's workforce by 50 percent or nearly 4,300 staff.”

www.banking.senate.gov/newsroom/min...

We just learned about this Declaration to #DefendResearch and the inclusion of public data! Thanks for linking to us. We love the level of cross-project support and communication we see now!
#DataRescue

HUD employees are bracing for what they hear will be 'drastic' staff cuts As federal layoffs mount, sources say the Trump administration plans a 50% staffing cut at the federal housing agency. The moves come amid an affordable housing shortage and record high homelessness.

More on what's happening now at HUD and what employees are being told to expect. www.npr.org/2025/02/14/g...

Many webpages are disappearing from HUD. To add to this list:
-Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing
-Violence Against Women Act
-several Fair Housing Act/housing discrimination resource pages
& many dead links. This an evolving list. Take screenshots, download attachments. Document what's missing.

Renters’ Affordability Challenges Worsened Last Year The number of cost-burdened renter households hit yet another record high last year, according to the most recent data from the American Community Sur

The number of cost-burdened renters has hit yet another record high, and affordability has worsened up and down the income scale, leaving low-income households with less than ever before. @airbrycki.bsky.social @aherm.bsky.social @sophiawedeen.bsky.social.

www.jchs.harvard.edu/blog/renters...

Oh yes, Hikaru doing puzzles survival with Levy cracks me up (an example of when GM analysis gets so advanced/convoluted that it goes full-circle and becomes interesting again)

Yes exactly, the sheer number needs to be called out. Here Anish seems to be arguing in favor of quality AND quantity which I can respect 😂

“You have a maze of arrows.” — Anish Giri finally addressing chess’s arrow-drawing problem is a new high point in @chess.com commentary

Opinion | Donate This Holiday Season: Seniors Need Your Help Habitat for Humanity helps older people who can’t afford to make their homes safe and workable as they age.

The housing stock is aging and even minor modifications can be daunting and expensive, especially when nearly a third of seniors are cost burdened, meaning more than 30 percent of their income is eaten up by housing costs. @nytimes.com

www.nytimes.com/2024/12/03/o...

Coverage of the chess world championship is truly second to none