Chris Quintana

I sat down with the Ohio State President, Ted Carter, for a wide ranging discussion that included why the university banned chalking on sidewalks and why he doesn't feel targeted by the Trump administration even while facing federal inquires: www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...

Pres. Trump says the Smithsonian Institution is too "woke."

My colleagues + I went to several museums + interviewed visitors to assess his concerns.

Here's what we found:
www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...

@chrisquintana.bsky.social @stephenbeard.bsky.social @duanegang.bsky.social @usatoday.com

That is exactly what I mean!

A question for the academics, I am looking for folks who can speak, on-record or background, about developing a certificate program for a university as a third party. I am looking for sources on either side of this equation. DMs are open and I am @ cquintana@usatoday.com, thanks!

Liberty University is facing a second lawsuit accusing it of mishandling sexual assault cases, my latest: www.usatoday.com/story/news/e...

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...

Trump is seeking to reshape higher education. Meet the man he wants leading the charge. Trump's pick to oversee higher ed was a vice president for a company that paid $13 million to settle accusations it defrauded the student aid system.

The Trump administration is seeking to dramatically reshape higher education across the U.S. For @usatoday.com, @chrisquintana.bsky.social takes a deep dive looking at the man Trump wants leading the charge. www.usatoday.com/story/news/i...

Meet the man President Trump wants in charge of higher ed policy. He worked for Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a for-profit college trade group, and a company that paid the gov $13 million to settle accusations of gaming the financial aid system, my latest: www.usatoday.com/story/news/i...

MA judge rules 'Varsity Blues' mastermind Rick Singer can consult college hopefuls again After serving time in prison, a judge says William “Rick” Singer can consult college hopefuls again as long as he makes his past known to clients.

And USA TODAY's story from @michael-loria.bsky.social www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...

You can find the disclaimer required by the judge on the website's terms and conditions page. You can see here there's a standard pop-up on the homepage that directs people there, but again no specifics about Singer:

Singer does have a lengthy "about" section where he says he made "a mistake" and "took full responsibility" without delving into specifics as seen below:

Varsity Blues mastermind Rick Singer can advise aspiring college students, but only if he prominently displays the following disclosure on his website per a district judge. No sign of Singer or the disclosure on the home page of his new biz, ID Future Stars as of today:

Smoky Hills @pbs.org is a rural station that sits in the heart of Kansas wheat country. It's among the places that advocates fear could be hardest hit if the Senate votes to claw back $1.1 billion in federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

My latest for @usatoday.com:

A summary of responses showing a slight uptick in public confidence in higher education, with community colleges doing better than four-year institutions.

New Lumina/Gallup survey data show a slight uptick in the share of respondents who have confidence in higher education, with Republicans giving much more support to community colleges than four-year institutions. It's a rare bit of good news for the sector.

news.gallup.com/poll/692519/...

Delayed Meeting at a Powerful College Panel Stirs Suspicions in Higher Ed The Trump administration postponed a summer meeting for a panel set to vote on reapproving Columbia University’s accreditor.

Exclusive: The Trump administration’s postponement of a summer meeting for a college-accreditation panel has set off alarm bells in an obscure but powerful corner of higher education.

Back to the Future turns 40 today, which gives me a great excuse to repost the movie's take on a USA TODAY front page. We're still chasing that 3 minute mile!

Higher Education Faces Its Greatest Challenges in Decades Universities were already facing a grim future due to demographic changes. Then along came Trump.

www.governing.com/magazine/hig...

Interesting piece from Governing that synthesizes many of the biggest challenges facing higher ed, including enrollment cliff, federal funding cuts, changing perception about the value of a degree and other factors. Striking open too with the closure of Fontbonne U. in St. Louis:

Brief update, Senate version would cap the college endowment tax at 8% instead of the House's max rate of 21%. Also, only three tax tiers now, instead of four. Religious carveout remains in place, via Senate Finance Committee: www.finance.senate.gov/chairmans-ne...

I'm heading to New Orleans this week for the Investigative Reporters and Editors conference! Will also be on a panel Thursday w/ @arionne.bsky.social and @merkolodner.bsky.social talking about some of the underreported but important higher ed stories worth chasing. Let's chat if you're there!

Was not ready for the English major turn though:

Every time, via recent essay about paying off student loans fast in Biz Insider:

Treasury Weighs Rules That May End Colleges’ Tax Status Over Race Policies The US Treasury Department is considering changing rules to revoke tax-exempt status for colleges that consider race in student admissions, scholarships and other areas — potentially threatening the f...

Treasury is developing new rules that would strip the tax-exempt status of colleges that are deemed to be using race in any way, aligning with the administration's executive orders. This flew under the radar yesterday with everything going on.

U.S. Department of Education Notifies Columbia University’s Accreditor of Columbia’s Title VI Violation U.S. Department of Education Notifies Columbia University’s Accreditor of Columbia’s Title VI Violation

I will be watching to see what action Middle States takes. I am curious too if we'll see similar letters to other accreditors like the New England Commission of Higher Education, the accreditor for Harvard. Release below if of interest: www.ed.gov/about/news/p...

This action likely means more pressure on Columbia, but shows the admin trying to influence accreditors. It's a long process to strip an accreditor's federal recognition, but it would affect all the institutions it approved. Middle States' members include Penn and Princeton.

Note the language in the release "fails to meet the standards for accreditation set by the Commission" and "Columbia University no longer appears to meet the Commission’s accreditation standards." The standards are in the accreditor's court.

Accreditors can revoke a school's ability to offer financial aid, but that's usually the last step in a series of corrective actions. What's more, it's the accreditors call if a university violated the accreditor's standards, not the federal government.

Ed. Sec McMahon does not call for Middle States to pull Columbia's funding. Rather, she wants the accreditor to keep the dept. informed, "of actions taken to ensure Columbia’s compliance with accreditation standards including compliance with federal civil rights laws."

ED is pressuring Columbia's accreditor, the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, to take action against the school tied to the government's finding that it violated the rights of Jewish students. Accreditors are a key part of how universities get federal financial aid.

With a war on Harvard raging, religious colleges get big tax break in Trump spending bill Trump's spending bill, now headed to the Senate, would exempt religious colleges from a big tax increase on endowments.

Today for @usatoday.com, @chrisquintana.bsky.social and @brieannafrank.bsky.social explore the religious exemption in the big college endowment tax hike included in the White House spending bill. Will every religious institution qualify? www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...