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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Apr 10

oops -- sorry about that!

Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Apr 7

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...

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

hechingerreport.org

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Mar 31

Ruling is here:

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

storage.courtlistener.com

Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Mar 31

"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).

storage.courtlistener.com

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Reposted by Meredith Kolodner

Georgetown CEW @georgetowncew.bsky.social · Mar 26

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

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.

bit.ly

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Mar 26

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...

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.”

www.washingtonpost.com

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Mar 14

"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...

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

hechingerreport.org

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Mar 14

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

www.ed.gov

Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Mar 14

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.

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

www.ed.gov

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Mar 4

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...

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

hechingerreport.org

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Feb 12

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...

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.

www.highereddive.com

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Feb 11

Got it -- thanks for flagging!

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Feb 11

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?

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Feb 11

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...

“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.

www.propublica.org

Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Feb 5

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-...

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...

hechingerreport.org

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 31

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...

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.

www.insidehighered.com

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 30

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...

UPDATE: California bill proposes Black-serving institutions grant program

The latest education news updates from EdSource.

edsource.org

Reposted by Meredith Kolodner

Alyssa Katz @alykatzz.bsky.social · Jan 30

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.

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.

www.thecity.nyc

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 29

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...

A dismal report card in math and reading

2024 NAEP test results document large increases in students who lack basic skills

hechingerreport.org

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Reposted by Meredith Kolodner

Dan Nguyen @dancow.bsky.social · Jan 29

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

Aura Bogado @aurabogado.bsky.social · Jan 29

A three-year old, his mother, and his grandmother were speaking Spanish while shopping in Milwaukee. They’re U.S. citizens from Puerto Rico but were taken by ICE. Once in detention, the mother was able to produce ID and birth certificates proving citizenship:

www.telemundopr.com/programas/di...

Familia puertorriqueña habría sido llevada a centro de detención en Milwaukee

Hermana de una de las detenidas alega que los arrestaron por hablar español.

www.telemundopr.com

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 28

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...

ocrcas.ed.gov

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 23

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

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

hechingerreport.org

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 23

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...

Current Term Enrollment Estimates | National Student Clearinghouse Research Center

nscresearchcenter.org

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 14

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...

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.

www.highereddive.com

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Meredith Kolodner @merkolodner.bsky.social · Jan 8

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...

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?

www.insidehighered.com

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