Biden to Extend Student Loan Repayment 3 More Months

The Biden administration is set to extend the moratorium on repayment of student loans until August 31. The payments were scheduled to resume May 1 after the moratorium went into effect early in the pandemic when the economy contracted sharply, and many Americans lost their jobs. Now, some lawmakers say the extensions are needed because…

Ukrainian Students Overseas Fret About Relatives, the Future

At a boarding school in the Rocky Mountains, a group of Eastern European teenagers made crepes to raise money for the millions of people whose lives have been uprooted by Russia’s war on Ukraine. The students, studying at a pine-dotted campus in northern New Mexico, worry from a world away about their relatives in the…

Campus Ministries Soothe, Rally Students Shaken Over Ukraine

Entering Yale University’s St. Thomas More Catholic Chapel, Oksana Goroshchuk spotted sunflowers adorning a candlelit altar and thought of the fields full of her country’s national blossom near her grandmother’s home in Ukraine. A mezzo-soprano launched into a traditional folk tune that Goroshchuk used to sing growing up, and the postdoctoral medical researcher broke down…

California Lawmakers Vote to Increase UC Berkeley Enrollment

The California Legislature voted unanimously Monday to overturn a recent court ruling that would have forced one of the nation’s most prestigious universities to turn away thousands of students from its incoming freshman class. If signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom, the bill will ensure that about 2,600 freshmen admissions slots for this that…

Advocates Urge Protected Status for Ukrainians in US 

As Russian troops march through Ukraine, Ukrainians in the U.S. are anxious about their future and that of their homeland. Roman Korol, a graduate student at California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, is concerned for his family’s safety here in the U.S. when his visa expires and his extended family in Ukraine. “They’re all in…

Battles Erupt Over Banning LGBTQ Topics From US Classrooms

Does a teacher’s ability to mention sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom pose a threat to primary school students or further a well-rounded, inclusive educational experience? Americans are confronting the question as initiatives advance in several states that would muzzle public school teachers on LGBTQ-related topics. In Florida, a state legislative panel recently…

From Campus to Congress, Colleges Urged to End Legacy Boost

America’s elite colleges are facing growing calls to end the decades-old tradition of giving an admissions boost to the children of alumni — a practice that critics say is rooted in racism and bestows an unfair advantage to students who need it least. Fueled by the national reckoning with racial injustice, opponents say they are…

Police Arrest Man in Colorado Over Alleged Threats to UCLA 

A man who allegedly threatened the University of California, Los Angeles, and detailed potential violence against the prominent university over hundreds of pages has been taken into custody in Colorado following a standoff Tuesday.  The man — identified as Matthew Christopher Harris, 31 — was taken into custody Tuesday morning and is being held in…

Several Black Colleges Receive Bomb Threats for Second Day

Several historically Black colleges and universities, known as HBCUs, received a second round of bomb threats Tuesday following similar threats on Monday. Among those receiving threats Tuesday were Howard University and the University of the District of Columbia in Washington; Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, Florida; Kentucky State University in Frankfort, Kentucky; Fort Valley State…

Bomb Threats Made to Historically Black Schools Across US 

At least a half-dozen historically Black universities in five states and the District of Columbia were responding to bomb threats Monday, with many of them locking down their campuses for a time.  In warnings to students, school officials say some of the threats were directed at academic buildings.  The FBI “is aware of bomb threats…

US Supreme Court to Hear Challenges to Race-Based College Admissions 

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said it will hear two cases that could determine if race can be used as a factor for college admission.  The cases, brought by the conservative group Students for Fair Admissions, targets Harvard, the country’s oldest private school, and the University of North Carolina, one of the nation’s oldest…

Afghan Students in the US Face Uncertain Future

Afghan students studying at universities in the U.S. through scholarship programs face a more uncertain future since the Taliban took over and many say they cannot return to their home country because of concerns for their safety.   More than 100 Afghan students came to the United States through the Fulbright program last academic year,…

Arkansas Professor Pleads Guilty to Lying About China Patents

A University of Arkansas professor pleaded guilty Friday to lying to the FBI about patents he had for inventions in mainland China. Simon Saw-Teong Ang pleaded guilty in federal court in Fayetteville, Arkansas, to one count from a 58-count federal indictment. Prosecutors say that 24 patents bearing Ang’s name were filed with the Beijing government…

Biden Admin Unveils Changes to Attract Foreign STEM Students

The Biden administration on Friday announced policy changes to attract international students specializing in science, technology, engineering and math — part of the broader effort to make the U.S. economy more competitive. The State Department will let eligible visiting students in those fields, known as STEM, complete up to 36 months of academic training, according…

US Drops Case Against MIT Professor Accused of Ties to China

The Justice Department dropped charges Thursday against a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor accused of concealing ties to the Chinese government, a further setback to a federal initiative that was set up to prevent economic espionage and theft by Beijing of trade secrets and academic research. The department revealed its decision in the case against…

South African University Students Fight COVID Vaccine Mandates

South African university students are fighting mandates that require they be vaccinated against COVID-19 before returning to the classroom on February 14. Even students who are vaccinated, and want others to get inoculated, are against the policy and the students’ union is threatening protests across the country. Linda Givetash reports from Johannesburg. Camera – Zaheer…

Dartmouth Offers ‘Need Blind’ Admissions to Foreign Students

Dartmouth College, the Ivy League university in New Hampshire, has announced that it will admit international students through a “need blind” process, meaning that their ability to pay tuition will not dictate their admission. Dartmouth already had a policy of “need blind” admissions for U.S. applicants, but now foreign students will be considered for admission…

Navient Resolves US State Probes Into Its Student Loan Practices

Navient Corp said Thursday it agreed to pay $145 million to settle multistate litigation into its student loan practices. The company also said it will cancel loan balances for about 66,000 borrowers with loans that were largely made between 2002 and 2010 and later went into default. Navient said that as part of the settlement,…

Dartmouth to Offer ‘Need Blind’ Admissions to Foreign Students

In an attempt to attract more foreign students, Dartmouth College in New Hampshire says it will admit international students regardless of their ability to pay tuition. International students will be admitted through a “need blind” process used for U.S. students. The college charges about $80,000 per year for tuition and accommodation. “Talent is spread all…

Taking a Step Back: US Colleges Returning to Online Classes

With COVID-19 cases surging just as students are about to return from winter break, dozens of U.S. colleges are moving classes online again for at least the first week or so of the semester — and some warn it could stretch longer if the wave of infection doesn’t subside soon. Harvard is moving classes online…

Biden Extends Pause on Student Loan Repayments 90 Days

President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that his administration will extend the pause on student loan repayment in the United States until May 1, 2022, in response to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.  According to a statement from the president released by the White House, pausing loan repayments is part of the country’s economic recovery. …

Despite Bonanza, Aid Trickles Slowly to US Homeless Students

Frank Hardy, 18, has been homeless for the past eight years, moving in and out of shelters with his mom, or staying with his sister’s family while his mom has been in jail. As part of an economic stimulus package to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Congress voted in March to fast-track $800 million…

US Rhodes Scholars for 2022 Includes More Women, Immigrants

The class of U.S. Rhodes scholars for 2022 includes the largest number of women ever selected for the scholarship in one year, the Rhodes Trust announced Sunday.  Of the 32 students chosen to study at the University of Oxford in England, 22 are women, the office of the American secretary of the trust said in…

Pandemic Dents Turnout at Brazil University Entrance Exams

Turnout for Brazil’s standardized university admission exam on Sunday appeared to be the lowest in 15 years, in large part reflecting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the nation’s education, according to experts. Just over 3 million students signed up to take the annual exam, down 44% from last year’s registration and the lowest…

Chinese Students in US Reflect on COVID Chaos

Ryan Wang was among hundreds of thousands of Chinese students at U.S. colleges or universities who struggled over whether to return home to China or remain in the United States when the COVID-19 pandemic surged in the spring of 2020. “When the pandemic started in China , I felt lucky I was already back…

 US Colleges, Universities See Sharp Losses During Pandemic

The number of students studying at U.S. colleges and universities sharply declined for the school year that started in September 2020. Experts attribute the decline to the COVID-19 pandemic.   A survey of almost 3,000 institutions of higher education in the U.S. showed a 15% decrease in the number of international students attending the 2020-2021 school year.   The number of new student enrollments was…