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Universities Urged To Closely Vet Former Trump Appointees Before Hiring Them

Universities Urged To Closely Vet Former Trump Appointees Before Hiring Them

Reprinted with permission from Alternet

Political appointees have a long history of moving into higher education after leaving White House administrations. However, universities are being urged to take extra steps to thoroughly vet former Trump administration officials before offering them future employment.

According to The Washington Post, faculty members and students at a number of universities across the United States believe collegiate institutions should "should apply more scrutiny to former Trump officials looking to make similar transitions."

The first wave of criticism came back in May when former Trump official Richard Grenell was granted a one-year fellowship by Carnegie Mellon University. An open letter was written to the university's administrators challenged the decision arguing that "a well-documented record of sexism and support for racist political movements." The criticism leveled at Grenell escalated in November when he publicly supported President Donald Trump's attempt to undermine the outcome of the presidential election.

At the time, Carnegie Mellon administrators defended its decision to hire Grenell but swiftly established committees to review Grenell's appointment and the university's policies in place for hiring. Jonathan Aldrich, a CMU professor and member of the committee put in place to review Grenell's hiring, offered an opinion from both perspectives.

He noted the difficulties that may arise in trying to vet potential hires in light of possible political disagreements. He also questioned whether or not political views would be held to the same standard as behavior and ethics.

"They're going to have to do the hard job of figuring out, even if we disagree with this person's politics, are our issues about politics, or are they about behavior?" Aldrich said, adding, "And maybe if there's serious doubt, we should give the benefit of the doubt to the person."

But despite the damaging impact of Trump's attempted coup, Robert Shibley, executive director of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, argues that attempts to vet former Trump appointees before hiring them to work on college campuses could be akin to "a well with no bottom."

"I think it's likely to lead for a tit-for-tat campaign that's going to lead campuses basically scrambling to find somebody, anybody, who can talk interestingly about an issue without being subject to a de-platform campaign," he said.

Debt-Free College: The New Democratic Mantra

Debt-Free College: The New Democratic Mantra

By Katy Murphy, San Jose Mercury News (TNS)

SAN FRANCISCO — The aspiring app developers and entrepreneurs attending the new Make School in San Francisco don’t take out loans to cover tuition.

There is no tuition — at least up front.

Students pay 25 percent of their salaries back to the school in their first two years in the workforce, as well as internship earnings. If they don’t find a job in the tech field — or if their startup fizzles — the school gets nothing.

The two-year Make School, a highly selective startup preparing students to enter the lucrative tech sector, is hardly a typical American college. But its model, billed as “debt-free education,” reflects the collective national angst over student loans and college affordability.

It’s been decades since California abandoned its famed tuition-free promise, but as tuition nationwide spirals upward, stressing middle-income and poor families alike, “debt-free college” has suddenly gone from nostalgic fantasy to political sound bite.

“It’s moving as quickly as any recent issue that I can think of,” said Reid Setzer, policy and legislative affairs analyst for Young Invincibles, a research and advocacy group for millennials based in Washington, D.C.

The issue has crystallized as a central one in the Democratic presidential race, with Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley all calling for the federal government to spend hundreds of billions of dollars over the next decade to make college affordable.

In January, President Barack Obama used his State of the Union address to unveil a plan for free community college, prompting lawmakers in nearly a dozen states to introduce legislation to that effect. In April, a group of congressional Democrats, including influential Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, went further. They introduced twin resolutions to make all public universities — not just two-year colleges — debt-free.

By August, Clinton had released her own higher-education affordability plan, complete with a $350 billion price tag.

Democrats embraced “debt-free college” after getting trounced in 2014 midterm elections and seeing how well the issue resonated with voters, political analysts say. A poll by the Progressive Change Institute in Washington, D.C., found that nearly half of Democratic voters who skipped that election “definitely” would have gone to the polls if college affordability was at stake. Out of dozens of progressive causes that might have motivated those voters, “debt-free college at all public universities” rose to the top of the list, the poll found.

The unique deal at the Make School appeals to students like Leslie Kim, 27, of San Francisco, who said she would not have gone back to school if she had to borrow to do it. Taking out loans felt like too much of a risk.

“I didn’t want to incur any debt,” she said.

And it’s no wonder: The debt burden for the average bachelor’s degree recipient rose at more than twice the pace of inflation from 2004 to 2014 — to nearly $29,000, according to a new report from the Oakland-based Institute for College Access & Success.

Under Clinton’s proposal, families would pay what they could afford for tuition, but wouldn’t have to take out a loan to cover tuition and fees. Sanders’ plan would “eliminate undergraduate tuition” at public universities, with the federal government picking up two-thirds of the tab. O’Malley’s proposal would expand Pell Grants and call on states to freeze tuition. All the Democratic candidates have also proposed allowing borrowers to refinance their loans at lower interest rates.

The GOP candidates have been noticeably silent on the subject.

“I think Republicans will get to this issue, but they’re not there yet,” said Terry Hartle, senior vice president of the American Council on Education, which represents college presidents at some 1,700 institutions nationwide.

Ashu Desai, the 23-year-old co-founder of Make School, said widespread concerns about student debt and abuses in the for-profit college sector influenced his decision not to charge tuition up front. Instead, the school charges a percentage of graduates’ wages — or, alternatively, an investment in their startup — instead of a flat fee.

“If you have $100,000, $200,000 in loans,” he said, “you’re not going to be an entrepreneur.”

But one expert took issue with Make School’s claim that it offers a “debt-free education,” given that the average graduate is expected to eventually pay a total of $80,000.

“That’s exactly what a loan is,” said Sandy Baum, who has co-authored the College Board’s annual report on college-pricing trends and who has advised Hillary Clinton’s campaign. “I think that anything that disguises debt as something else is worrisome.”

Several Make School students interviewed for this story said they think the delayed payment ensures the school will give them the kind of training and mentoring they need to succeed. The first class of 32 students, most in their late teens and early 20s, will spend their two years attending lectures, interning at local companies and working on their own projects.

“I think it’s a really good model,” said Ryan Kyungheui Kim, 23, who lived in Korea, India, Idaho and Los Angeles before moving to San Francisco. “The school needs to make sure the students are doing fine so they get a good job.”

Debt-free college means different things to different people, Hartle said, but politically it has become a metaphor for college affordability. As time goes by, he added, policymakers will need to be more specific: Which students will benefit from the plans? Will private institutions be included? What strings will be attached to the federal money? And where will all the money come from?

“Talking about paying for something that could be this expensive is a real buzz kill,” Hartle said. “The cost of these programs could be frightfully expensive.”
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DEBT-FREE COLLEGE
Highlights of proposals from the three Democratic presidential candidates:

Hillary Clinton’s plan: Families would make “a realistic contribution” to tuition, but would not have to take out a loan to cover tuition and fees at public universities. The plan would also lower student loan interest rates, allow students to refinance, expand GI benefits for veterans and give federal grants to states that promise students a “no-loan guarantee.”

Cost: $350 billion over 10 years

Bernie Sanders’ plan: Would “eliminate undergraduate tuition” at public universities, with the federal government picking up two-thirds of the tab. Would expand work-study programs, set interest rates for undergraduates at 2.3 percent and allow borrowers to refinance.

Cost: $750 billion over 10 years

Martin O’Malley’s plan: Would set a “national goal” for students to graduate from any public university, debt free, encouraging states to freeze tuition. Would expand federal Pell Grants to help students with non-tuition expenses and allow borrowers to refinance.

Cost: $400 billion over 10 years

Photo: Leslie Kim, 27, originally from the Washington, D.C., area, works on computer coding at Make School, a new two-year “college replacement” program for aspiring app developers and entrepreneurs on Oct. 26, 2015, in San Francisco. Students pay nothing up front for their education, but agree to pay a percentage of their salary for the first two years after graduating. (D. Ross Cameron/Bay Area News Group/TNS)

White House Launches New Online Tool To Help Families Make Informed Decisions On College

White House Launches New Online Tool To Help Families Make Informed Decisions On College

By Larry Gordon, Los Angeles Times (TNS)

The Obama administration on Saturday unveiled a new online search tool that is aimed at helping potential college students and their families learn much more about schools, including the financial aid they offer and how much their graduates earn later in life.

Although the new “College Scorecard” will allow consumers to compare various colleges on a variety of factors, it will not provide any ratings or rankings on the order of, for example, U.S. News & World Report.

President Barack Obama said he proposed a ratings system two years ago but, after much study and controversy, his administration abandoned the idea and turned instead to improving existing federal databases for the public.

Department of Education officials said the administration backed away from a ratings system because it proved too complicated to develop and they were afraid it might confuse consumers.

Many colleges and higher-education groups had opposed a ratings system, fearing it would unfairly treat their schools or punish some for enrolling low-income students and less-prepared students, who might be less likely to graduate or more likely to default on loans.

The new scorecard can be accessed at collegecost.ed.gov.

The scorecard appears to be easier for families to search and navigate than the previous federal College Navigator and College Scorecard, and improved graphics provide for better visual comparisons of schools.

The information is expanded as well, including data about net pricing for low-income and high-income students, graduation rates, ethnic diversity, loan defaults and former students’ median incomes 10 years after starting college.

On Saturday the president said the tool would help families “navigate the complicated college process and make informed decisions.”

“The status quo serves some colleges and the companies that rank them just fine. But it doesn’t always serve our students well _ and that doesn’t serve any of us well,” Obama said. “There are colleges dedicated to helping students of all backgrounds learn without saddling them with debt. We should hold everybody to that standard. Our economic future depends on it.”

The goal, he said, is “to help everybody who’s willing to work for a higher education search for and select a college that fits their goals.”

The scorecard still faced some criticism. The American Council on Education, which represents colleges and universities, said the statistics should have provided outcomes for students of various majors, such as engineering and philosophy, rather than lumping everyone together.

The organization also noted that the 10-years-later earnings figures are based on those who took out federal loans and might not reflect the true picture. White House officials say the earnings of borrowers are about the same as everyone else’s.

Photo: If students can’t pay for college, these classrooms will be empty. Kevin Creamer/Flickr

Texas House Passes Measure To Allow Concealed Handguns On College Campuses

Texas House Passes Measure To Allow Concealed Handguns On College Campuses

By Anna M. Tinsley, Fort Worth Star-Telegram (TNS)

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas moved closer to allowing concealed handguns in classrooms and other areas on public and private college campuses late Tuesday night, as House members gave tentative approval just minutes before the midnight deadline.

An hourslong debate over Senate Bill 11, known as “campus carry,” abruptly wrapped up as the deadline to pass Senate bills out of the lower chamber loomed and a vote was suddenly called on what some called a “watered down” measure.

House members approved the measure on a 101-47 vote after more than 100 amendments were suddenly dropped.

“Finally our students will be protected, our professors will be protected and law-abiding citizens will be protected,” state Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, said after the vote.

The life or death of this measure, and dozens of other bills, had been up in the air late in the evening, slowed down earlier in the day by procedural moves such as “chubbing” — lengthy discussions about minute points on minor bills that otherwise would pass easily and without discussion.

Members of the House of Representatives faced a midnight deadline Tuesday to give tentative approval to Senate bills that touched on topics such as whether certain health insurance plans should be banned from covering abortions and whether faith-based welfare organizations should be able to stop same-sex couples from adopting children.

With a number of GOP priorities on the calendar, state Rep. Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, earlier in the day unsuccessfully tried to speed up the process by proposing moving about 40 bills to another day.

Democrats, including state Reps. Nicole Collier and Ramon Romero Jr. of Fort Worth and Chris Turner of Arlington, blocked that move.

“It’s frustrating for people who have bills up or have something they want to pass,” said state Rep. Craig Goldman, R-Fort Worth.

Eventually the chubbing slowed down, after a Democratic-proposed bill was killed, and lawmakers began wading through dozens of proposals including giving Texas students the ability to bring sunscreen to school and moving forward with a study regarding homeless veterans.

One bill lawmakers spent hours debating as the sun faded was a comprehensive ethics reform bill, designated early in the session a priority by Gov. Greg Abbott. The goal, lawmakers said, was to shine sunlight on the government. The House gave tentative approval to the measure 96-48.

Some had hoped to delay Senate Bill 11, which passed the Senate in March, that would allow concealed handguns onto most areas of public universities in the state.

The bill, which Collier, Romero and Turner voted against, must still gain final approval from the House. And the Senate must sign off on changes, or take the bill to a conference committee, before it can go to Abbott.

This campus carry measure comes 20 years after lawmakers first made it legal for Texans to carry concealed handguns in most places statewide.

Members began debating the issue around 9:30 p.m., but more than 100 amendments were filed by lawmakers hoping to make adjustments to the measure.

State Rep. Allen Fletcher, R-Tomball, carried the bill in the House and said campus carry was something college students need.

“We should not be disarming them … because they walk into a classroom,” he said, adding that they must be law abiding citizens and 21-years-old or older to get a concealed handgun license in the first place.

Amendments were approved requiring private universities to implement campus carry and to allow each university to determine where concealed handguns may be carried.

“A watered down useless campus carry bill … what is this the 83rd session again?” state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford, tweeted out after the vote.

Supporters say the campus carry bill — which has been unsuccessfully proposed in past legislative sessions — is needed to let teachers and students defend themselves, particularly in the wake of tragedies such as the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting by a gunman that killed 32 people.

“It allows innocent people to defend themselves on campus,” Capriglione said. “There are definitely people who don’t want it.

“But it’s not unreasonable to expect 21-year-olds to handle it reasonably and responsibly.”

Officials at public colleges say the plan could cost nearly $50 million in coming years — an expense that could be passed to students. The cost is high, they say, because additional officers, training, storage facilities and security technology would be needed if the proposal becomes law.

“I think it’s a horrible idea,” Romero of Fort Worth said. “I think the lack of support from student groups and professors and universities has been overwhelming.”

Many “don’t see the need for this type of legislation,” he said. “It’s just the completion of a campaign promise … something on some folks’ wish lists.”

Projections from the University of Texas System, which includes the University of Texas at Arlington, show that implementing the bill could cost $39 million over six years, with most of that cost at the health institutions, according to paperwork submitted to the Legislature.

Estimates from the University of North Texas System, which includes the UNT Health Science Center at Fort Worth, include $1 million in upfront costs and ongoing expenses of $250,000, state records show.

UT System Chancellor William McRaven has said he worries that concealed handguns will make campuses less safe because stress and guns are a bad mix. In a letter to lawmakers, he expressed concern about accidental shootings and suicides, as well as the fear that concealed handguns “will make campus a less safe place.”

Texas A&M System Chancellor John Sharp also sent a letter to lawmakers, saying he has “complete trust and faith” in his students and professors, which is why Texas A&M “will not have a position on this issue and will not oppose campus carry.”

UNT System Chancellor Lee Jackson noted that the bill might negatively affect a “younger than average population, some living away from home for the first time.”

Law officers also are divided.

Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo has said “it’s a bad idea.” McLennan County Sheriff Parnell has said this bill gives students and professors a chance to protect themselves because “police can’t be everywhere at once.”

Expanding gun rights in Texas has been controversial and headline gathering long before the first day of this year’s Legislative Session.

Emotions run high on this issue, growing in recent years. Supporters of the movement have taken to the streets _ particularly in Tarrant County — with semiautomatic rifles and black powder pistols, which are legal to openly carry in Texas, hoping to draw attention to their cause.

Earlier this session, Kory Watkins, a leader of Tarrant County Open Carry, posted online a video some say threatened the safety of lawmakers who don’t support making it legal for Texans to openly carry their handguns.

That followed a dust-up earlier this session between local open-carry supporters and at least one lawmaker. State Rep. Poncho Nevarez, D-Eagle Pass, indicated he doesn’t support open carry, and his staff asked Open Carry Tarrant County members to leave his office. There was an aggressive conversation; soon after that the House approved a measure making it easier for members to have panic buttons put in their offices.

Abbott has long said he would sign campus carry and open carry — a proposal to let licensed Texans openly carry handguns statewide — into law. Open carry passed the Senate last week and returns to the House this week for approval of changes made to the bill.

Photo: The University of Texas at Austin might be a tobacco-free campus, but if a new law is passed by the state legislature, it won’t be a gun-free one. ctj71081 via Flickr