Education Department unveils guidance to make switching accreditors easier

The new process could result in colleges changing accrediting agencies with little review into whether they’re trying to evade oversight, one expert said. 

By Natalie Schwartz • May 2, 2025

Duke University offers buyouts and signals future layoffs as federal cuts hit

Policy changes under the Trump administration could amount to hundreds of millions of dollars in funding losses for the institution.

By Ben Unglesbee • May 1, 2025

Senate education panel postpones vote on polarizing antisemitism definition

The bill would require the U.S. Department of Education to use a controversial definition that critics say would undermine free speech. 

By Natalie Schwartz • May 1, 2025

House education committee advances sweeping higher ed bill

Republicans say the plan would save $330 billion and spur institutions to lower costs, but Democrats argue it would create barriers to college. 

By Natalie Schwartz • April 29, 2025

Johns Hopkins University self-funds some research in wake of federal cuts

Faced with grant delays and terminations, the university has created two new programs, partly funded through earnings on its endowment.

By Ben Unglesbee • Updated April 30, 2025

‘A complete takeover’: Indiana lawmakers pass last-minute college governance overhaul

A proposed state budget would, in part, create post-tenure reviews at public colleges and give the governor full control of Indiana University's board.

By Laura Spitalniak • April 29, 2025

University of Pennsylvania violated Title IX, Education Department charges

The agency has been threatening education institutions with the loss of federal funding if they allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports. 

By Natalie Schwartz • April 28, 2025

Federal agency reportedly texts survey to professors asking if they’re Jewish or Israeli

An administrative judge for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission criticized the move as a “complete overreach.”

By Ryan Golden • April 25, 2025

White House declares goal to reach 1M new apprentices per year

President Donald Trump castigated prior investment in higher ed, arguing many programs don't have necessary incentives “to meet workforce training needs.”

By Kathryn Moody • April 25, 2025

Michigan promotes college access and skills training for men

The education initiative supports Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s goal to increase the percentage of Michiganders with a degree or certificate to 60% by 2030.

By Carolyn Crist • April 25, 2025

Federal judges deal major blow to Education Department’s anti-DEI guidance

The agency didn’t follow the proper procedures when it issued sweeping guidance threatening federal funding in February, one court ruled. 

By Natalie Schwartz • April 24, 2025

‘The gatekeepers’: Trump’s action on accreditation sparks concerns over government intrusion

The president signed a directive seeking to punish accreditors for diversity criteria while easing the path for new quality-assurance bodies.

By Ben Unglesbee • April 24, 2025

Columbia University vows to remove any future encampments

The Ivy League institution also threatened student protesters with arrest amid reports that demonstrators were planning more encampments. 

By Natalie Schwartz , Laura Spitalniak • April 24, 2025

NIH prohibits new grant awards to colleges with DEI initiatives

Organizations will have to certify that they don’t have diversity programs that violate federal antidiscrimination laws and that they aren’t boycotting Israel. 

By Natalie Schwartz • April 23, 2025

Federal cuts are putting university finances at risk, S&P says

While Trump administration policies are pressuring major institutions, many of them have the resources to withstand disruption for now.

By Ben Unglesbee • April 22, 2025

Harvard University sues Trump administration over federal funding threats

The Ivy League institution’s scathing lawsuit accuses the federal government of threatening research “that has nothing at all to do with antisemitism.”

By Laura Spitalniak • April 21, 2025

133 foreign students get back their legal status — for now

A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order in the case, one of many contesting the Trump administration’s crackdown on international students. 

By Natalie Schwartz • April 21, 2025

Minnesota college leaders eye tuition hikes as costs rise and state funding flatlines

Most are weighing an increase of 8%, but one Minnesota State official said even that would not bridge the public system's anticipated budget gap.

By Ben Unglesbee • April 18, 2025

Federal judge freezes Energy Department’s 15% cap on indirect costs

Colleges would "sustain immediate and irreparable injury" if the policy were allowed to continue during litigation, the judge ruled Wednesday.

By Laura Spitalniak • April 17, 2025

Will Harvard lose its ability to enroll foreign students?

Federal officials have ratcheted up the pressure on the Ivy League college since its leadership declined to meet an unprecedented list of ultimatums.

By Laura Spitalniak • April 17, 2025

Trump administration freezes $2.2B in Harvard University grants after demands refused

The move came shortly after the Ivy League institution’s president said it wouldn’t comply with a series of “unprecedented” mandates. 

By Natalie Schwartz • April 15, 2025

Harvard University won’t yield to Trump administration’s demands

Alan Garber, the Ivy League institution’s president, said the university wouldn’t forfeit its “independence or relinquish its constitutional rights.”

By Natalie Schwartz • April 14, 2025

Colleges sue over Energy Department’s new 15% cap on indirect research costs

The policy would "devastate scientific research,” according to the plaintiffs, which include the American Council on Education and Brown University. 

By Natalie Schwartz • April 14, 2025

What are colleges’ legal options when threatened with federal funding cuts?

Higher education experts said colleges could work together or lean on their associations if they take up a legal fight against the Trump administration. 

By Lilah Burke • April 14, 2025

Bills in Congress detail path to closing the Education Department

More attention in Congress is being directed toward the federal agency’s future as President Donald Trump calls for its closure.

By Kara Arundel • April 14, 2025