Quick Takes

Education Secretary Arne Duncan is today giving a talk in which he will denounce most teacher education colleges for offering "mediocre" training, and call for major reforms of those programs, The Washington Post reported. Duncan will make these remarks at Teachers College of Columbia University, and his comments follow similar criticism in a recent speech at the University of Virginia. In today's talk, Duncan will say that many colleges and universities treat their teacher education programs as "cash cows," enrolling many students but not focusing on what they learn. The key to reform, Duncan will say, is linking programs directly to the ability of graduates to achieve good outcomes with students they go on to teach.

The University of Texas at Austin has abandoned a controversial plan to cut the foreign language requirement in its College of Liberal Arts from 16 to 12 credits. In an e-mail sent this week to the faculty, Randy Diehl, the dean of the college, noted that at a faculty meeting to discuss the idea, "[i]n three and a half hours of give and take, not one audience member spoke in favor of the proposal.... In view of the overwhelming negative reaction to the proposal, I have decided to withdraw it from further consideration."

The University of Nebraska Board of Regents is facing intense lobbying to limit stem cell research, now that the Obama administration has cleared the way for far more use of stem cells than was allowed by the Bush administration in federally backed studies. The Omaha World-Herald reported that Nebraska Right to Life, which endorsed five of the regents when they won their board seats, is urging them to limit research at the universities to studies that would have been permitted under the Bush policy. Scientists opposed that policy as far too restrictive.

A rejected applicant has filed a suit -- hoping for a class action -- against the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign over its now defunct "clout" admissions system of favoring candidates with political connections, the Chicago Tribune reported. The suit seeks more than $5 million in damages on behalf of all "non-clout" applicants who were rejected from 1999 to 2009. The plaintiff, who was wait-listed and then rejected, noted that the admissions materials he reviewed before applying did not indicate that any preferences would be based on political connections. University officials declined to comment, but have hired a law firm in anticipation of such suits.

The Institute for Higher Education Leadership & Policy at California State University at Sacramento released a report Wednesday, urging community college educators to make better use of data to improve the outcome of their students. The report recommends that educators look for “intermediate educational achievements that students reach along the path to degree completion,” and “academic patterns students follow including remediation, gateway courses, and credit accumulation, that help predict milestone achievement.” Among other recommendations to improve student outcomes, the report suggests that college should alter policies to “encourage more full-time enrollment” and to “encourage more students to take appropriate courses and complete courses in which they enroll.”

Saint Leo University, in Florida, has been punished by the National Collegiate Athletic Association for major violations by its cross country and swimming programs. Monday, in a public report, the Division II Committee on Infractions noted that the current and former head coaches of the men’s cross country team -- whom the NCAA did not identify but are Melissa Miller and Cyle Sage, respectively -- knowingly allowed two athletes who were ineligible to participate in meets “ride with the team, receive travel expenses and participate under names of other teammates.” The two athletes were “partial qualifiers,” and therefore could practice with the team during the 2008-9 season but had to wait an additional year until improving their grades to participate in events. According to the report, Sage “provided false information when asked about the violations” and Miller “failed to report the known violations.” Sage also coached swimming at the institution. In another violation of rules, he provided “bicycles and bicycle parts, bike helmets, running shoes, sunglasses and other apparel” to athletes who were on both his swimming and cross-country teams for their use in triathlons. The NCAA has put Saint Leo on probation for two years and placed both Miller and Sage on two-year “show cause” penalties – meaning any institution that hires them during that period must report to the NCAA how it will monitor their behavior so that future violations will not occur.

Charley Cooper, a Georgetown University sophomore whose ad for a personal assistant has attracted attention (much of it mocking) on blogs and here at Inside Higher Ed, has come forth to defend himself. Cooper told The Washington Post that he was very busy, and was just trying to get things done. While hiring an assistant may be unusual, the article noted that many Georgetown students use laundry services or other businesses that cater to their needs. Cooper said he has received a number of applications for the position and plans to start interviews soon.