The Markup—Sept. 11, 2026

Hello and welcome to The Markup, Inside Higher Ed’s weekly roundup of all things higher ed policy. I’m your host, Katherine, the news editor here.

Thursday marked one year since conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was killed at Utah Valley University. Classes at UVU were canceled as Kirk’s group, Turning Point USA, hosted a memorial event Thursday night. Kirk’s death sent shock waves through the country, and some faculty and students who criticized the man found themselves facing sanctions. 

A year later, many of those faculty members have taken their universities to court and reached monetary settlements. Meanwhile, Turning Point saw a surge of interest after Kirk’s death but faces “a confluence of challenges,” Turning Point spokesman Andrew Kolvet said in a statement.

In Washington, D.C., we’re awaiting a court ruling on a lawsuit challenging the new visa limits for international students, which are set to take effect Tuesday. By the time you read this, the could be on hold, at least temporarily. The federal judge overseeing the case was skeptical of the government’s arguments at a hearing last week, the Boston Globe reported.

But first, let’s review some key takeaways from the week.  

1. Pressure Builds on Race-Based Scholarships. The Education Department took another step in its campaign to end race-based programs and activities, including scholarships, reaching a resolution agreement with the University of Central Arkansas that an outside advocacy group called “one of our clearest” victories.

ED investigators didn’t pinpoint a specific finding as part of the civil rights investigation into UCA, but they did identify concerns that the university administers scholarships with sex- or race-based preferences “that discriminate against students based on sex and/or race.” Now the university will have to review all of its programs and outside partnerships that have a race or sex preference and report back to OCR on whether it plans to end them. If the university wants to keep a program, it will have to provide a legal justification.

2. Trump Research Security Push Could Ensnare Other Academic Programs. Last month, the Defense Department told 30 universities to make sure their foreign partnerships comply with federal rules, including a ban on research collaborations with 130 institutions in China, Russia and Iran. Colleges were told to respond to the directive by Aug. 31. All did so, and I reached out to all 30 to see what they said. 

Only nine universities got back to me, but it’s apparent from those responses that the DOD aims to restrict partnerships beyond research, and that universities will likely move cautiously to avoid risking their federal funding. For instance, the agency called out dual-degree programs that some universities offer with Chinese institutions. Some universities are ending study abroad and “academic exchange programs.”

3. DOJ Campaign over In-State Tuition for Undocumented Students Reaches Milestone. Just this morning, the Department of Justice filed its final batch of lawsuits against states that allow undocumented students to pay the in-state tuition rate. The campaign kicked off last summer when the DOJ sued Texas and the agency has since sued 23 other states and the District of Columbia. 

How exactly this legal campaign will end is unclear, but it’s likely the Supreme Court will eventually have to weigh in. Several states quickly capitulated and judges are reaching different conclusions on whether the tuition laws violate a federal statute that prevents states from giving noncitizens postsecondary education benefits that other U.S. citizens aren’t eligible for. Before Trump took office, these tuition policies received bipartisan support and spanned red and blue states, but the DOJ campaign shows how quickly the dynamics can change.

Up Ahead

• The House Education and Workforce Committee will hold a hearing Wednesday on international student-athletes. 
• Comments on the Trump administration’s proposed accreditation overhaul are due Sept. 21. Here’s what you need to know about the changes.
• And you have until Sept. 23 to comment on the Education Department's proposal that would give the Secretary more latitude to cancel grants, among other changes.
• NACIQI, the accreditation advisory committee, will meet Sept 23–24. The department’s recommendation to deny recognition to the American Bar Association’s accreditation council tops the agenda.

That’s it for Week 85 of the second Trump administration. As always, if news breaks today or over the weekend, you can find the latest at InsideHigherEd.com. In the meantime, I’ll be traveling back in time at the Maryland Renaissance Fair. And you can always send questions or comments to me at katherine.knott@insidehighered.com.

Just the Headlines

• How Some Colleges Responded to DOD’s Foreign Partnerships Order
• Architect of Ohio Higher Ed Overhaul Calls Shared Governance ‘Garbage’
• Trump Admin. Says UC Berkeley Law, Duke Med School Discriminated in Admissions
• ABA Accreditation Council Repeals Diversity Standard
• Democrats Condemn NIH-DOD Research Agreement
• Central Arkansas Resolves Race-Based Scholarships Investigation

Did someone forward you this email and you want to receive it in your inbox? Sign up to be an Insider now and you’ll get The Markup every Friday as well as access to all our subscriber-only news. Find out more here.