Higher Education Quick Takes

Quick Takes

University of Phoenix Closing 115 Locations
October 17, 2012

The Apollo Group on Tuesday announced that it was closing 90 of the University of Phoenix's satellite learning centers and 25 of its campuses, leaving 112 remaining locations. The closures are part of a "re-engineering initiative" that the company said will help the bottom line by 2014. About 13,000 students, or 4 percent of those pursuing degrees at Phoenix, will be affected by the shuttering of locations. But those students will continue to be served online and at alternative sites, according to the company.

The news accompanied the release of Apollo's disappointing fourth-quarter earnings, with a 10 percent decline in annual revenue and a 15 percent dip in enrollment at Phoenix. The company also announced the elimination of 800 jobs, but not faculty positions. Phoenix last week introduced a tuition freeze for current and incoming students.

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Academic Minute: Ethnicity and Genetic History
October 17, 2012

In today’s Academic Minute, Harry Ostrer of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University explains how genetic analysis is shedding light on the global history of entire peoples. Learn more about the Academic Minute here.

 

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Christian College President Under Review Over Relationship
October 17, 2012

Dinesh D'Souza, president of the King's College, the evangelical Christian college in the Empire State Building, is under review by the college's board of trustees after a Christian magazine reported that he spent the night at a book signing event with a woman he referred to as his "fiancée" -- not his wife of 20 years. World magazine reported that D'Souza and the woman shared a hotel room; at the time, he hadn't yet filed for divorce from his wife. D'Souza later told the magazine, in a text message, that he'd broken off the engagement.

In a statement, the college's board of trustees said it had been aware of some of the trouble in D'Souza's marriage, but not of all of the details, and when the board learned of the magazine's report, members immediately met with D'Souza in a special session. The board is still investigating the situation and will have a statement soon, college spokesman Matthias Clock told Inside Higher Ed.

"We take seriously our charge to teach a compelling worldview rooted in the Bible and expect all of our leaders to model Christian character and integrity in their public and private lives," the board said in its statement.

D'Souza, the author of The Roots of Obama's Rage, which posits that the president is motivated by "anti-colonial ideology," is a prominent figure in campus conservative movements. As a student at Dartmouth College, he helped found the conservative Dartmouth Review and later wrote Illiberal Education, a critique of what he viewed as too much political correctness in higher education.

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Hobsons Buys Social Network for MBA Applicants
October 17, 2012

Hobsons on Tuesday announced its purchase of Beat the GMAT, a large social network of applicants to M.B.A. programs. Hobsons already owns College Confidential, a large social network for undergraduate applicants. But the company has been expanding its work in the professional admissions space through such measures as Tuesday's acquisition and last year's purchase of Intelliworks.

 

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Connecticut Regents Disavow Purported Buyouts of 2-Year-College Chiefs
October 17, 2012

The chairman of the board that governs Connecticut's public four- and two-year colleges has rescinded a proposed buyout that officials of the public-college system purportedly offered to presidents of the state's community colleges last month. That incident, which infuriated some of the two-year-college leaders, triggered a series of events that led to the resignations of the top two officials of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system, President Robert A. Kennedy and Michael Meotti, the executive vice president. "The Board has not authorized any such arrangement and to the extent such an arrangement was offered at that time or thereafter, it is hereby rescinded," Lewis J. Robinson, chairman of the Board of Regents for Higher Education, said in an e-mailed statement late Tuesday.

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Citing State's Gambling Law, NCAA Says It Won't Stage Tournaments in N.J.
October 16, 2012

The National Collegiate Athletic Association followed through last Monday on its vow to bar the staging of championship events in New Jersey, citing the state's passage in July of a law that permits sports gambling. NCAA policies prohibit the association from holding events in any state that allows betting on individual college games, and there were five regional and national championships planned for the state in this academic year. “Consistent with our policies and beliefs, the law in New Jersey requires that we no longer host championships in the state," said Mark Lewis, NCAA executive vice president of championships and alliances. "We will work hard in the days ahead to find new suitable host locations which will allow the student-athletes to have the best possible competitive experience.”

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Chasen to Leave Post as Blackboard CEO
October 16, 2012

Blackboard announced Monday that Michael Chasen will be stepping down as its CEO at the end of the year. He will be succeeded by Jay Bhatt, who is president and CEO of Progress Software. Chasen was the co-founder of Blackboard in 1997, and saw huge growth in the company's size and influence in higher education. The company dominates the learning management system market, and has also seen its share of controversies while gaining that position and acquiring many other companies in related fields. Chasen posted this open letter about the change.

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New Report on Income-Based Repayment
October 16, 2012

Upcoming changes to income-based repayment for student loans will benefit graduate students with high debt and high salaries, according to a new report from the New America Foundation. The report, "Safety Net or Windfall?", argues that changes to the income-based repayment system, which will lower monthly payments to 10 percent of a borrower's income (down from 15 percent) and confer loan forgiveness after 20 years (down from 25 years), will encourage graduate schools to increase tuition because high-debt borrowers might not have to repay all of their loans. Low-income borrowers will see only a modest benefit, write the report's authors, Jason Delisle and Alex Holt of the Federal Education Budget Project. They suggest maintaining the new benefits only for borrowers with income at less than 300 percent of the poverty line.

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Justice Dept. Investigates Bridgepoint Admissions Practices
October 16, 2012

The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating Bridgepoint Education Inc. over the compensation of admissions staff members, the company announced Monday in a corporate filing. The for-profit is also facing a serious accreditation challenge for its Ashford University, which is scrambling to retain regional accreditation.

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CUNY Journalism School Starts Academic Press
October 16, 2012

Some university presses are fighting off cuts, but the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism on Monday announced that it is launching a new academic press. Beginning in 2013, the press will release three to five books a year related to journalism. The press will be operated with OR Books, an independent publisher that focuses on e-books and print-on-demand.

 

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