Aired December 2, 2025
The dotEDU hosts look back at a year that reshaped higher education in ways few expected back in January. Mushtaq, Sarah, and Jon talk through their top five stories of 2025, including the push to dismantle the Department of Education, the cuts at NIH and NSF, the sweeping changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill, and Congress’s response to it all.
Here are some of the links and references from this week’s show:
ACEx
Register for the ACE Experience 2026: Feb. 25-28, 2026
ACE Survey of Campus Leaders
To participate in ACE's new survey about the key issues concerning higher education right now, email our Research team at research@acenet.edu for the link. The survey closes on Dec. 16.
The Trump Administration in 2025
Higher Education & The Trump Administration: Resources
Trump Administration Higher Ed Executive Order Tracker
Full coverage of the 2nd Trump administration from The Chronicle of Higher Education
The U.S. Is Funding Fewer Grants in Every Area of Science and Medicine
The New York Times (sub. req.) | Oct. 3, 2025