HEADLINES: Top Higher Education News for the Week

October 21, 2026

PBS highlights how a proposed fee from the Trump administration for Optional Practical Training could impact students, institutions, and the economy. . .Inside Higher Ed reports on the approval of Xavier University’s new medical school. . .The Chronicle of Higher Education covers a new report from the American Academy of Sciences and Letters that shares data on the drop in the number of dissertations in the humanities and social sciences. . .

How the Trump Administration's Crackdown on International Students Could Affect the Economy
PBS | October 20, 2026

Xavier to Open Nation’s 5th HBCU Medical School
Inside Higher Ed (sub. req.) | October 21, 2026

Humanities Dissertations Have Declined Far More Steeply Than Those in the Social Sciences, Report Finds
The Chronicle of Higher Education (sub. req.) | October 21, 2026

October 20, 2026

Higher Ed Dive covers the results from a new Gallup poll highlighting that 48% of employers think higher education will become more important as AI use increases. . .The Los Angeles Times reports on California legislation aimed at helping college students find affordable housing. . .Inside Higher Ed covers a new survey identifying affordability as a top concern for voters, including affordability with regard to the cost of education. . .

Nearly Half of Employers Say AI Will Make College Degrees More Important
Higher Ed Dive | October 20, 2026

How California Is Fast-Tracking Construction of Much-Needed College Student Housing
Los Angeles Times (sub. req.) | October 20, 2026

Education Affordability a Priority for Voters
Inside Higher Ed (sub. req.) | October 20, 2026

October 19, 2026

Inside Higher Ed explores how work colleges can address students’ concerns about affordability and return on investment. . .The Associated Press highlights the stories of researchers leaving the U.S. due to federal funding cuts. . .CBS Colorado reports that all of Colorado’s public colleges and universities will waive application fees for residents applying to undergraduate programs. . .

What Can Work Colleges Teach Higher Ed?
Inside Higher Ed (sub. req.) | October 19, 2026

Meet the Researchers Leaving the US Because of Trump’s Funding Cuts and Politicization of Science
The Associated Press | October 19, 2026

Colorado Students Encouraged to Take Advantage of Free College Application Days
CBS Colorado | October 18, 2026

October 16, 2026

The Washington Sun reports that the Trump administration is planning to overhaul the student loans office. . .Inside Higher Ed highlights a letter from Congressional Democrats condemning the Education Department’s reallocation of funding for minority-serving institutions to other grant programs. . .Higher Ed Dive reports that a judge has declined to block an executive order that threatened to take away contracts from institutions over DEI efforts. . .

The Education Department Is Preparing to Offload Its Student Loan Office
The Washington Sun | October 15, 2026

Congressional Democrats Condemn MSI Funding Transfer
Inside Higher Ed (sub. req.) | October 15, 2026

Judge Declines to Block Trump’s March Anti-DEI Order for Federal Contractors
Higher Ed Dive | October 15, 2026

October 15, 2026

The Washington Post shares insights into how students can manage their federal loans. . .Inside Higher Ed reports that 2.5% of students in the U.S. are enrolled in programs that may fail under the Education Department’s new accountability rule. . .Higher Ed Dive covers new data from the ACT on the percentage of students who retook the test. . .

How to Manage Student Loans Before, During and After College
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | October 15, 2026

New Earnings Test Will Have Limited but Concentrated Impact
Inside Higher Ed (sub. req.) | October 15, 2026

1 in 3 ACT Test-Takers Retook the Exam — and Raised Their Scores
Higher Ed Dive | October 14, 2026

News RoomACE In the News

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ACE Op-Eds

New School Year Brings Major Financial Uncertainty for Students
Inside Higher Ed | Aug 17, 2026
Trump’s ‘Compact’ Is Bad for Colleges – And Bad for America
U.S. News | Oct. 20, 2025
Americans Need to Work Together to Fix Education. We’ve Both Done It Before on Opposite Sides
Fox News | July 9, 2025
Here’s Why We Cannot Permit America’s Partnership With Higher Education to Weaken or Dissolve
The Hechinger Report | March 18, 2025
The Only Certainty Is Uncertainty
Inside Higher Ed | July 2, 2024
Protect, Teach, Enforce
Inside Higher Ed | June 25, 2024
AI Can Transform the Classroom Just Like the Calculator
Scientific American | April 17, 2024
There’s a Temporary Fix to the FAFSA Mess — All Colleges Must Extend Decision Deadlines
The Hechinger Report | March 26, 2024
Answering the Call
Inside Higher Ed | March 19, 2024
Every FAFSA Delay Puts College Further Out of Reach
The New York Times (sub. req.) | Feb. 8, 2024
Don’t Dash Opportunity for America’s College Students
The Hill | Aug. 16, 2023
‘Fire the Accreditors’ Is a Bad—and Illegal—Idea
Inside Higher Ed | June 28, 2023
This Is How To Keep Academic Freedom Alive in America
Newsweek | March 23, 2023
Why U.S. News May Have to Rethink How It Creates College Rankings
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | Sept. 14, 2022
Canceling Student Loan Debt Is Just the Start
The Hill | July 1, 2022
Want to Reduce Hunger Among College Students? Stop Taxing Their Pell Grants
The Hill | Feb. 10, 2022
Doubling the Pell Grant Invests in America's Future
The Hill | Sept. 3, 2021
Making Equity Everyone’s Work
Diverse: Issues In Higher Education | March 31, 2021
Dropping the Ball
Inside Higher Ed | March 4, 2021
The Quickest And Most Effective Way Biden Can Help Millions of Americans Go to College
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | Jan. 30, 2021
Liberal, Conservative or Somewhere in the Middle?
Inside Higher Ed | Oct. 19, 2020
Should Congress Provide Additional Pandemic Relief for Colleges and Universities?
CQ Researcher | Sept. 11, 2020
The Biggest Danger to U.S. Higher Education? Losing 20 Years’ Worth of Gains in Access for First-generation and Minority Students
The Hechinger Report | Aug. 11, 2020
Our Country's Future Education Depends on Actions Congress Takes
The Hill | July 20, 2020
Why Trump’s Move to Force International Students to Take In-person Classes This Fall Is Being Blasted as Harmful
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | July 8, 2020
Supreme Court Has Ruled on DACA, Now It's Time for Congress to Act
The Hill | June 20, 2020
College Closings, Economic Upheaval Make a Case for Blockchain Adoption
Education Dive | June 18, 2020
Are Campus Leaders Prepared for the Impact of the Racial Crisis?
Inside Higher Ed | June 15, 2020
College in a Pandemic is Tough Enough — Without Reliable Broadband Access, It’s Nearly Impossible
The Hechinger Report | June 9, 2020
How College Students Can Help Reopen America
Inside Higher Ed | May 18, 2020
A Call for Ideas to Help Student Parents Succeed During and After COVID-19
Education Dive | May 6, 2020
The Courage of Medical Students
Inside Higher Ed | April 20, 2020
University Research is Key to COVID-19 Breakthroughs, Serving the Public Good
The Hill | March 23, 2020
Safeguarding Research on Campuses Against Foreign Threats
Inside Higher Ed | March 9, 2020
In Appreciation of a Public Servant
Inside Higher Ed | Dec. 9, 2019
Mental Health Challenges Require Urgent Response
Inside Higher Ed | Oct. 29, 2019
Guns on America's Campuses: Let the Colleges Decide
The Hill | Sept. 9, 2019
The Invisible China Threat: University Intellectual Property
The Hill | July 30, 2019
Ending the Stigma for College Students With Learning Disabilities
The Hechinger Report | July 16, 2019
Providing Prisoners With Expanded Access to Higher Education Is the Smart Thing to Do
The Hill | July 5, 2019
No Retreat
Inside Higher Ed | June 10, 2019
Ted Mitchell: Congress Must Act to Protect Dreamers Still Living in Legal Limbo
Fox News | May 21, 2019
Taxing College Scholarships: A Travesty to Low-income and Middle-class Students
The Hill | May 20, 2019
Black Students' 'Unprecedented and Unequal' College Debt Should Cause Alarm
The Hechinger Report | Feb. 19, 2019
Congress Must End the Purgatory for ‘Dreamers’
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | Nov. 9, 2018
Higher Education Must Clean Out Its ‘Front Porch’
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | April 25, 2018
Only in America
Inside Higher Ed | Feb. 15, 2018
FCC’s Proposed Internet Rules Could Raise College Costs and Hinder Free Exchange of Ideas
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | Dec. 8, 2017
The House GOP Tax Bill Would Raise the Cost of College. We Can’t Let That Happen.
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | Nov. 6, 2017
Why Most Republicans Don’t Like Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education | July 19, 2017
History, Moral Leadership, and Georgetown
The Washington Post | April 26, 2017
The Supreme Court Frees Colleges to Sensibly Pursue Diversity
The Chronicle of Higher Education | June 24, 2016

Letters to the Editor

The Debate Over Foreign Money in Higher Education
The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) | Sept. 7, 2026
Higher Education Must Rediscover Its Purpose
The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) | Jan. 29, 2024
Don’t Blame Student Loan Debt on the Few Schools With Large Endowments
The Boston Globe (sub. req.) | Sept. 11, 2022
College Is Worth It
The New York Times (sub. req.) | Oct. 29, 2021
The Harsh New Reality Schools Are Facing on Title IX
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | May 24, 2020
The Flaw in a Higher Education Bill
The New York Times (sub. req.) | Dec. 1, 2019
How Long Will ‘Dreamers’ Have to Live in Limbo?
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | July 30, 2019
Readers Critique The Post: Ageism, Skateboarding, and the International Space Station
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | July 5, 2019
Blame the NBA, Not the NCAA, for Big-Time Athletes’ Dilemma
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | Feb. 25, 2019
Weighing the Value of College
The New York Times (sub. req.) | May 26, 2018
Feds Must Help Colleges Reform and Change
The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) | May 23, 2018
Making College More Diverse Takes Hard, Customized Work
The Washington Post (sub. req.) | April 2, 2018
How to Assess What Students Have Learned
The New York Times (sub. req.) | Feb. 26, 2018
Tulane’s 41% Student Sexual Assault Rate
The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) | Feb. 15, 2018
Should Rich College Endowments Be Taxed?
The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) | Nov. 20, 2017
Proposed Tax on Private College Endowments Will Hurt Students
MinnPost (MN) | Nov. 16, 2017
The Dreamers Are a Good Part of America’s Future
The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) | July 25, 2017

HEADLINES: Top Higher Education News for the Week

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