Daily Lumina News 041822

High school senior Grant Austin Robert Simms applied to a brand-new nonprofit university called NewU because he wants to earn a degree in three years instead of the customary four.
Several conventional colleges and universities are taking note, adding three-year degrees as students and families increasingly question the more than four years it now takes most of those earning bachelor’s degrees to finish—and the resulting additional cost.

The enrollment crisis only exacerbates gaps in higher education and leads to more inequities. The steepest enrollment declines have been at community colleges and among men of color.
To chip away at the crisis, some institutions are putting more resources into efforts that help students with some college credits but no degree.

Like a surprising number of Tennessee college students, both graduate and undergraduate, Ekramul Ehite often finds himself without time, access, or money for his next meal.
It’s not a new challenge on college campuses, but it has been getting more attention over the past five years as both universities and community colleges change how they address students' basic needs.

The push to unionize Amazon, Starbucks, and other major U.S. companies is spreading to another employment sector that historically has resisted worker efforts to organize: America's colleges.
Students employed as residential advisors, assistant instructors, and in campus dining halls are uniting to demand better pay and working conditions, as well as pushing more broadly for a seat at the table in setting policies that affect their lives.

The pandemic has led several colleges to change course in the way they offer tutoring services on campus.
Some schools are making their tutoring more visible and convenient, offering more online options, using new scheduling apps, and doing more marketing on campus about their services.

Two-year colleges have borne the brunt of higher ed’s pandemic-era enrollment spiral, with enrollment in fall of 2021 down 15 percent from less than two years ago.
But the program-specific data tell a different story. While majors like English and physical sciences have shrunk, skilled trades like agriculture and construction management are flourishing.