higher ed

Two years ago, Wellesley announced it would consider any applicant who "identifies as a woman," opening the way for two transgender students in this year's incoming class.

Following violent protests sparked by white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia, colleges across the country and at least one here in New England are taking down or relocating monuments and markers commemorating the Confederacy.

One of this country's largest student-loan companies is accused of mismanaging a federal program that promises debt forgiveness to people who work in the public or non-profit sector.

Just over half of all workers in Massachusetts now hold a college degree, marking the first time any state has reached that threshold. The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, which did the study, says Massachusetts has the best-educated workforce and the highest median wages in the U.S.

Colleges in New England are among those around the country removing monuments and markers memorializing Confederate alumni. Maine's Bowdoin College has relocated a memorial to alumni who fought for the Confederacy.

* This story originally aired on WGBH News on July 18, 2016.

The Republican National Convention is underway in Cleveland, and it’s likely to be one for the history books. Many of the scholars who will write that history, though, are already concerned about what they'll have to look back on if Donald Trump should win the presidency. A group calling itself Historians Against Trump has published an open letter outlining what it sees as a mission.

Last weekend's tragic violence sparked by white supremacists on the University of Virginia campus in Charlottesville highlights how unprepared colleges are to handle the threat of political violence.

Massachusetts has the highest percentage of people with a college credential or certification in the U.S. That's according to a new report out this week from Lumina Foundation, an education nonprofit. While fewer than half of working-age Americans hold at least one college credential, Lumina finds here in Massachusetts the rate is 55 percent.

Rhode Island is offering free community college to some qualified students. On Thursday, lawmakers approved a new state budget that makes community college tuition-free for recent high school graduates who enroll full-time, maintain at least a 2.5 grade-point average and stay in Rhode Island for two years after graduation.

President Donald Trump’s unexpected tweet this week about banning transgender people from serving in the military has left private military colleges are scrambling to understand what this new policy would mean.