Tufts University
At Harvard Tuesday morning, environmentalists and student activists expanded their blockade of Massachusetts Hall, blocking University Hall. The protesters are demanding Harvard sell off fossil fuel stocks in its $36 billion endowment. Today, WGBH's Kirk Carapezza explains why divestment is not so easy and how colleges are trying to foster a sensible conversation about climate change.
Tufts University has settled its dispute with the U.S. Education Department over its compliance with federal sexual assault policy. The disagreement touched off a national debate about sexual abuse investigations on college campuses.
Friday's settlement comes just over a week after the Department said Tufts had mishandled sexual violence and harassment complaints, and the university withdrew its agreement to comply with Title IX, the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination on college campuses.
Last month, Trinity College, a predominantly white, elite, liberal arts school in Hartford, Connecticut, appointed its first African-American and female president, Joanne Berger-Sweeney. Berger-Sweeney’s appointment has drawn attention to a somewhat dismal statistic.
The number of women who lead colleges nationwide has increased, although the numbers are few. And the number of presidents who are people of color has actually declined slightly, only 13 percent nationally. Berger-Sweeney feels the pressure.
Last week we covered a story exploring the potential benefits of a gap year – postponing the start of college. In our interviews, we reported that although the gap year may be important in helping some young students mature and realize their ambitions in life, the privilege of affording this experience is very much contingent on one's economic background. Today, we hear some of your comments on our report to get a better idea of how people feel about gap years.
The idea of a gap year, postponing the start of college, has become a bit more common in the U.S. and a handful of colleges and universities are now actually encouraging accepted students to take a year break before starting classes. While the experience is still out of reach for most students, more schools are expected to support and even help pay for gap years.
