Lumina Foundation is working to increase the share of adults in the U.S. labor force with college degrees or other credentials of value leading to economic prosperity.
Nearly everyone in the nation’s largest public university system is already using generative artificial intelligence. And almost no one fully trusts it.
That tension emerges from a sweeping new survey of more than 94,000 students, faculty, and staff across 22 California State University campuses, which finds AI deeply embedded in learning, teaching, and work—even as concerns about accuracy, ethics, job security, and long-term impact remain widespread. Cal State officials say it is the largest study of AI in higher education to date.
As public attitudes sour over higher education’s politics and prices, many college presidents are either staying mum or defending their institutions. But a handful of high-profile college leaders have taken a different stance lately, publicly conceding that the sector’s critics may have a point. Concerns about rising tuition, the value of degrees, and higher education’s liberal tilt are all valid, these leaders argue.
But what’s driving these self-critical administrators? Is the issue about principle? Branding? Or is it just a cynical ploy to cozy up to the Trump administration? More important, are such criticisms helping or hurting higher education?
As colleges nationwide focus on artificial intelligence and workforce readiness initiatives to prepare students for their careers, the University of California, Los Angeles, is expanding its attention to a different population: older adults.
Through an age-friendly university initiative, UCLA is redefining what aging looks like on campus—vibrant, inclusive, and rooted in lifelong learning.
Again and again, the Trump administration has been blocked in court over repeated attempts to force schools to bend to its will. Now, the executive branch is bringing its own lawsuits to force colleges and school districts to comply.
Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, says the wave of lawsuits from the government signals that the administration is shifting from what he describes as a “ready, fire, aim” approach.
Indiana’s public colleges and universities are pulling back the curtain on what it actually costs to run individual degree programs—but state officials caution that the new data raises as many questions as it answers.
This week, the Indiana Commission for Higher Education unveiled newly required institutional reports detailing the cost of operating academic programs across seven institutions and multiple campuses statewide. The data release was prompted by a sweeping 2024 law aimed in part at increasing transparency around higher education spending.
Community colleges are rightly being recognized as central to the nation’s skilled trades pipeline. They are agile, workforce-focused, and deeply connected with regional employers.
However, if educators, employers, and policymakers are genuinely committed to enhancing that pipeline, they must confront a challenge that is often overlooked: Women remain dramatically underrepresented in the field, and “access” alone is not the same thing as equity. That is not just a representation issue. It is a talent issue, a workforce issue, and a design issue, write three equity advocates in this commentary.
