Teen Settles Lawsuit with Washington Post Over Viral Story

The Washington Post says it has settled a lawsuit brought by the family of a teenager at the center of a viral video controversy involving the teen’s encounter with a Native American activist in Washington last year.     The Post said Friday it admitted no wrongdoing in the settlement with the family of Nicholas…

Cal State to Require Social Justice Studies

Trustees of California State University, the nation’s largest four-year public university system, voted on Wednesday to make ethnic and social justice studies a graduation requirement.It would take effect in three years and would be the first change to the school’s general education curriculum in over 40 years, coming amid a national reckoning over racism and…

Advisers Propose Pentagon Create Service Academy for High Tech

Google’s former CEO is working with a former U.S. Defense Department official to create an online program that would train Americans to code for the government, as first reported by Former CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, listens during a session at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 28, 2011.Like other service academies, students…

No International Freshmen Allowed at Harvard, University of Southern California

Harvard University and the University of Southern California announced Tuesday that first-year international students will not be allowed on campus because of federal visa regulations.     Last week, the U.S. government rescinded an immigration rule barring international students from staying or going to the United States while taking online courses after facing fierce opposition…

California State University Sets Ethnic Studies Requirement

Trustees of California State University, the nation’s largest four-year public university system, voted on Wednesday to make ethnic and social justice studies a graduation requirement.It would take effect in three years and would be the first change to the school’s general education curriculum in over 40 years, coming amid a national reckoning over racism and…

Senior US Diplomat Backs Foreign Students, Including Chinese

The State Department’s number two diplomat expressed strong support on Wednesday for foreign students in the United States, including Chinese students, less than two weeks after the Trump administration abandoned a plan that would have barred thousands from the country. “I strongly agree with you on the importance of these student programs,” Deputy Secretary of State…

How to Be a College Freshman During a Pandemic

The beginning of the school year is anxiety-invoking enough, but add a global pandemic that changes all the rules, and students are scared and confused.  Incoming college freshmen who will enter a brand-new environment during a pandemic get a double dose. In addition to navigating the campus landscape, learning how to study for exams, and…

Google Offers Scholarships for Online Programs

Google, the behemoth technology company that has become a verb for online search, is offering financial aid to students who take their certificate programs in data analysis, project management and user experience.Calling it “a digital jobs program to help America’s economic recovery,” the offering comes during record-high joblessness in the U.S. because of quarantines and…

ACT Test Centers Unexpectedly Closed

For high school students, SAT and ACT test cancellations are the latest in a string of postponed activities because of COVID-19.   Administrators of the admissions tests have announced delays at testing centers across the nation, especially in the wake of the pandemic that has closed secondary schools, colleges and universities.  Last weekend, at sites from…

Google Offers Scholarships for Certificate Programs

Google, the behemoth technology company that has become a verb for online search, is offering financial aid to students who take their certificate programs in data analysis, project management and user experience.Calling it “a digital jobs program to help America’s economic recovery,” the offering comes during record-high joblessness in the U.S. because of quarantines and…

Students Still Feel A Chill After ICE Rule Rescinded

Some international students say they have been chilled by the U.S. government’s attempt – now rescinded – to compel them to attend class in person this fall during the COVID-19 pandemic or risk losing their visa status. “It was really scary,” said Yumiko Kishaba from Japan, who studies business administration at the City University of New York. “It’s very confusing. It makes us…

Students Want Campus But Will Leave If COVID-19 Surges

The party’s on hold, so they say.Most college and university students are willing to sacrifice social aspects of the college experience because of the coronavirus, according to a new poll from Axios. Nearly 80% of students said they won’t attend parties, while 71% said they wouldn’t attend sporting events.And if a severe outbreak of COVID-19 broke out, 67% of students said…

Students Still Feeling Chill After ICE Rule Rescinded

Some international students say they have been chilled by the U.S. government’s attempt – now rescinded – to compel them to attend class in person this fall during the COVID-19 pandemic or risk losing their visa status. “It was really scary,” said Yumiko Kishaba from Japan, who studies business administration at the City University of New York. “It’s very confusing. It makes us…

Four Things to Know after ICE Withdraws Directive on International Students    

U.S. officials on Tuesday canceled a short-lived directive that would have prevented international student visa holders from entering the country if their schools were expected to hold online only classes during the coronavirus pandemic. Issued by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the rescinded July 6 guidance also set forth that foreign scholars in the United States who were not attending in-person classes were subject to deportation.ICE’s decision settled a lawsuit initiated by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute…

Internet Access Disrupted in Iran as Uproar Rises Against Executions

Following a string of announcements by the Islamic Republic of Iran about convictions, death penalties for protesters and executions of political prisoners, a wide cross-section of Iranians resorted to a campaign on social media against the authorities.The Persian hashtag #DontExecute trended in the world, occupying the highest spot Tuesday evening GMT time. Diverse individuals and…

ICE Won’t Compel Foreign Students to Be on Campus

Students and educators expressed relief and joy after the U.S. government withdrew a rule requiring international students to be on campus this autumn or risk losing their visa status.  Since last week, students and educators have been immersed in confusion and anxiety, they said, over the uncertainty of whether they would be allowed to attend their classes online…

Trump Administration Rescinds Rule on Foreign Students

Facing eight federal lawsuits and opposition from hundreds of universities, the Trump administration on Tuesday rescinded a rule that would have required international students to transfer or leave the country if their schools held classes entirely online because of the pandemic. The decision was announced at the start of a hearing in a federal lawsuit in…

US Visa Changes Create Panic Among Indian Students

With leases signed, tickets booked, deposits paid, and about a month for schools to reopen, the recent U.S. directive requiring F-1 student visa holders to be on campus this fall has hung a looming cloud of uncertainty over Indian students.   The announcement by U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last week that international students…

Over 200 US Universities Challenge ICE Guidelines on Foreign Students

Over 200 universities have signed briefs in support of Harvard and MIT’s lawsuit challenging a U.S. guideline to not grant visas to international students whose coursework will be all online. Fifty-nine schools, including Stanford and Duke, filed a brief Monday in support of the suit, saying the new guidelines forces schools to “choose between opening their…

Dozens of US Universities Support Challenge to Trump’s Order on Foreign Students

About 60 U.S. universities on Sunday filed a brief supporting a lawsuit by two others, seeking to block a Trump administration rule barring foreign students from remaining in the country if educational institutions don’t hold in-person classes this fall.The lawsuit was filed by Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on Wednesday in a…