As school officials brainstorm ways to reconvene students and teachers in the school building, while living in the midst of a pandemic, educators add “montioring students’ health” to their primary mission of helping students learn. As such, students will also add “decontamination ritual” with “do your homework” as their “get ready for school” checklist. In…
Category: Education
Students Balk, Lawyers Talk
Currently, students at 25 different universities are suing for fees and tuition refunds. Students’ sentiments can generally be summized in the language of the Cornell students’ lawsuit: Students have been deprived of the opportunity for collaborative learning and in-person dialogue, feedback, and critique. The remote learning options are in no way the equivalent of the…
Dear College Applicant…
Ever wonder why college brochures seem to flood the mail box of high school students all over the nation? Wonder no longer. [The] College Board, which sells lists of high-school students’ names, ethnicities, parents’ education and approximate PSAT or SAT scores, at 47 cents a name. The Wall Street Journal, November 5, 2019 Over half…
Beyond Graduation
Although disappointing to not participate in the traditional celebratory graduations, for the Class of 2020, what are the opportunities as they commence into the next stage of their lives? The Class of 2020 graduates into a time where asking tough questions about the status quo is the norm. Many are asking, “What is normal?” We’ve…
Understanding “Why College?” Is More Important Than Ever
On May 11, administrators at Northwestern University, a 169 year old institution, ranked #9 National University according to US News & World Report with a $10.8 Billion endowment fund, announced expense reductions, including: furloughing 250 staff, halting hiring, suspending contributions to pensions, as well as cutting salaries for university administrators. For the second year in…
Put Down Your #2 Pencils: The University of California Will Eliminate SAT/ACT Scores by 2025
Yesterday, Thursday, May 21, the University of California (UC) Board of Regents unanimously voted to eliminate the SAT and ACT as a requirement for all first year applicants by 2025. Over the next five years, the UC will phase in the elimination of the SAT and ACT scores from consideration in first year admissions. For…
Obtaining Employment Amidst Great Unemployment
Recovery from the recent massive job losses around the globe will likely not be swift nor immediate. In the United States, 14.34 million more people are unemployed than the total jobs created over the last decade since The Great Financial Crisis of 2009. In other words, in eight weeks, all the jobs created during the…
Governor Newsom Proposes $1 Billion Cut to California Community Colleges
Last Thursday, May 14, California Governor Newsom announced 2020-21 budget revisions, including cuts to higher education, given the projected $54 billion loss of state revenues. Although he proposes a $376 million cut to the University of California (UC) system affecting 285,000 students and a $404 million cut affecting 500,000 California State University (CSU) students, the…
The value of a college education
In my recent conversation with Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle, I discussed the changes to the college admissions process starting in Fall 2021, as well as sentiment about the value of a college education. Although colleges are non-profit organizations, which in the collective culture are imagined to be altruistic endeavors where the potential…
Open for business, partially
Although more states are beginning to reopen, which is progressing everyday, the degree of “reopening” will vary given the differences in political inclinations of each city, county and state, as well as the severity of the COVID-19 outbreak in a particular region. And, although states, counties and/or cities may be lifting shelter-in-place orders, as Goldman…
AP Adversity
Beginning with the first Advanced Placement (AP) exams on Monday, May 11, thousands of students were unable to submit their answers. As students continued taking additional tests during the week, more and more students reported technical difficulties and expressed frustrations about not being able to submit their answers. For the students who experienced technical glitches…
The counselor will see you now
Choosing an academic major, or a set of college courses in a particular speciality, is not simple. Students often equate “academic major” as “career-training“, yet academic knowledge doesn’t always immediately translate into “job”. Often, students will still need to understand their aptitude, so they can find an application for what they know, or “to get…
Fall 2021 Admissions Policies Turned Upside Down
With many different colleges amending admissions policies to be test-optional, no longer requiring SAT or ACT scores to be submitted with first year applications, as well as many K-12 schools and community colleges shifting grading policies to universal Pass/No Pass or expanding Pass/No Pass options for students at least for the Spring 2020 semester, the…
Learning to be self-directed
With school closures and the substitution of distance learning, every student is learning to be self-directed, rather than teacher-guided or parent-approved. Although parents worry their children are falling behind, maybe they’re actually catching up, trying to reconnect with their authentic selves, discover more about their interests and aptitudes, which unfortunately, students can lose, in the…
Advanced Placement (AP) Outrage
In a recent interview with Gabrielle Wanneh of Education Week, I discussed my Open Letter to The College Board about the 2020 Advanced Placement (AP) Exams. In my piece, I specifically highlighted the issues about the integrity of the the modified, online format, which as of Monday, May 11, thousands of students have begun taking:…