Academically Adrift–12 years later
In 2011, Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa captured national attention by highlighting a plateau in critical thinking and writing skills among college students, and a corresponding decrease in civic engagement and social wellbeing. In an interview for LearningWell magazine, Kara Miller, author of The Big Idea column for The Boston Globe, talks with Arum about what has changed both for students and for higher ed. One phenomenon is the college mental health crisis. Arum said the solution to this has to include “helping students find meaning, purpose, community, connections, and attachments that will lead to mental health wellbeing and flourishing.”
Mental and Behavioral Health
Main Stories
As college students continue to report higher rates of anxiety and depression compared to the general population, a new report from the design firm DLR Group interviewed leaders in higher education about their approaches to student wellness and mental health. The study, titled “Evolution of Campus 4.0,” focused on eight tenets of wellbeing: emotional, social, financial, occupational, spiritual, intellectual, physical and environmental health. Researchers identified five main concerns among university officials, including a lack of allocation of funding to promote wellness services to all students who need it and unprecedented social, political, and financial challenges making it difficult for campus officials to anticipate student need. The study found that colleges and universities are increasingly implementing creative solutions to address these needs, including offering resilience programs, constructing buildings dedicated to spirituality, and offering employment scholarship funds for students taking on unpaid internships.
The Los Angeles Times reports on the unique mental and behavioral challenges faced by first-generation college students who are more likely than their peers to drop out and less likely to graduate on time. For many first-generation students, academic success is interrupted by “the mental health costs of upward mobility for young people whose relatives are counting on them to succeed, all while the student is feeling further and further from their family as they climb.” The most effective programs to promote first-gen students’ mental and behavioral health, as well as fostering their academic success, are typically those that connect students with faculty mentors and aim to help students cultivate quality relationships with professors and peers.
Increasing numbers of philosophy departments are offering “good life” courses to help address the rising rates of anxiety and depression among college students by exploring the meaning of a good life and how students can contribute to the greater good. In an op-ed for Inside Higher Ed, experts argue that “good life” courses may improve the social and emotional wellbeing of students.
Other News
Amid an increase in mental and behavioral health concerns, significant numbers of 2020 high school graduates who didn’t enroll in college immediately that year still have not found their way into higher education, Inside Higher Ed reports. Among the 47% of students who did not enroll in college immediately after high school in 2020, only 0.7% had enrolled in college by fall 2021, and an even smaller number, 0.2%, enrolled for the first time in 2022. The enrollment rate was even lower among students who graduated from “high poverty” high schools, where only one in 15 enrolled. The data also show significant income and racial gaps in college enrollment. Although immediate college enrollment rates for 2022 graduates have improved, they are still below pre-pandemic levels.
The Chronicle reports on Purdue University’s Cornerstone Integrated Liberal Arts program, which has been replicated at 60 other colleges and universities. The program, which launched in 2020, offers general education courses to incoming students, with a particular emphasis on literature and the humanities. Melinda S. Zook, a professor of history at Purdue and director of the Cornerstone program, writes in an op-ed for The Chronicle that Cornerstone fosters academic and emotional wellbeing for Gen-Z students entering college, helping them to cultivate their “thinking, reading, and writing skills—and their confidence.”
A new study published in PLOS Magazine found that the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant negative impact on the mental health of a large portion of the population, particularly young people. The mental health impacts of the pandemic and lockdowns are found to be five to eleven times larger than the COVID-related deaths alone. This calls for a shift in prioritizing the mental health of individuals, especially young people, who have been greatly affected by the societal changes brought about by the pandemic.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Colorado College has announced a transfer program for students from five states that have passed anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) legislation. The program aims to provide a supportive environment for students who feel uncomfortable at institutions eliminating resources for specific identity groups. Transfer students will receive full credit for coursework, guaranteed campus housing, and be connected to identity-based programming and mental health counseling. Hampshire College in Massachusetts announced a similar program in the spring, encouraging students from New College of Florida to transfer and matching their tuition costs. These moves come as college DEI centers close in compliance with state legislation.
Texas A&M University put forth a plan to comply with the statewide ban on DEI programs on college campuses. According to the Office of General Counsel, although the university can no longer include DEI language on its website or in campus programming, they may continue to promote “identity-driven” groups for faculty and students as long as these groups are revised to promote “an all-inclusive message appropriately,” Inside Higher Ed reports.
Students for Fair Admissions has filed a lawsuit against West Point, aiming to end race-conscious admissions at the military academy, which was exempt from the recent Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action. The lawsuit is filed in the Southern District of New York, by the same group that challenged race-conscious admissions at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina.
The federal government has urged the governors of 16 states to address the underfunding of historically Black land-grant universities. According to the analysis, these institutions have been underfunded by a total of $13 billion, with only two states found to have equitably funded their HBCU land grants. Experts and advocates believe that this call to action is a positive step towards addressing the issue. Additionally, it is highlighted that historically Black land-grant universities enroll a higher percentage of Black and low-income students and play a crucial role in diversifying science, engineering, and agriculture workforces.
U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen has ruled the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program unlawful, leaving approximately 141,000 college students who are eligible for or enrolled in DACA in a state of uncertainty. The ruling bans the federal government from processing new DACA applications, though it allows for renewal of current DACA status. If appealed, Hanen’s ruling will be reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Mendocino College, a community college in Ukiah, California, has received a $1.5 million grant to expand programming for Native American students, Inside Higher Ed reports. The Native American Student Support and Success Program aims to bridge gaps in completion and increase outreach to tribal communities. The college has a strong legacy of serving Native American students and is committed to ensuring higher education is accessible to all.
Sexual Assault and Title IX
A former Yale student’s defamation lawsuit challenges how higher education handles sexual assault and Title IX cases, the New York Times reports. The student, Saifullah Khan, was expelled from the university after a sexual assault allegation against him, and was later acquitted in a criminal court. Khan’s defamation lawsuit against his accuser received approval to proceed by the Connecticut Supreme Court, an unusual outcome in sexual assault cases on college campuses, where accusers are typically protected from defamation suits. Victims and advocates worry that opening accusers to cross-examination and potential defamation lawsuits will instill fear in victims and make them less likely to report assault; Khan’s supporters, however, emphasize the importance of due-process and cross-examination in college disciplinary hearings.
Michigan State University has notified head football coach Mel Tucker of their intent to terminate his contract. Tucker, who was suspended last week in light of a USA Today article detailing a sexual harassment complaint brought against him, was notified in a letter from the university that his actions violated his contract’s moral code of conduct and brought “public disrespect, contempt, or ridicule upon the university.”
Baylor University reached a settlement in a federal lawsuit brought by 15 women who sued the Christian university for mishandling of sexual assault cases in 2016, Inside Higher Ed reports. The lawsuit alleged that the university aimed to stifle reports of harassment and assault on campus and to dissuade victims from coming forward by “reminding them of the university’s code of conduct prohibiting alcohol and drug use and premarital sex.”
Stephen Kershnar, a philosophy professor at SUNY Fredonia, has been removed from teaching and campus access after making controversial remarks on a podcast about sexual assault and the age of consent. SUNY Fredonia officials reassigned Kershnar to non-student contact duties, initiating an investigation and a police search of his office. Dr. Kershnar, who has taught at the university since 1998, is now suing for the right to return, arguing that the university is restricting academic freedom by allowing public and political reactions to dictate who can teach at a public institution. The case raises questions about the balance between online discourse, campus safety, and the First Amendment rights of professors at public universities.
College Access and Affordability
The New York Times published a searchable database on income and college affordability using new data from Opportunity Insights, led by economist Raj Chetty of Harvard University. The data reveal that students from high-income backgrounds are more likely to attend the most selective colleges and universities, and at many such institutions, more than half of students come from families earning in the top 20%. At Georgetown University, for example, a student from the top 1% is 2.7 times more likely to attend than another student with the same standardized test scores.
Higher education is facing challenges due to declining enrollment and the upcoming decline in high school graduates due to decreased birth rates during the Great Recession, according to Higher Ed Dive. Gen Z’s perception of college and its affordability will play a crucial role in the future of higher education. The youngest members of Gen Z show more value for higher education than the older members. Women, Democrats, and Black and Hispanic students tend to place a higher importance on college. Concerns about college affordability vary across racial and ethnic groups and contribute to disparities in college-going rates, with lower rates among Hispanic and Black students compared to White and Asian students.
The New York Times reports that increasing numbers of elite law and medical schools, most recently Yale Law School, have decided not to cooperate with the U.S. News & World Report rankings. However, most undergraduate schools, including Yale, will continue to submit data for the annual undergraduate rankings. The rankings hold a strong influence on American higher education, as they are seen as a way to attract applicants and are tracked by alumni and donors. Some schools fear that the consequences of not cooperating with the rankings will decrease students’ exposure to and engagement with the institution.
Professor Patty Goedl of the University of Cincinnati at Clermont published an open-access textbook to mitigate extra expenses in higher education. Buying college textbooks can cost as much as $200 per class, according to Inside Higher Ed. Goedl hopes that her three-year endeavor, which now provides open-access learning in the form of videos, written content, and quizzes, will offset some of these additional costs.
The California State University System has approved a plan to increase tuition by 6% annually for the next five years, Higher Ed Dive reports. This will generate an additional $148 million in the first year and a total of $840 million over the five-year period. The tuition hikes are intended to address a $1.5 billion deficit while the system considers employee raises and infrastructure costs.
