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Alexander C. Kafka

Senior Editor

What I Cover

I don’t have a beat. My keenest interest is my current assignment. I have written special reports on student mental health, the research university, higher-education management and finances, campus political tensions, the college presidency, administrative diversity, advancement and alumni engagement, curricular reform, and other topics. I have also covered academic controversies, the future of tenure, academic freedom, campus-speech issues, and trends in the social sciences and the arts.

My Background

I have been with The Chronicle since 1998 and have edited and written for news and opinion sections as well as for special projects. I have organized and moderated numerous online and in-person panels, for The Chronicle and twice at SXSW EDU, and I have been interviewed by NPR affiliates and for various podcasts. Before The Chronicle, I worked as an editor and reporter at Newsday and other daily newspapers, and I was senior press officer at The Brookings Institution. I have freelanced as a book and arts critic for The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, and many other publications. I earned a bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, in English and American Literature and Language from Harvard University in 1986.

Connect

Please send feedback and story ideas to alexander.kafka@chronicle.com. I can also be found at LinkedIn.

Highlights

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Energizing Alumni
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The Research Driven University

Recent Stories

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Overcoming Student Loneliness
Introduction
A student looks at her phone at the U. of Maryland in College Park.
A Spectrum of Wellness
Fighting the Mental-Health Crisis Narrative 
By Alexander C. Kafka August 23, 2024
Do young people misunderstand everyday stress?
Vasily Keytiyev poses for a portrait at his home in San Francisco, California.
Lost and Found: A Once-Troubled Student Pulls Himself Together
Vasily Keytiyev has overcome a troubled past and is back on track, thanks in part to the Marine Corps Reserve and a nonprofit called Service to School.
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Report
The Research-Driven University
Introduction
illustration of hands holding a smartphone. On the phone screen is an icon of a brain.
Mental Health
Colleges Don’t Know Much About the Mental-Health Apps They’re Buying
By Alexander C. Kafka May 30, 2024
Are college students’ mental-health apps helping them? There’s surprisingly little evidence one way or the other. A team of researchers is trying to change that.
Martha Graham in 1922, performing a dance by Ted Shawn (Nickolas Muray, from the Jerome Robbins Dance Division archives of the New York Public Library)
The Review | Essay
A Martha Graham Moment
By Alexander C. Kafka June 12, 2023
On page and stage, the modern-dance pioneer returns for an encore.
Daryl Burleigh, a rural recruiter for the University of Pittsburgh, looks on as he administers a mock admissions exercise for students at Mercersburg Academy, a private high school in south-central Pennsylvania.
The Rural Recruiter: Daryl Burleigh’s Road Map for Reaching Students in Far-Flung Corners of Pennsylvania
Rural high-school students enroll in college at a lower rate than urban students. Our latest photo essay follows Daryl Burleigh, a rural recruiter, and his strategies for connecting with these students. Read more of his story now.
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Advice
When Building a Diverse Leadership, Emphasize Culture, Not Quotas
Colleges have many tools to create an inclusive campus culture, among them equity audits and job-specific, anti-bias education. Shaming and blaming don’t help.
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Why Don’t More Community College Students Transfer?
A degree from a four-year institution is one of the best ways to land a job with a well-paying salary in today’s workforce. For many students, community colleges are a springboard to attending a four-year institution. However, out of every 100 community college students who intend to earn a…
Explainer: Leadership Teams
What Are Student-Success Leadership Teams?
In response to shrinking pools of high school graduates and and increasing numbers of first-generation and minority students, many colleges have created student-success leadership teams. Learn how leading institutions are coordinating the complex web of factors—including mental health, finances, and a sense of belonging—that contribute to student success.
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