Brock Read

As editor of The Chronicle, Brock Read directs a team of editors and reporters who provide breaking coverage and expert analysis of higher-education news and trends.

Since joining The Chronicle, in 2001, Read has served in a variety of roles. As a reporter, he covered the rise of Wikipedia and Facebook. As the newspaper’s first web producer and then as web editor, he worked extensively on two major site redesigns. He oversaw the creation of a news-and-advice portal for Vitae, The Chronicle’s academic-career site, before returning to the newsroom to guide daily-news coverage.

A native of rural western New York, Read earned a bachelor’s degree in art history from Williams College.

Stories by This Author

News

Princeton Acknowledged ‘Embedded’ Racism. The Education Dept. Says That’s Grounds for an Investigation.

By Dan Berrett, Brock Read September 17, 2020

The department said an open letter by the university’s president called the university’s nondiscrimination assurances — and its right to federal funds — into question.

Silent Sam stood in Chapel Hill’s McCorkle Place for more than a century before it was pulled down by protesters in 2018.

News

UNC Will Give Silent Sam to a Confederate Group — Along With a $2.5-Million Trust

By Brock Read December 1, 2019

The university system has ensured that the divisive Confederate monument won’t return to its Chapel Hill campus. But its method of doing so is “insane,” said one professor.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a freshman member of Congress from New York, dances in 2010 in a video produced at Boston University while she was an undergraduate there.

Technology and Politics

That Video of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Dancing Actually Has a Lot to Do With Higher Ed

By Brock Read, Andy Thomason January 4, 2019

An attempted gotcha, the video is a reminder of an era when video mash-ups ruled college campuses and struck intellectuals as a big deal.

Tuesday’s elections gave Democrats control of the U.S. House of Representatives, a foothold in their efforts to stop the education secretary, Betsy DeVos, from reversing Obama-era higher-education regulations.

The 2018 Vote

What the Midterm Elections Mean for Higher Ed

By Dan Bauman, Lindsay Ellis, Steven Johnson, and others November 7, 2018

Betsy DeVos and the Education Department may soon face more oversight. Student voters turned out, but so did everyone else. Here are our notes from Election Day.

Faculty Activist

U. of Michigan Disciplines Professor Who Refused to Recommend a Student Heading to Israel

By Brock Read October 9, 2018

A university administrator sharply criticized the scholar, John Cheney-Lippold, for using recommendation letters “as a platform to discuss your personal political beliefs.”

C.L. Max Nikias, president of the U. of Southern California, said in May that he would resign.

A Resignation

Facing Calls to Hasten His Departure, USC’s President Steps Aside

By Brock Read August 7, 2018

C.L. Max Nikias, plagued by a string of sexual-misconduct scandals at the university, had announced in May that he would leave his post. By this month, the faculty was becoming restive.

Ronald Reagan with his education secretary, William J. Bennett, in 1986. Both men believed that the Department of Education should be shuttered; neither got his way.

Politics

A Brief History of GOP Attempts to Kill the Education Dept.

By Dan Bauman, Brock Read June 21, 2018

Since its birth, the Department of Education has been marked for death by its critics. And those critics have been almost exclusively Republicans. But their efforts have failed.

John Engler, Michigan State U.’s interim president, was chosen in large part for his reputation as a seasoned politician who was comfortable in the public eye. But Engler’s brief tenure has been marked by public-relations fiascos.

Leadership

Nassar Victim Says Michigan State’s Interim President Pressured Her to Accept a Cash Payoff

By Sarah Brown, Brock Read April 13, 2018

The president, John Engler, denies the claim, made in a Friday board meeting. But the episode could bring even more scrutiny upon Engler, who has made several public missteps since his appointment, in January.

The U. of Maryland-Baltimore County basketball team's bench celebrates a second-half basket in its shocking victory over the U. of Virginia. The historic win has given UMBC a chance to seize a national spotlight to make a sales pitch.

Athletics

How Much Can a University Make of a March Madness Cinderella Story?

By Sara Hebel, Brock Read March 18, 2018

The University of Maryland-Baltimore County made basketball history — and earned a chance to talk itself up to the nation. At least in the short term, it could see broader benefits.

Michael S. Roth, president of Wesleyan U.: “I don’t think we as higher-education leaders have distinguished ourselves by a courageous taking of stands in the last couple of years.”

Immigration

With an Employee Facing Deportation, Wesleyan’s President Speaks Out

By Vimal Patel, Brock Read December 15, 2017

Among campus leaders, Michael S. Roth might be President Trump’s fiercest critic. He explains why he thinks campus leaders should jump into the political fray.