The Trends Report 2021
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21st-Century Higher Ed
The Great Contraction
Cuts alone will not be enough to turn colleges’ fortunes around. -
Community Relations
For Town & Gown, a Pandemic Pressure Test
The stakes have never been higher for this key relationship. -
The 2021 Trends Report
The Surveilled Student
New ways of monitoring health and academic performance won’t just disappear after the pandemic subsides. -
The Future of Research
The Shrinking of the Scholarly Ranks
The pandemic may do lasting damage to the pipeline of academic researchers. -
Racial Reckonings
The Antiracist College
This may be a watershed moment in the history of higher education and race.
Also in the issue
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Academic Freedom
No ‘Social Justice’ in the Classroom: Statehouses Renew Scrutiny of Speech at Public Colleges
A flurry of recent activity shows lawmakers’ intense focus on campus culture wars amid broader national clashes over how America’s history is remembered. -
Sexual Harassment
‘Harvard Failed Her’: University Apologizes to Scholar Who Endured Harassment
The former professor reported another faculty member, Jorge Domínguez, for sexual harassment in the 1980s. An external investigation found problems with how the institution responded. -
A Secret Life Revealed
Northwestern Neuroscientist, Who Recently Admitted to Operating an Anonymous, Racist Twitter Account, Dies
Before he died, Bart van Alphen admitted to tweeting “many offensive statements” and said he had participated in a subculture that “traffics in dark, cynical humor.” -
Data
Applications for Next Year’s Freshman Class Are on the Rise — With Warning Signs for Equity
While application volume is up from a year ago, troubling trends loom for low-income and first-generation students. -
The Review
The Fight for the University of Kansas
The Board of Regents is working to weaken tenure. But all is not yet lost. -
The Review
How to Avoid the Associate-Professor Trap
It’s time for a wholesale reimagining of faculty careers. -
The Review
Social Justice, Austerity, and the Humanities Death Spiral
Radical rhetoric won’t save the humanities, but neither will humanist nostrums. -
Advice
How to Manage the First-Round Executive Interview
The initial meeting of candidate and committee can be awkward and even misleading, but it doesn’t have to be.