National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Awards 10.8 million to 4 MSIs

A bit of good news for improving diversity in the STEM fields from the White House Initiative on HBCUs:

http://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/list/whhbcu/edlite-news.html

The Affirmative Action War Goes On

Here is the link to an article that was published in the New York Times that I thought would be fitting for the class:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/opinion/sunday/the-affirmative-action-war-goes-on.html?scp=1&sq=college%20diversity&st=cse

This article talks about several lawsuits across the country that have rejected the use of race as a factor in college admissions in some areas as well as another case in which race is allowed to be used as a factor. All of these cases may soon appear before the Supreme Court. Given the current makeup of the Court it is possible that colleges will not be able to use race as a factor in their admissions process. Should this happen, what might be some other ways that colleges can continue to increase racial diversity?

Outlook for Higher Education Remains Mixed, Moody's Says

During his State of the Union Address President Obama said that colleges that are not able to keep costs down will receive less money from taxes, given that education is an economic imperative.

However, an annual report released by Moody's Investor Services reported on Monday that for the next year to year and a half, colleges will continue to see a decline in admissions as a result of cost. However, for larger, diversified colleges and those that are highly ranked, they project a rise in admissions. After reflecting on today's discussion I was left wondering what this actually means for diversity (actual diversity, not just numbers) in these institutions.

What do you all think?

Here is the link to the article from The Chronicle of Higher Education:
http://chronicle.com/article/Outlook-for-Higher-Education/130434/

I will also add that President Obama said that colleges that are not able to keep costs down will not be given as much money from tax dollars in tonight's State of the Union Address.

Optimism and Time

"Somewhere along the way we must see that time will never solve the problem alone but that we must help time. Somewhere we must see that human progress never rolls in on the wheels on inevitability. It comes through the tireless efforts and the persistent work of dedicated individuals...Without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the insurgent and primitive forces of irrational emotionalism and social stagnation. We must always help time and realize that the time is always right to do right." - Dr. Martin Luther King,Jr.

 This quote comes from Dr. King's speech at Western Michigan University in December of  1963. I think this quote works well with the article from Dr. Howard Zinn. As educators with a interest in social justice, we can not be pessimistic and give up or think that time will automatically bring change. I encourage you to keep in mind both Zinn and King as we explore Diversity in Higher Education together. How will you maintain energetic optimism in the face of the challenges in educational equity?