Daily Lumina News 102020

Washington’s colleges and universities were braced for a big drop in enrollment this fall, expecting college students to opt out of remotely taught classes and defer their educations for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic.
The good news: Most students showed up after all. The not-so-good news: Colleges are reporting that students from low-income families were more likely to hold back.

Community colleges throughout the country are creating contact tracing courses to meet the urgent demand for trained people able to track COVID-19 infections and thus slow the spread of the disease.
The United States needs at least 100,000 more contact tracers "to meaningfully control transmission of the virus as states continue to lift social distancing restrictions,” according to the American Medical Association. Before the pandemic, the nation had just 2,200 contact tracers.

Colleges are wrestling with the financial havoc and technological logistics of a hellish year. But 2020’s COVID-19 pandemic and increased racial strife are also prompting revisions in college curricula.
The nation is traumatized, and the content of academic programs, not just how they are delivered, must reflect that reality, say college leaders, students, faculty members, and higher-education experts.

A new report shows that adult students who receive college credits for prior learning are more likely to complete academic programs than their peers without prior learning assessment (PLA) credits.
The study also highlights some disparities in PLA use and completion. Among its recommendations for improvement: targeting PLA marketing and advising to key demographics and reducing the cost of getting PLA credit.

Moving to the remote environment has shaken up many institutions’ infrastructures. Student expectations have changed. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Now, faculty leaders have the chance to revamp their university both structurally and culturally by shifting focus to what really matters—the students.
In this interview, Carolyn Callaghan of Western Carolina University discusses how institutions can deliver these on-demand student supports, the importance of seamlessness, and how the virtual environment has changed the student experience.

Class-action lawsuits calling for partial reimbursement of tuition and fees are continuing to amass nationwide—from Ivy League institutions to state university systems to small private colleges—with potentially hundreds of millions of dollars at stake.
The lawsuits don’t begrudge the universities for abruptly closing campuses to prevent the spread of COVID-19. But they are asking courts to weigh who should bear the financial burden of any fallout.