Tesla and SpaceX billionaire Elon Musk and newly inaugurated University of Utah President Taylor Randall are alums of the same university. But the two men have vastly different views on the value of an in-person college education.

Musk told the audience at the Satellite 2020 conference that people “don’t need college to learn stuff.”

“I would simply say it’s true, Elon, you can. You can learn facts, but I’m not sure you will gain wisdom or knowledge of how the world and people work and the latter two are probably just as important as the facts that you have,” Randall said Thursday during a meeting with the Deseret News editorial board.

Here are some aspects of Randall's ambitious vision for the University of Utah:

• Become a top 10 public university.
• Grow enrollment to 40,000 students.
• Provide 80% of freshmen with firsthand experiences.
• Reach $1 billion in externally funded research over the next seven years.

Randall wants the university to impact the lives of all 3.3 million Utahns.

Ketanji Brown Jackson is headed for the Supreme Court. Do Utahns agree with her confirmation?

The Senate confirmed Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court last week, with three Republicans, including Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, joining all 50 Democrats in backing her.

Less than half of Utahns say they agree that the Senate should confirm Jackson to the Supreme Court, according to the latest Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics poll.

Here's how the numbers break down:

• 90% of Democrats support Jackson’s confirmation, compared to only 36% of Republicans.
• 45% of unaffiliated voters support Jackson, 26% do not and nearly a third said they don't know.
• 53% of women said they agree that the Senate should confirm Jackson, compared to 40% of men.

Read what Jason Perry, director of the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the University of Utah, said the numbers mean.

More in Politics

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• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a 15-week abortion ban into law (Deseret News)
• Republican National Committee has voted unanimously to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates (Deseret News)
• Conservatives are celebrating Elon Musk’s bid for Twitter, despite these warning signs (Deseret News)
  

Introducing the Deseret News Midweek Edition

The Deseret News midweek edition features local stories from the combined newsrooms of the Deseret News, KSL-TV, KSL NewsRadio and KSL.com. Subscribe to the Utah Bundle today to receive your copy of the midweek edition delivered to your mailbox each Wednesday.

Business

• Mortgage rates top 5% as homebuying becomes ‘most expensive in a generation’ (Deseret News)
• With red-hot inflation, this program may help low-income Utahns stay cool this summer (Deseret News)
  
• Amazon adds 5% fuel and inflation charge (Deseret News)

Faith

• Is religion dying? Here’s what data on faith in America shows (Deseret News)
• President Nelson is now the oldest president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Deseret News)
• Mesa Easter Pageant returns to temple grounds, presented as ‘gift’ to community (Church News)

Health

• Is social media as bad for teens as we thought it was? (Deseret News)
• Opinion: What if the pandemic isn’t even half over yet? (Deseret News)
• New COVID-19 subvariants blamed for New York surge already seen in Utah (Deseret News) 

Southern Utah

• Responding to severe drought conditions, Cedar City implements a voluntary water restriction schedule (St. George News)
• Intermountain Healthcare donates $90K for diversity scholarships to SUU and Southwest Tech students (St. George News)

Central Utah

• How these detectives prioritized helping domestic violence survivors get their lives back (Deseret News)

Northern Utah

• Weber County sheriff asking for $62M jail expansion (KSL.com)
• What Salt Lake City planners have in mind for city's $37.5M 'Fleet Block' property (KSL.com)

The Nation

• Texas is keeping its truck inspections despite the impact at the border (Deseret News)
• How California’s proposed four-day workweek would work (Deseret News)
• The White House predicts the effects climate inaction could have on the federal budget (Deseret News)
  

The World

• Perspective: U.S. military aid to Ukraine should not be limited by fear (Deseret News)
• Pentagon confirms ‘interstellar object’ hit Earth in 2014 (Deseret News)
• The Moskva — Russia’s flagship in the fleet — has sunk, Russian media says (Deseret News)

Entertainment

• ‘Defaced’ billboards part of strategic ad campaign by ‘The Chosen’ to grow audience (Deseret News)
• Watch the heartwarming proposal story that won BYU an award for best commercial (Deseret News)
  

Mark Pope needs a grinder and proven recruiter to replace Chris Burgess

Utah’s Craig Smith just brought home alum Chris Burgess from BYU. He needed a deep tie to Utah’s past, a name guy, an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and a very good coach who is attached to a winner at present.

Now BYU’s Mark Pope is looking for a replacement, someone who will help transition the program from the WCC to the Big 12. He needs a recruiter and a grinder, someone who can put in the work, the hours, the time, and be an asset.

Read more.

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• Utah Utes: The dream of a national title remains alive for Utah after the NCAA semifinals