Penn in the News

As federal officials have stepped up enforcement of rules requiring colleges to resolve reports of sexual assault, many accused students who contend that they were unfairly found responsible and expelled have sued their institutions. But in the last month, victories for universities in two such lawsuits show how difficult it is for accused students to win legal battles against institutions on the issue.

Yale University on Tuesday said it will amend its leave policies, allowing students more time to declare a leave of absence instead of outright withdrawing, and change its readmission process to ease the transition for students seeking to return to school after taking time off for medical, personal or other reasons.

Most high-school seniors planning to enroll in college this fall already have made up their minds about where they are going. But for many others, this is the final week to make a choice: May 1 is Decision Day, when deposits are due to secure a spot in the next freshman class. Picking a college is an emotional decision, and even after months or even years of courting each other, students and colleges many times make a bad match.

In California, some of us spend a good deal of time feeling nostalgia for days past (specifically, 1960) when the California Master Plan for Higher Education was codified, approved, and financed. In the world of higher education, this visionary plan was the greatest organizational idea for public higher education in the 20th century.

The Wharton School’s Stewart Friedman is interviewed about integrating work, family, community and self.

Selecting performers for a college music festival can be a thankless job. Musical tastes vary, and students crave a big name. Last spring, Princeton University’s student government, which organizes the college’s Lawnparties festivals, was seen on campus as having come up short on star power. So this year, it hired the rapper Big Sean, whose most recent album topped the Billboard charts.

Jeremy Siegel of the Wharton School shares his thoughts on the status of the current stock market in comparison to the past.

A student disciplinary process at George Washington University might not seem like hot news in India, but this weekend it was receiving attention in The Times of India, The Hindustan Times and elsewhere. The case is being interpreted by some law professors as a move by the university to effectively ban the swastika from the university's campus.

Marybeth Gasman of the Graduate School of Education comments on the impact a financial crisis has on historically black colleges and universities, such as Wilberforce University.

The Sweet Briar College administration responded to a faculty lawsuit Monday by saying professors who had sued to stop the college from closing were looking for personal financial gain.