On Campus Blog

Macalester students end occupation of admin building
After a meeting with several Macalester College students this afternoon, President Brian Rosenberg has stuck to his decision not to cut ties with Wells Fargo, the college has confirmed. Leewana Thomas, a junior in American studies, said their occupation of the administration building has ended. She said students will gather over the weekend to figure…
What another UMN regent says about board activity at the Capitol
University of Minnesota regent Richard Beeson has just written me, chiming in on the issue of whether regents have spoken out enough on legislative budget cuts to the U: Regent Allen correctly points out that a Regent’s legislative time and presence can and should be measured in a number of ways. For myself, I have…
Why UMN regents haven't addressed many Capitol hearings
Yesterday on the House floor, House higher-education committee Chairman Gene Pelowski (DFL-Winona) repeated an item of irritation for him: that University of Minnesota regents rarely if ever appeared before his committee in past years to protest budget cuts. In a recent discussion, I asked regent and former board chairman Clyde Allen what he thought of…
Why UMN regents haven’t addressed many Capitol hearings
Yesterday on the House floor, House higher-education committee Chairman Gene Pelowski (DFL-Winona) repeated an item of irritation for him: that University of Minnesota regents rarely if ever appeared before his committee in past years to protest budget cuts. In a recent discussion, I asked regent and former board chairman Clyde Allen what he thought of…
Study: There may not be a shortage of American STEM graduates after all The EPI study found that the United States has “more than a sufficient supply of workers available to work in STEM occupations.” Basic dynamics of supply and demand would dictate that if there were a domestic labor shortage, wages should have risen. Instead,…
Mac students: Prez will meet with us over Wells Fargo
Update: I got this response from Mac spokeswoman Barbara Laskin: At the 1 pm meeting tomorrow between Pres. Brian Rosenberg and the KWOC students, the topic of discussion will be the college’s relationship with Wells Fargo.  Other than that, there is no predetermined agenda. I’ve got a call in to Macalester College for confirmation, but…
MN Senate Fiscal Note for Dream Act – S0723_1E When I posted a while back about the cost of the Minnesota Dream Act — About half a million dollars a year in State Grant funding — I neglected to include a couple of additional costs. It’s estimated that the University of Minnesota would take a…
Higher-ed bill passes House, gets bipartisan praise for toughness, tuition control
The Minnesota House passed a higher education bill that drew bipartisan praise for its tough-minded approach to tuition and administrative spending. The bill, which passed 86-44, would prohibit MnSCU and the U from using state appropriations for executive bonuses. And the systems would have to report more closely what they spend on administration. Higher-education committee…