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Dec 20, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Jenna Robinson
The Martin Center’s in-house library continues to grow, boasting over 900 books and journals as of this writing. Nevertheless, a higher-ed policy institute needs a constant infusion of new titles, as the world of postsecondary education is ever-evolving. Our staff are constantly on the lookout for books that identify and analyze higher ed’s successes and failures. Here are a few titles we’d like to see under the tree this year. 1.
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Dec 2, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Jenna Robinson
Warren Wilson College is a tiny university tucked away near Asheville, N.C. But it’s a crucial part of a distinctive yet underappreciated segment of the higher-education marketplace: work colleges. As I’ve written many times before, I am a proponent of variety and choice in education. Not all students want the same thing from postsecondary education. Some want a Great Books curriculum. Others want apprenticeships or quick-turnaround credentials that will lead directly to the workforce.
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Oct 31, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Jenna Robinson
This year, trustees at Coastal Carolina University have passed a slate of reforms that make it one of the best schools in the country for free speech and open inquiry.
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Oct 11, 2024 | 
intellectualtakeout.org | Jenna Robinson
As a mom, I love school uniforms. They take the decision-making out of back-to-school shopping and my kids’ morning routines. But the benefits of school uniforms go far beyond my personal experiences. Most obviously, uniforms prevent students from wearing inappropriate clothing to school.
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Oct 7, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Jenna Robinson
In 2020, then-Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos deregulated college and university accreditation by ending regional accreditors’ monopoly status. The purpose of the move was to introduce innovation and competition to a process that had become hidebound and expensive. Four years later, the floodgates have opened. Already, several new accreditors are on the horizon.
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Sep 26, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Jenna Robinson
Earlier this month, the UNC Board of Governors began an important conversation about possible tuition increases for some in-state undergraduate students in FY 2026-27. That shouldn’t overshadow North Carolina’s remarkable progress on affordability. During his remarks to the Board, UNC System president Peter Hans stated, “We’ve kept tuition for North Carolina students flat for eight years running.
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Sep 16, 2024 | 
intellectualtakeout.org | Jenna Robinson
In March of 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama spoke of “A More Perfect Union” in a speech at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. In that speech, he used the stories of David and Goliath, Moses and Pharaoh, the Christians in the lion’s den, and Ezekiel’s field of dry bones to bring life to his message. Whatever we may think of Obama’s speech—or his politics—the inclusion of Bible references is notable. How many children in school today would recognize those allusions?
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Sep 5, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Jenna Robinson
In the wake of last year’s pro-Hamas campus protests, universities around the country are revising their facilities-use policies, as well as other “time, place, and manner” restrictions on campus protests. Early last month, Virginia Commonwealth University adopted a new interim policy on “Concealment of Identity.” VCU’s move may be a novel approach to confronting masked campus protests.
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Jul 22, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Adam Kissel |Jenna Robinson
Online learning comes in many forms—some better than others, as we learned in 2020. Leveraging effective tools is essential to making it work well for students and schools. In the past decade, North Carolina universities have tested various programs, with varying degrees of success. In doing so, the state has come closer to realizing the large potential benefits of flexible online learning.
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Jul 18, 2024 | 
jamesgmartin.center | Jenna Robinson
Last month, UNC Asheville chancellor Kimberly van Noort proposed the closure of several academic programs and departments in response to budget deficits. The cuts were prompted by UNCA’s declining enrollment and subsequent financial difficulties. But the proposed cuts significantly undermine UNCA’s liberal-arts mission.
