Laura Spitalniak

Washington, D.C., United States

Covering education at @HigherEdDive 🏵 Co-creator of "Is It Normal Yet?" at @WTOP 🏵 Priors include @KojoShow, @WBJOnline, @ABC, @cbsnews 🏵 public library stan

Articles

Northwestern to self-fund federally threatened research

1 week ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. Northwestern University will pull from its coffers to continue funding "vital research" that has been threatened by the Trump administration, the private institution announced Thursday. Conflicting reports first surfaced last week that the administration had paused — or planned to pause — $790 million in federal research funding to Northwestern.
Federal judge freezes Energy Department’s 15% cap on indirect costs

1 week ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. A federal judge Wednesday temporarily blocked the U.S. Department of Energy from implementing a 15% cap on grant funding for indirect costs. The ruling came just days after a dozen higher education associations and colleges sued the department, calling the new policy an overstep of authority and a threat to U.S. research and advancement.
Will Harvard lose its ability to enroll foreign students?

1 week ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday threatened to pull Harvard University's ability to enroll foreign students if the Ivy League institution does not comply with an extensive record request by April 30. The agency also canceled $2.7 million in grants to the university. Earlier in the week, President Donald Trump reupped his calls for Harvard to lose its tax-exempt status and all federal funding.
How an early alert system raised one college’s FAFSA completion

1 week ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. NASHVILLE — College leaders understand the value of a completed financial aid application, but they often face hurdles helping students navigate the slog of paperwork. Holyoke Community College, in Massachusetts, encountered this problem in spring 2023.
How one community college helps adult students get prior learning credit

1 week ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. NASHVILLE – Entering college with prior learning credits can be a huge boon to students, cutting down on the time and money required to complete their degrees. But the pathways to earning these credits may favor traditional college students from well-resourced high schools.
LGBTQ+ students in Texas weigh leaving their colleges following DEI ban, researchers finds

2 weeks ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. In Texas, 65% of interviewed LGBTQ+ students reported being negatively affected by the state's 2023 ban on diversity, equity and inclusion programs at public colleges,according to a campus climate report released late last month. More than half, 52%, said they had considered leaving their colleges following the ban, and 78% weighed leaving the state altogether.
Florida House proposal could cut college grants for 22,000 students

2 weeks ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. A proposal from Florida House lawmakers would impose institutional performance metrics on a popular college grant program, a move higher ed leaders say will cut off funds to almost 22,000 students by rendering 15 colleges ineligible.
Harvard University faces funding ultimatum from Trump administration

3 weeks ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. Harvard University on Thursday received a list of wide-ranging demands from the Trump administration tying the Ivy League institution's federal funding to its complete compliance. Among the requirements are that Harvard review and change programs and departments that the Trump administration described as "biased" and that "fuel antisemitism," according to a copy of the letter obtained by Higher Ed Dive.
This week in 5 numbers: Harvard comes under scrutiny of Trump administration

3 weeks ago | highereddive.com | Laura Spitalniak

From the Trump administration's multibillion review into one of the best-known colleges in the world to continued leadership tumult at Columbia University, we’re rounding up the top-line figures from some of our biggest stories of the week. By the numbers$9BThe value of Harvard University’s contracts and multi-year grant commitments under review by the federal government.
Northwestern University touts decline in antisemitic harassment amid lawmaker scrutiny

3 weeks ago | hrdive.com | Laura Spitalniak

Northwestern University on Monday touted an 88% year-over-year decline in complaints of antisemitic discrimination or harassment as of November 2024. Over the past year, the Illinois university said it has intensified its efforts to crack down on antisemitism. Officials now require all students and employees to take antisemitism training, and they tightened the rules around demonstrations and increased the police presence on campus.