National News - Page 2

American Academy of Arts & Sciences Tracks the Status of Humanities Degrees at HBCUs

A new report from the Humanities Indicators project at the American Academy of Arts & Sciences has examined trends in humanities degree completion at historically Black colleges and universities over the past 25 years. In 2022, HBCUs awarded 2,907 bachelor’s degrees in humanities fields. This was a 15 percent decrease from the recent high of 3,434 degrees awarded in 2014. Notably, this is a significantly greater decrease than the 2.5 percent decline in all degrees awarded by HBCUs over the same time period. Most of the humanities degrees awarded by HBCUs in 2022 were within the “liberal studies” discipline, with concentrations in

Biden-Harris Administration Hits Milestone: Loans Forgiven for 1 Million Public Servants

By Katherine Knott After overhauling a 17-year-old program, the Biden administration has now forgiven student loans for one million public service workers—a milestone the Education Department celebrated as “unprecedented.” The administration crossed the one million threshold Thursday after discharging another $4.5 billion for more than 60,000 student loan borrowers including teachers, nurses and first responders. The department has now forgiven $74 billion in debt through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which Congress created in 2007 to wipe out outstanding loans for qualified borrowers after they made payments for 10 years. Few workers benefited from the program before the Biden administration took over and implemented

Exonerated ‘Central Park Five’ sue Trump for defamation after debate comments

By Marlene Lenthang The five men who make up the Central Park Five and now call themselves the Exonerated Five have filed a defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump over his remarks during the presidential debate last month. The lawsuit focuses on the Sept. 10 debate in Pennsylvania, where Trump said the five men — Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise — pleaded guilty when they were tried in connection with the assault and rape of a woman who had been running in Central Park on April 19, 1989, and that the victim had died. During the debate he

Georgia students take to streets to protest ‘dehumanizing’ voting law that criminalizes handing out water

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By Curtis Bunn  In the latest public rebuke of Georgia’s controversial 2021 voting law, dozens of Black students and activists marched through the heart of historic Morehouse College on Saturday in an effort to push back on what they call “anti-voting” measures in Georgia and other states. Since 2021, SB 202 — also known as the Election Integrity Act — has made it illegal in Georgia for anyone to hand a hot or thirsty person a bottle of water while standing in line to vote. Those participating at Saturday’s rally cited SB 202 as one of many “inhumane laws that attempt

Senate Republicans raise questions after funds for disaster loans exhausted

By Aris Folley A group of GOP senators are pressing the Small Business Administration (SBA) for answers after officials said its disaster loan program exhausted its funds earlier this week in the aftermath of a pair of major hurricanes. The letter, addressed to SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman, featured signatures from four Republicans on the Senate Small Business Committee: Sens. Joni Ernst (Iowa), Tim Scott (S.C.), Todd Young (Ind.) and James E. Risch (Idaho). In the letter, the senators raised concerns about the administration’s handling of its disaster loan account and what they described as the office’s “failure to provide its authorizing committees statutorily required information.”

Georgia judge blocks controversial ballot hand tally rule

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By Zach Montellaro A Georgia state judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a controversial rule supported by allies of former President Donald Trump that election administrators feared would cause last-minute chaos in the election. Judge Robert McBurney granted a request from election officials in Cobb County and others to pause a rule that would require poll workers to hand-count the number of ballots soon after polls close. McBurney noted in his order that the rule was being instituted so close to Election Day that poll workers couldn’t be trained for it. “Should the Hand Count Rule take effect as scheduled, it would do

Leadership changes swell at Black colleges

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By Gabrielle Hayward When alumni of historically Black colleges and universities return to their alma maters to celebrate homecoming over the next few weeks, many will see new faces in charge on the yard. As enrollment numbers have continued to increase at HBCUs nationwide in recent years, multiple schools have faced turnovers in leadership, with top executives resigning or retiring. This issue is not solely present at HBCUs — years of tenure have decreased among collegiate leadership nationwide. However, since 2022, more than 30 of the 107 HBCUs have announced new presidents or chancellors. This summer, two schools even announced leadership changes within hours

Nikole Hannah-Jones, Center for Journalism and Democracy Host Third Annual Democracy Summit

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By Larry J. Sanders The Center for Journalism and Democracy (CJD) welcomed journalists from across the country to its third annual Democracy Summit, a day-long convening of both beginner and veteran journalists seeking to address some of their field’s – and the nation’s – most pressing issues. The theme of this year’s Summit, “Covering Oligarchy,” highlighted the increasing and multifaceted ways in which monocratic forces are pervading American democracy. Nikole Hannah-Jones, the Center’s founding director, greeted the attendees to “a knowledge exchange” to start the morning, emphasizing the importance of their presence during what she described as a “critical period”

Frederick Douglass Library chosen as a patent and trademark center for entrepreneurs

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Courtesy of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore UMES becomes fifth HBCU to receive U.S. Patent Office designation Aspiring entrepreneurs at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore – and in the local community – now have a place to help them create their next big idea. In July, UMES became the fifth HBCU designated as a Patent and Trademark Resource Center (PTRC) by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) – and the only one of its kind on the entire Eastern Shore. Adding the PTRC was a natural progression for UMES’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI). “In the

Red Cross weighs in on how to aid Southeastern communities recovering from back-to-back hurricanes

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By Megan Sayles Hurricane Helene touched down in Florida on Sept. 26 as a Category 4 storm that devastated communities across Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. The National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service deemed it among the most powerful storms to hit the United States with days of torrential rainfall and powerful winds. Then came Hurricane Milton. With winds of up to 120 miles an hour, the Category 3 storm slammed into popular cities in Florida, such as Tampa and Orlando. An estimated 500,000 people lost power and roads quickly flooded. More than 200 people died as