The New School for Social Research (New York) is offering 90 courses on the Internet, only 2.5 years after delivering its first course on computer. It has mounted an aggressive marketing campaign and attempted to mimic, online, some campus attractions such as art exhibitions and debates. Preliminary evaluation shows the technology fits the…

Data from federal tax returns for 1994-95 filed by 479 of the nation's universities and colleges revealed the largest compensation package for college presidents was over $800,000. Most of the highest-paid were at research or doctoral institutions. Some received no pay or donated it to their college or religious order. Controversies over…

Salary data for 1993-94 and salary and fringe benefits data from 1994-95 are reported for the presidents and highest-level administrators at 479 private colleges and universities. Institutions are listed alphabetically by type (research universities, doctoral universities, comprehensive colleges and universities, liberal arts colleges). The…

A salary-equity lawsuit filed against Illinois State University begun by three women faculty has become a major court battle over sex discrimination, involving 80% of the university's female professors and many who have left the institution. Some see discrimination as pervasive at the university; others have few complaints but want to support…

Five published leukemia studies have been retracted by the director of the Human Genome Project because they were based on falsified data from a graduate student, although some of the conclusions are still supported. Inconsistencies were discovered by a peer reviewer and were also found in the student's other work. (MSE)

Believing they are threatened by the Education Department, which they consider unfriendly, officials of proprietary schools have made substantial campaign contributions over the past two years to shore up their support in Congress, just at the time lawmakers prepared to consider changes in student-aid rules that would be unfavorable to…

A Supreme Court ruling last March, "Seminole Tribe of Florida vs. State of Florida," sharply restricted Congress' ability to override a state's immunity to federal lawsuits under the 11th Amendment. State institutions have already used the decision to fend off litigation on a variety of issues, including age discrimination, patents and copyrights,…

The Brown University (Rhode Island) medical school curriculum content remains the same, but students must now demonstrate proficiency in relationships with patients, both real and simulated. In addition to traditional skill areas, students must demonstrate competency in effective communication, moral reasoning and ethical judgment, lifelong…

A federal appeals court decision ruled in favor of three publishers who had sued the owner of a small copy-shop business for copyright infringement in producing custom-made anthologies for college courses. However, a divided court could not determine willful violation of the law, vacating damages awarded in lower court. Debate over fair use…

The seventh annual campus computing survey found the adoption rate of high-technology tools for college instruction has slowed. Although technology centers serving faculty are common, most institutions have few formal rewards for faculty use of technology. Data are presented on trends in proportions of courses using technology for various purposes…

David L. Boren, former governor and Senator, has become the most powerful president in the University of Oklahoma's history. Boren wants to give the university the feel of a small private college. His stature gives him flexibility to act decisively and quickly. However, some faculty feel his priorities are wrong and others feel he's moving too…

Results of an annual college tuition survey and a study of trends in financial aid reveal continuing difficulties in keeping costs in line with inflation, the financial aid pool, and state support. A table displays tuition and required fees at over 3,000 institutions in both 1995-96 and 1996-97, including added tuition for out-of-state students in…

Computing authorities at 34 research universities have launched an effort to create a national computer network for higher education several times as fast as the Internet. The network would be supported by several corporate partners in computer and telecommunications industries and by the federal government, would not replace Internet connections,…

The reservations of many young faculty members about the tenure system are gaining increasing attention among older scholars, in part because they feel it must be discussed. Some call for a complete overhaul of the system. Even many tenure supporters feel more options are needed in the current environment of higher education. (MSE)

Academic Systems Corporation is successfully producing courseware in beginning, intermediate, and college algebra using mediated learning, which provides students with instruction and exercises and teachers with feedback on student progress. The courses present students with real-world problems to solve. Users find the courses pedagogically sound…