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The trends, policies and lawsuits that will shape higher ed in 2026
We’re rounding up our outlooks for the year ahead, with expert insight on what college leaders should be watching.
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Deep Dive4 policy trends that should be on college leaders’ radars in 2026
From accreditation to civil rights probes, we’re rounding up policy shifts we’ll be watching — and expert predictions on how they’ll unfold — for the year ahead.
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Texas governor pauses new H-1B visas at public colleges
Under Gov. Greg Abbott’s moratorium, colleges have until March 27 to fulfill state data requests about the workers they employ under the visa program.
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Week in review: Navigating ‘relentless’ college leadership roles
We’re rounding up recent stories, from two states targeting H-1B hiring at public colleges to a plan to rewrite accreditation regulations.
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Virginia AG searches for university general counsels to counter ‘federal overreach’
Attorney General Jay Jones is looking for in-house lawyers for three colleges to “fight back” against the Trump administration’s “politically-motivated assaults.”
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Nevada higher ed leaders approve hefty tuition hike for public colleges
The 8-5 vote by the state college system’s governing board will ultimately raise tuition by 12% at four-year institutions and 9% for two-year colleges.
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Deep Dive5 higher ed lawsuits to watch in 2026
The Trump administration is at the center of major unfolding litigation, from efforts to cap overhead research funding to attacks on Harvard University.
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US Department of Education. (2025). "03042025 SLM First day in the Office-3" [Photograph]. Retrieved from Flickr.
Education Department moves to overhaul accreditation regulations
The agency wants to make it easier for new accreditors to gain recognition and to curb diversity, equity and inclusion standards, per a Federal Register notice.
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How college leaders decide when to speak out
College presidents at the American Association of Colleges and Universities’ annual conference advised others to look to their mission as their North Star.
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Deep DiveDoes Northwestern’s $75M Trump deal stifle speech?
First Amendment experts break down the free speech implications of the heavily scrutinized agreement to restore the university’s research funding.
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‘The pace is relentless’: How college leaders are adapting to an increasingly hectic job
Senior higher education officials shared their strategies for tackling busy jobs at the American Association of Colleges and Universities′ annual conference.
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Cornell University lands $371.5M gift, the largest in its history
The pledge from software billionaire David Duffield, added to his $100 million gift last year, will go toward the Ivy League institution's engineering school.
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Florida proposal seeks 1-year pause on H-1B hires at public universities
The draft policy comes after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis directed the state’s public university system to end what he described as “H-1B abuse.”
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Education Department halts effort to implement controversial anti-DEI letter
The agency dropped its appeal of a court ruling against guidance aimed at ending race-based programs in colleges and schools.
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In rapid about-face, Morris Brown College brings back president it fired
The historically Black institution’s board said it didn’t comply with contractual and procedural requirements when it terminated Kevin James.
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University of Pennsylvania rebuffs EEOC demand for employee records
The Ivy League institution said it is objecting to creating lists of workers that would “reveal their Jewish faith or ancestry” over safety and other concerns.
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Federal policy uncertainty is disrupting planning, college leaders say
Concerns loom large about institutional autonomy and long-term financial viability, an American Council on Education survey found.
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Congress moves to reject Trump plan to slash Education Department funding
A bipartisan 2026 spending proposal from both legislative chambers would preserve funding for a litany of student support programs.
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Deep DiveTrump 2.0’s impact on higher ed: The first year in 8 numbers
A chaotic 2025 brought dozens of federal college probes, thousands of revoked international student visas, and billions in threatened research funding.
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Nevada public colleges eye tuition hikes to spare some 300 jobs
The state’s higher education system is considering a 12% tuition increase at four-year institutions and 9% for two-year colleges amid a looming funding gap.
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Hampshire College faces closure risk if it can’t refinance debt, audit says
The private Massachusetts institution is in financial distress once again after coming back from the brink of closure in 2019.
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Portland State agrees to reinstate 10 laid-off faculty members
Although officials are complying with a recent arbitration order, the university’s president contends the reductions were “necessary and appropriate.”
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The image by HaeB is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
California College of the Arts to close, Vanderbilt to take over campus
The expanding Tennessee university plans to keep alive aspects of the 120-year-old arts college’s legacy.
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Fall 2025 enrollment increased 1% — but the devil is in the details
Undergraduates drove growth, but graduate headcounts fell amid a loss of foreign students, per the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
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Retrieved from U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education Labor and Pensions.
Education Department launches 18 Title IX transgender athlete investigations
The new string of investigations into some colleges and schools comes on the heels of a U.S. Supreme Court hearing on the issue this week.
