From faculty cuts at Dickinson State University to a for-profit college system's abrupt closure this week, here are the big numbers that stood out this week in higher education.
By the numbers
5
The number of tenured faculty Dickinson State will lay off as it projects a $1 million budget deficit. Opponents of a plan to cut academic programs say the president of the North Dakota university is using consolidation as an excuse to act against faculty who have spoken out against him.
700,000
Roughly how many students are projected to be kept from enrolling in low-performing college career programs as a result of the U.S. Department of Education’s final gainful employment rule. The agency Wednesday released its highly anticipated regulatory update, which is designed to protect career education program graduates from crippling student debt.
8
The number of remaining colleges that the Art Institutes abruptly announced it would shutter. The system once had dozens of campuses but faced years of declining enrollment and legal challenges.
360
About how many colleges agreed to adopt a common set of standards for making financial aid offers, as established by the College Cost Transparency Initiative. The initiative lobbies colleges to simplify their financial aid practices so students and families can more easily understand the process.
$53 billion
The downtime cost from ransomware attacks against the education sector in 2018 through mid-2023. This year is on track to break the record for most attacks against education institutions, a cybersecurity analysis found.
