Afternoon Update: Faculty outcry over two major academic publishers' deals with AI companies

Jerry Falwell Jr. and Liberty U. settle disputes; new enrollment data; DEI and Prophet Muhammad; anti-DEI steps at eight universities; and more. ADVERTISEMENT [Afternoon Update Logo]( You can also [read this newsletter on the web](. Or, if you no longer want to receive this newsletter, [unsubscribe](. INTELLECTUAL-PROPERTY DEBATE [Two Major Academic Publishers Signed Deals With AI Companies. Some Professors Are Outraged.]( By Christa Dutton [STORY IMAGE]( The agreements will allow tech giants access to the enormous archives of Wiley and Taylor & Francis. ADVERTISEMENT [Two Major Academic Publishers Signed Deals With AI Companies. Some Professors Are Outraged. ]( THE REVIEW [The Prophet Muhammad and DEI at San Francisco State]( By Len Gutkin [STORY IMAGE]( Plus: A long and ugly saga at Hamline comes to an end. DATA [Which College Groups Have the Highest Enrollment?]( [STORY IMAGE]( Statistical snapshots of bachelor’s degrees conferred by colleges in 32 disciplines over time, from 2018 to 2020. JUST UPDATED [Tracking Higher Ed’s Dismantling of DEI]( By Erin Gretzinger, Maggie Hicks, Christa Dutton, and Jasper Smith [STORY IMAGE]( This week’s update details how Purdue University’s four campuses, three University of Alabama campuses, and the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs are complying with new restrictions on diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. LEADERSHIP [4 Years After Resigning in Scandal, Jerry Falwell Jr. and Liberty U. Settle Disputes]( Falwell, a son of the Christian university’s co-founder, [quit as president amid a scandal]( involving his [wife and a young man](. Falwell, an early supporter of Donald Trump, also drew criticism as [diverting Liberty]( from its [evangelical priorities](. But under his leadership, [the Virginia university boomed](. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but both sides apologized. (The Washington Post, The Chronicle) CAMPUS CUTS [Facing $15-Million Deficit, U. of New Orleans Plans Cuts, Layoffs, and Closures]( The public university’s enrollment has plunged from 17,000 in 2003 to 6,600 last fall. Now more than 70 positions, most of them vacant, will be eliminated. Nine nontenured faculty and staff members will be laid off. Top officials will take pay cuts. And a building housing four departments will be closed. More retrenchment could be coming as a big cut in state support looms. (The Advocate) FACULTY [Most Instructors Do Not Feel Unsafe Teaching Sensitive Topics, Survey Finds]( The [faculty survey]( by researchers at Ithaka S+R, also found that a relatively small share of instructors avoid controversial issues in class for any reason. But initial survey data suggest differences in responses based on institutional type, discipline, and demographic group. 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