Afternoon Update: Florida Senate passes watered-down slate of higher-ed changes

Rutgers and striking unions reach deal; Savannah State cuts staff after president quits; critics pan academe's influence on Supreme Court; and more. ADVERTISEMENT [Afternoon Update Logo]( Did someone forward you this newsletter? [Sign up free]( to receive your own copy. You can now read The Chronicle on [Apple News]( [Flipboard]( and [Google News](. IN THE STATES [Florida Senate Passes a Watered-Down Slate of Higher-Education Changes]( The legislation would ban certain course materials, give boards and presidents more power to hire and fire, and erode tenure. But [unlike a similar bill]( in the House, it would require tenure appeals to respect faculty contracts; would let leaders delegate hiring and firing to others, as they do now; would [permit diversity, equity, and inclusion programs]( if an accreditor requires them; and would allow upper-level courses in critical race theory. The Senate also approved a bill to [bar public colleges]( from accepting grants from China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria, and Venezuela. (Tampa Bay Times/Open Campus, The Chronicle, The Capitolist) ADVERTISEMENT THE REVIEW [Is Neutrality Neutering College Presidents?]( By Len Gutkin [STORY IMAGE]( What Kwame Anthony Appiah can tell us about the university and politics. ACADEMIC LABOR [Rutgers U. and Its Unions Reach Tentative Agreement on Issues That Led to Strike]( The deal, which union members will vote on soon, includes raises retroactive to last July, office space and more job security for adjuncts, guaranteed funding for graduate students, a ban on caste discrimination, and faculty fellowships to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. Before an initial agreement was reached, in mid-April, the [walkout]( had canceled classes for 67,000 students on three campuses. (NJ.com, The Chronicle) FACULTY [Michigan State’s Policy Left Pitt in the Dark on Professor’s Past Misconduct]( Students and faculty members at the University of Pittsburgh are grappling with the disclosure of a new professor’s past drunken sexual misconduct and a lack of communication about it from their institution, while officials at Michigan State are re-evaluating a system that allowed him to [move]( to Pitt [unscathed](. The Michigan State business dean’s failure to report the incident to the Title IX office cost him his job, a controversy that played a role in the recent [upheaval in leadership]( at the university. (The State News/The Pitt News, The Chronicle) LEADERSHIP [Savannah State U. Cuts Staff and Freezes Hiring a Day After President Resigns]( The university, Georgia’s oldest public historically Black institution, laid off 23 employees on Friday, part of efforts to deal with financial challenges caused by declining enrollment and a resulting drop in state funding. Kimberly Ballard-Washington announced she was stepping down after four years as president. (Savannah Morning News) DEPARTURES [Faculty Members Resign From Henderson State’s Nursing School Over Its Future]( The seven resignations occurred as the Arkansas university continued to work through its [financial-exigency process]( which prompted [sweeping cuts]( last year. (KTHV, The Chronicle) FRIENDS OF THE COURT [Critics Say Academe Has ‘Troubling’ Influence With the Supreme Court]( Free travel and honoraria from top universities have raised questions about their use of their ample resources to gain access to the justices — a play at prestige and advocacy that has contributed to charges of influence-peddling at the court. One [rising example]( is the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University, a public institution in Virginia. (ABC News, The New York Times) STUDENTS [Defendant in Hazing Case at U. of Missouri at Columbia Takes Plea Deal]( A former member of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, Thomas A. Shultz, pleaded guilty to supplying alcohol to a minor, a misdemeanor, at a 2021 party. A freshman at the event, Danny Santulli, was left blind, unable to speak or walk, and brain-damaged after he drank a liter of vodka. Shultz was sentenced to 30 days in jail, a year of probation, and 100 hours of community service. (KMIZ) FINANCES [Xavier U. of Ohio Settles With Students Over Pandemic Shift to Remote Learning]( An estimated 494 students who were enrolled in the university’s College of Nursing in 2020 could get some of their tuition back, after Xavier agreed to pay $750,000 to settle a lawsuit claiming that its online instruction was inferior to what the students had paid to receive in face-to-face classes. (WCPO) TECHNOLOGY [Cyberattack at Bluefield U., in Virginia, Leads to Postponed Finals]( The university said it had shut down its computer systems in order to deal with the attack, which originated in its email system. (WVVA) EVENTS [Browse Upcoming and On-Demand Virtual Events]( [STORY IMAGE]( Join a discussion with national experts and leading practitioners on how to navigate an uncertain future and what new ideas your institution can pursue. NEWSLETTER [Sign Up for the Teaching Newsletter]( Find insights to improve teaching and learning across your campus. Delivered on Thursdays. To read this newsletter as soon as it sends, [sign up]( to receive it in your email inbox. UPCOMING PROGRAM [The Chronicle's Strategic-Leadership Program for Department Chairs] [Join us in June]( for a virtual professional development program which will provide the space, time, and tools to help department chairs take on the challenges and opportunities of the role. 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