Afternoon Update: Why you shouldn’t quit your new doctoral program (yet)

The Freud resurgence; 350 colleges will make student-aid offers more transparent; university can be sued over off-campus rape, court says; 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](. ADVICE [Why You Shouldn’t Quit Your New Doctoral Program (Yet)]( By David D. Perlmutter [STORY IMAGE]( Too many students make a rash decision to leave graduate study during their first semester. ADVERTISEMENT THE REVIEW | ESSAY [What’s Behind the Freud Resurgence?]( By Hannah Zeavin [STORY IMAGE]( What should we make of the return of Sigmund Freud? RACE ON CAMPUS [Scholars Weigh In on the Flaws — and the Future — of Colleges’ DEI Efforts]( By Daarel Burnette II [STORY IMAGE]( In a series of Review essays, academics push higher ed to rethink how administrators fight racism on campus. STUDENT AID [Hundreds of Colleges Agree to Make Financial-Aid Offers More Transparent]( More than 350 institutions, including university systems in California and New York, said they would standardize the information in their award letters to undergraduate applicants. Their commitment to deal with [longstanding complaints]( about the [confusing letters]( is a significant move toward transparency. (The Washington Post, The Chronicle) KEY TITLE IX CASE [U. of Arizona Can Be Sued Over Off-Campus Sexual Abuse, Appeals Court Rules]( A student who was assaulted by a football player can sue the university for failing to respond to his pattern of violence against women, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled on Monday. Reversing a prior decision, [the court ruled]( 8 to 3, that the university had sufficient control over the athlete that it could be held liable for the 2016 assault, even though it happened off campus. (Reuters) FINANCES [How Columbia U. and NYU Benefit From Property-Tax Breaks]( As New York City’s budget tightens, its wealthiest universities are bigger and richer than ever — and largely tax-exempt. Now critics say it’s time for them to pay more in taxes or in lieu of taxes. It’s a [common lament]( in [major cities](. (The Hechinger Report/The New York Times, The Chronicle) FACULTY HIRING [SUNY-Buffalo Welcomes 154 New Faculty Members as It Bulks Up on Research]( The State University of New York campus, designated last year as a flagship, said this is its largest cohort of new professors since it joined the SUNY system, in the 1960s. (The Buffalo News) A CHECK OF REFERENCES [A Wisconsin Professor Handed Out Perfect Grades, Then Landed a Job on Another Campus]( After the University of Wisconsin-Parkside concluded that the tenured business professor had “engaged in fraudulent grading” from 2016 to 2022, she blamed unspecified medical problems for the grading errors and resigned. Then she joined the faculty at UW’s Milwaukee campus, which knew nothing about what had happened at Parkside. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) COLLEGE IN TROUBLE [Faculty Members Call for Investigation of Management at Union Institute]( Many employees of the Cincinnati university, which canceled its fall term amid legal, financial, and accreditation problems, have not been paid in more than two months, and health benefits were recently terminated without notice. The Faculty Council is demanding a forensic fiscal audit. (WVXU) CAMPUS SAFETY [Baffling Some Students, Texas A&M-San Antonio Puts Sex-Assault Message on Knives]( Among the swag available to students last month at a university-sponsored event was a keychain-pocketknife from the Title IX office with the slogan “Jags get consent.” (The university’s mascot is the jaguar.) [One senior asked]( if the giveaway meant students should fight off assailants with the knives. (San Antonio Express-News, The Mesquite) 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. REGISTER NOW [The Chronicle's Women Leading Change Program] [Join us in September]( for a groundbreaking virtual leadership series that will provide critical context, creative strategies, and guided exercises for women in leadership roles across higher ed. [Reserve your spot today!]( Virtual Events: Tune In Live STUDENT SUCCESS [New Strategic Directions for Student Success]( [STORY IMAGE]( UPCOMING: September 27, 2023 | 2 p.m. ET: Ensuring positive student outcomes is a challenge for colleges. Join us to learn more about strategies for achieving that goal. With Support From Ellucian. 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