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☆ A Warning to the C-Suite on Racial Preferences
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( The Editorial Board | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

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Persons: Dow Jones, skrmetti, kobach

☆ Students, What Questions About Paying for College Can We Answer?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( The New York Times | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The college admissions process is a fraught one, to put it mildly. But there is one subject that often dominates the discussion: paying for college. Are you a student in the United States applying — or even just considering it? If so, what questions do you have about paying for it? Are work-study programs worth it?

Locations: United States

Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX) speaks during a press conference on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with members of the House Freedom Caucus on July 14, 2023 in Washington, DC. The House narrowly passed an annual defense policy bill on Friday after Republicans added provisions on abortion and transgender surgeries — measures that were a nonstarter for Democrats. The amendments, adopted Thursday, would ban the secretary of defense from paying for or reimbursing service members for abortion-related expenses and transgender surgeries and hormone treatments. House Democratic leaders said Thursday that members of their caucus will vote against passing the bill. The defense legislation will eventually need to be reconciled with a version of the bill under consideration in the Senate.

Persons: Ronny Jackson, Ken Buck, Ken Buck of Colorado, Andy Biggs, Eli Crane of, Thomas Massie of, Henry Cuellar, John Duarte of, Brian Fitzpatrick, Matt Rosendale, Joe Biden's, Hakeem Jeffries, Sen, Tommy Tuberville, Scott Perry, We're, Perry, Pete Aguilar, I've, Pat Ryan Organizations: National Defense, Caucus, Democrats, Four, Rep, Texas Democrat, Republicans, Department of Defense, Defense Department, Democratic, House Democratic, Senate, GOP, House Armed Services Committee Locations: Washington ,, Ken Buck of, Eli Crane of Arizona, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Texas, John Duarte of California, Pennsylvania, D

☆ Fueling Jets With Trash? Investment Flows Into Sustainable Aviation Fuel
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Supreme Court Bans Affirmative Action: What It Means for College Admissions The Supreme Court has banned colleges from using race as admission criteria, essentially ending affirmative action. California did the same 25 years ago. WSJ explains how what happened then can offer a roadmap for what could happen now. / Photo Illustration: Madeline Marshall

Persons: Madeline Marshall Organizations: College Locations: California

July 13 (Reuters) - A group of Republican U.S. state attorney generals on Thursday warned the country's largest companies that certain workforce diversity policies could be illegal in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision effectively striking down affirmative action in higher education. The attorney generals urged the companies to abandon race-based quotas or preferences in hiring, promotion and contracting and threatened legal action "sooner rather than later" if they do not. "Companies that engage in racial discrimination should and will face serious legal consequences," the attorney generals wrote. They were joined by the attorney generals of Indiana, South Carolina and Missouri, among others. But in Thursday's letter, the attorney generals said well-intentioned race discrimination is still illegal.

Persons: Kris Kobach, Jonathan Skrmetti, Harvard University's, Neil Gorsuch, George Floyd, Daniel Wiessner, Alexia Garamfalvi, Alistair Bell Organizations: Republican, U.S, Companies, Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp, Uber Technologies Corp, Harvard, University of North, Federal, Thomson Locations: Republican U.S, U.S ., Kansas, Tennessee, Indiana , South Carolina, Missouri, Albany , New York

☆ Why Republican lawmakers are going after Target
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

In singling out Target, GOP lawmakers and right-wing social media personalities are sending a larger warning to corporate America to roll back recent diversity and inclusion policies, analysts say. Target first began its diversity initiatives 20 years ago and added new policies in 2020. Such efforts to curb gun violence have run into fierce pushback from Republican lawmakers who oppose both gun restrictions and corporations taking on social roles. Now, Republicans are stepping up their scrutiny on companies’ diversity efforts in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action in college admissions. It is also likely to invite legal challenges to corporate DEI programs, as Cotton’s letter to Target foreshadows.

Persons: ”, Julian Zelizer, isn’t, ” Zelizer, Brandon Bell, Getty Images Arkansas Sen, Tom Cotton, Cotton, Andra Gillespie, “, He’s, Sen, Matt Walsh, George Floyd, “ It’s, Brian Cornell, Bud, They’ve, Chick, Bud Light, Ron DeSantis Organizations: New, New York CNN, Target, Princeton University, CNN, GOP, Walmart, Democratic, Getty Images Arkansas, Republican, Equity, Emory University, Republicans, Twitter, America Corporate America, ”, Disney, Nike, Companies, Florida Gov, America, Facebook, Corporate America, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Citigroup, Black, Fortune Locations: New York, America, Black, Cotton’s, Arkansas, Minneapolis, Emplifi, Parkland , Florida, El Paso , Texas, Dayton , Ohio

Two weeks ago, the United States Supreme Court struck down affirmative action, declaring that the race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard and the University of North Carolina were unlawful. Today, three people whose lives were changed by affirmative action discuss the complicated feelings they have about the policy.

Organizations: United States Supreme, Harvard, University of North Locations: University of North Carolina

☆ In California, a Math Problem: Does Data Science = Algebra II?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Amy Harmon | More About Amy Harmon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Since 2020, California has led a contentious experiment in high school math. — loosened their admissions criteria, telling high schools that they would consider applicants who had skipped Algebra II, a cornerstone of math instruction. In its place, students could take data science — a mix of math, statistics and computer science without widely agreed upon high school standards. Allowing data science, the universities said, was an “equity issue” that could send more students to college. On Wednesday, the State Board of Education voted to remove its endorsement of data science as a substitute for Algebra II as part of new guidelines for K-12 schools.

Persons: —, Linda Darling, Hammond Organizations: State Board of Education Locations: California, Berkeley

☆ Biden's approval rating lingers at 40%, economy remains top worry, Reuters/Ipsos poll shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Josephine Walker | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, July 12 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden's public approval rating held steady at 40% in early July, close to the lowest levels of his presidency, as economic worries continued to trouble Americans, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll this week. and ended on Monday, showed a marginal decrease from his 41% approval rating a month earlier, within the survey's three percentage point margin of error. Respondents were evenly split in their views of the Supreme Court's decision last month to strike down Biden's student loan forgiveness program, with 49% supporting the decision and 48% opposed. The poll was conducted following the high court’s term, which saw the court strike down college affirmative action programs as well as Biden's student debt plan. The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online, in English, and collected responses from 1,028 adults, using a nationally representative sample.

Persons: Joe Biden's, Joe Biden, Donald Trump's, Barack Obama, Republican George W, Bush, Josephine Walker, Scott Malone, Alistair Bell Organizations: Reuters, Democratic, Republican, Supreme, Thomson

☆ Nearly 1.5 million taxpayers are 'leaving money on the table' as key tax deadline nears, advisor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Kate Dore | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

There's a key tax deadline approaching for past-due filers, with an estimated $1.5 billion in unclaimed refunds up for grabs. Nearly 1.5 million taxpayers still have pending refunds from 2019, with a median payment worth $893, according to the IRS. The last chance to file or amend 2019 returns to claim your money is July 17. Filing 2019 returns could yield "thousands of dollars," Lucas said, especially for those claiming the so-called earned income tax credit, a tax break for low- to moderate-income workers. The earned income tax credit is "refundable" because you'll still qualify for a refund when the credit exceeds taxes owed.

Persons: Tommy Lucas, Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo, Franklin, Lucas, you'll Organizations: Finance Locations: Orlando , Florida

Tom Schroeder, the whistleblower accusing Medtronic of a kickback scheme, left, is interviewed by Morgan Brennan, in Kansas City, Missouri. Schroeder said rumors circulated that Medtronic sales representatives were bribing VA staff to purchase an excessive amount of the company's inventory. The veterans hospital purchased more devices than some of the largest veterans medical facilities, according to data the VA's investigation gathered. Medtronic also said that Schroeder has "admitted under oath that he has no firsthand knowledge of any problematic procedure involving Medtronic devices." Douglas Winger, one of the Medtronic sales representatives named as a defendant in Schroeder's lawsuit, won a Medtronic President's Club award in 2016 for his sales.

Persons: Tom Schroeder, Schroeder, Becton Dickinson, Medtronic, Morgan Brennan, Schroder, Boua Xiong, Robert J, texted, Rick Ament, Ament, filet mignon, …, I'm, Brendan Donelon, Donelon, CNBC Donelon, Xiong, Douglas Winger, Winger, Kim Hodgson, Hodgson, Dole, ProPublica, John Laird Organizations: Inc, CNBC, Dole Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Dole VA, Department of Veterans Affairs, United, VA's, Department of Justice, Covidien, Dole, Medtronic, Society for Vascular, Drug Administration, FDA Locations: Kansas, United States, Kansas City , Missouri, Dublin, Ireland, Medtronic's, Wichita ., Dole, Covidien, Medtronic, Dole VA

☆ Harvard Discriminates Against Middle-Class Kids
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Allysia Finley | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Wonder Land: Democrats said decades ago they alone would run policies for black Americans. Now comes the reckoning. Images: AP/Getty Images Composite: Mark KellyWhen the Supreme Court struck down racial preferences in college admissions, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson accused her colleagues of having “let-them-eat-cake obliviousness.” Her assessment of the case is as confused as the metaphor. It is Harvard and other elite schools that have been behaving like snooty royalty. Now they will no longer be able to have their cake and eat it too.

Persons: Mark Kelly, Ketanji Brown Jackson Organizations: Harvard

☆ Affirmative Action Bred 50 Years of ‘Mismatch’
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Heather Mac Donald | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Wonder Land: Democrats said decades ago they alone would run policies for black Americans. Now comes the reckoning. Images: AP/Getty Images Composite: Mark KellyJustice Sonia Sotomayor had harsh words for her colleagues who voted last month to bar the use of race in college admissions. She alleged in her dissenting opinion that the six-justice majority in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard had subverted the Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection under the law, not upheld it, by “further entrenching racial inequality in education.” Chief Justice John Roberts ’s majority opinion slammed shut the door of opportunity to underrepresented minorities, especially black students, who still fight against a society that is “inherently unequal,” she wrote.

Persons: Mark Kelly Justice Sonia Sotomayor, “, John Roberts ’, ” Organizations: Harvard

☆ What the Supreme Court’s decision on affirmative action could mean for legacy applicants
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

watch nowAfter the Supreme Court's ruling on the affirmative action admission policies of Harvard and the University of North Carolina, decades-old legacy preferences are facing new challenges. The court's ruling was considered a massive blow to efforts to boost enrollment of minorities at American universities through policies that considered applicants' race. Fewer people think legacy should factor into admissionsToday, more Americans disagree with legacy admissions. "This preferential treatment overwhelmingly goes to white applicants and harms efforts to diversify color," added Michael Kippins, litigation fellow at Lawyers for Civil Rights. Legacy admissions 'could be deemed unconstitutional'

Persons: Ivan Espinoza, Madrigal, Michael Kippins, Ivory Toldson, Alvin Tillery, Don Harris, Harris, John Roberts Organizations: Harvard, University of North, Harvard University, Civil Rights, Pew Research, NAACP, Northwestern's Center, Diversity, Diversity and Democracy, Supreme, Temple University School of Law Locations: University of North Carolina, Massachusetts

☆ After Affirmative Action, How Far Will the Supreme Court Go With Colorblindness? - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Sonja B. Starr | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Last month the Supreme Court sharply curtailed the use of race-based affirmative action in higher education. That’s a big deal, but it’s by no means the end of the campaign to eliminate race-conscious policies in education and elsewhere. Is it ever permissible for policymakers to pursue goals like racial diversity, even when they use laws and policies that don’t treat individuals differently based on race? They concern the admissions policies of highly selective public high schools that sought greater racial diversity through race-neutral means, like showing a preference for poor applicants. The implication of these cases for the future of higher education has already begun to attract some public attention — and for good reason.

Persons: it’s

☆ Look at What John Roberts and His Supreme Court Have Wrought Over 18 Years - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Linda Greenhouse | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

The justices have simply replaced Chevron’s rule of judicial deference with its polar opposite, a new rule that goes by the name of the major questions doctrine. But how to tell a major question from an ordinary one? The Heller decision in 2008 opened the Second Amendment door a crack, granting individuals the right to keep a handgun at home for self-defense. The question in the case is whether the Second Amendment allows the government to bar gun ownership by an individual under a restraining order for domestic violence. That the answer actually might be “no” — domestic violence wasn’t even a concept in the 18th century, when the Second Amendment was adopted — is too astonishing to contemplate.

Persons: Dobbs, Roe, Casey, Roberts’s, Thomas, ”, Neil Gorsuch, “, Heller, Chafing, can’t, wasn’t, — Organizations: Jackson, Health Organization, Wade, Chevron, Biden administration’s Locations: United States

☆ Opinion: The election that couldn’t happen in high school
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Richard Galant | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

CNN —In the classic 1999 film, “Election,” the high school student government vote has everything: naked ambition, campaign poster shredding, ballot manipulation, infidelity and more. But what the gifted writer Tom Perotta likely couldn’t imagine was an election in which two unpopular candidates square off for president. That doesn’t happen in high school, even in a satirical movie. The president supports stripping that state of its first-in-the-nation primary status in favor of South Carolina, the state that energized Biden’s 2020 campaign. “In the runup to the 2024 elections, Democrats plan to put the Supreme Court on trial,” wrote David Mark.

Persons: Reese Witherspoon, Tracy Flick, ” Matthew Broderick, Jim McAllister, Tracy, Tom Perotta, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Trump, Harry Enten, “, Julian Zelizer, ” Biden, Biden, specter, … ” Dana Summers, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, — Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter, George H.W, Bush —, Kennedy, ”, MAGA, Sen, Lindsey Graham’s, Trump’s, Dean Obeidallah, Graham, Michael Flynn, Flynn, Peter Bergen, Erik German, Bill Bramhall, ” “ Flynn, ‘, America’s, …, Geoff Duncan, Drew Sheneman, Roe, Wade, David Mark, … ” Lisa Benson, GoComics.com, Biden romped, Jack Ohman, Kara Alaimo, Coles Whalen, ’, Alice Driver, Clay Jones, Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Meta, David Zurawik, Victoria, Olesya Khromeychuk, Victoria Amelina, Andrei Kartapolov, Sharp, ” Khromeychuk, ” Don’t, Sheikh Mohammed Al, Issa, David A, Nicole Hemmer, Jill Filipovic, Sonia Pruitt, Lynda Lin Grigsby, Sara Stewart, Jharrel Jerome, Boots Riley, Holly Thomas, Phoebe Waller, Indiana Jones, Harrison Ford, He’s, goddaughter Helena, Archimedes, Jones, Waller Organizations: CNN, Capitol, Trump, Biden, Agency, Republicans, RFK Jr, New, ”, FBI, Economic, Republican National, Republican Party, GOP, Democratic, McKinsey & Company, Twitter, Facebook, Russian Duma Defense, Hollywood, “, Indy Locations: New Hampshire, South Carolina, ” Bergen, German, Davos, Georgia, California, “, Russian, Ukrainian, Kramatorsk, Ukraine, New York, Donetsk, Auschwitz, Here’s, Oakland , California

☆ Republican presidential candidate Doug Burgum says he does not want to engage in 'every culture war topic'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum reacts during an event for announcing he enters the 2024 presidential race, joining a growing field of candidates hoping to topple Donald Trump and secure the Republican nomination, in Fargo, North Dakota, U.S. June 7, 2023. North Dakota governor and Republican presidential candidate Doug Burgum (R-N.D.) discussed his 2024 platform in a Sunday interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" in his latest effort to gain recognition with voters. Burgum believes in limited government and has stressed his focus on repairing the U.S. economy, energy policy and national security rather than engaging in "every culture war topic." Burgum is vying against 11 other Republican presidential bids including frontrunner and former president Donald Trump, who Burgum noted in the interview he would not do business with. The meetings have been aimed at stabilizing relations between the two countries amid talks of tightening U.S. investments in China.

Persons: Doug Burgum, Donald Trump, Burgum, Elon Musk, Janet Yellen Organizations: Republican, RealClear, Quinnipiac University Locations: Dakota, Fargo , North Dakota, U.S, North Dakota, China, United States

☆ Harvard’s Stages of Grief Over Affirmative Action
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Ruth R. Wisse | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Wonder Land: Democrats said decades ago they alone would run policies for black Americans. Now comes the reckoning. Images: AP/Getty Images Composite: Mark KellyAlmost immediately after the Supreme Court announced its ruling for the plaintiffs in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, I received several emails about the decision. From Harvard’s president-elect, Claudine Gay , a message of shared grief: “Today is a hard day, and if you are feeling the gravity of that, I want you to know you’re not alone.” A personal message from a former student: “Today is a great day in the life of the country.”

Persons: Mark Kelly, Claudine Gay, you’re, ” Organizations: Supreme, Harvard

☆ Opinion | The John Roberts Two-Step
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Jamelle Bouie | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

“Before Brown, schoolchildren were told where they could and could not go to school based on the color of their skin,” the chief justice wrote in Parents Involved. “Brown did not raise the issue of whether states could use race-conscious classifications to integrate schools,” wrote the legal scholar Joel K. Goldstein in a 2008 analysis and critique of Roberts’ opinion in Parents Involved. This, you might say, is the Roberts two-step. What’s left is the mark of racism, that is, race. A landmark case about the legitimacy of race hierarchy — Brown v. Board of Education — becomes, in Roberts’s hands, a case about the use of race in school placement.

Persons: Brown, Roberts, “ Brown, ”, Joel K, Goldstein, Roberts’s, “, Karen, Barbara Fields, —, What’s, — Brown, Education — Organizations: Fair, of Education, Education Locations: Brown, America

With the Supreme Court decision banning race-conscious affirmative action, the college admissions process is about to change for everyone. Hundreds of colleges have stopped requiring standardized tests, essays are likely to be much more important, and admissions decisions could become much more subjective. We asked readers to send us their questions about college admissions, and answered a few of them below. I’ve won prizes in an extracurricular activity. But we ran your question by Terry Mady-Grove, a college admissions consultant based in Port Washington, N.Y. She said it was highly unlikely that one extracurricular activity alone would propel you into a Top 20 college.

Persons: I’ve, I’m, — Jackson Urrutia, Terry Mady Locations: Columbia, Andrews, Folsom, Calif, That’s, Grove, Port Washington, N.Y

☆ After the Affirmative Action Ruling, Asian Americans Ask What Happens Next
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Anemona Hartocollis | More About Anemona Hartocollis | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Even so, she said she believed the court’s ruling was wrong. “Why would you shut the entire thing down?” she asked. Students already feel pressure to write about hardship, said Rushil Umaretiya, who will go to the University of North Carolina in the fall. Even before the decision, he had seen anxious classmates at his selective high school, Thomas Jefferson High School, in Alexandria, Va., making up stories about facing racial injustice. “I think college admissions has really dipped into this fad of trauma dumping,” he said.

Persons: ”, “, John G, Roberts, Rushil Umaretiya, Roy Rogers, Thomas Organizations: ”, University of North, Thomas Jefferson High School Locations: University of North Carolina, Alexandria, Va

☆ To boost diversity after the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions, UNC will offer free tuition to some in-state students
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

UNC said it would soon offer free tuition to in-state undergrads whose families earn less than $80,000. The policy change is set to begin with students who will enter the university in the fall of 2024. UNC announced the plan after the Supreme Court struck down the use of affirmative action in admissions. "We will expand the university's long-standing commitment to access and affordability for North Carolina families," he said. In the class of 2026, which entered the university last fall, 49% of the students were North Carolina natives, and 32% received need-based financial aid.

Persons: Kevin Guskiewicz, Guskiewicz Organizations: UNC, Service, University of North, North, Chapel Hill, University, Harvard Locations: Wall, Silicon, University of North Carolina, North Carolina

☆ At Harvard, Affirmative Action Shouldn’t Be Just Black and White - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Farhad Manjoo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

The other officer cut to the important question — the student’s skin color: “Brown?”“Heck no. doesn’t know what race a person of Middle Eastern descent is, should it really be making decisions based on race? Asian Americans scored better than other groups on academic and extracurricular measures, but Harvard’s admissions officers consistently gave Asians lower “personal” ratings than members of other groups. Harvard’s use of such subjective criteria to curb the number of Asian students admitted smacked of its efforts a century ago to keep out Jewish applicants it deemed unworthy of its “character and fitness” standards. In dissent, the three liberal justices argued persuasively that the court’s ruling might significantly reduce enrollment of Black and Hispanic students at elite colleges.

Persons: Brown, ”, Heck, “, ’, David Bernstein, persuasively, Richard Arum, Mitchell Stevens Organizations: Harvard, Federal, Court, The Times Locations: Asian, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, America

The court's conservative majority has taken an expansive view of Second Amendment rights in a nation facing persistent gun violence including mass shootings. The court has widened gun rights in three major rulings since 2008. "The stakes are high for those experiencing domestic violence if violent partners can legally possess firearms," Lungwitz said. The National Rifle Association, an influential gun rights group, did not respond to a request for comment. "By removing those kinds of considerations, it makes constitutional law - and Second Amendment law, in particular - even more removed from the way that ordinary citizens think about constitutional protections."

Persons: Joe Biden's, Zackey Rahimi, Rahimi, Janet Carter, Bruen, James Ho, Donald Trump, Elizabeth Prelogar, Lungwitz, Jacob Charles, Charles, John Kruzel, Will Dunham, Scott Malone Organizations: U.S, Supreme, New York, Circuit, Appeals, Republican, University of Texas School, Law's, Violence, Democratic, National Rifle Association, Pepperdine University Caruso School of, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, Texas, New York, New Orleans

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