Jon Marcus@JonMarcusBoston

Higher education editor, The Hechinger Report @hechingerreport or reach out at jmarcus@hechingerreport.org

 Boston
hechingerreport.org
Joined May 2009
16 Photos and videos
"It’s a place where you do have a meaningful relationship with your faculty members. But you also take out your own trash." How some innovators are reinventing college. tinyurl.com/mus29pdc

Business, government and education leaders try to reinvent college from scratch

A new model emphasizes hands-on learning while stripping away frills that increase costs

hechingerreport.org
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Jon Marcus retweeted
Washington Journal
@cspanwj
Aug 22
.@hechingerreport's Jon Marcus (@JonMarcusBoston) joins us to discuss the quality of higher education institutions in the U.S. Watch here: tinyurl.com/4v4ytb4y
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Jon Marcus retweeted
Washington Monthly
@monthly
Aug 17
High costs, political attacks take a toll as fewer students come, top scholars leave. Once globally preeminent, U.S. universities are sliding into decline, @JonMarcusBoston of @hechingerreport writes. washingtonmonthly.com/2026/0…

Once Globally Preeminent, U.S. Universities Are Sliding Into Decline

U.S. colleges are losing their edge as cuts, high costs, fewer international students, and departing scholars weaken American universities.

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As a new academic year begins, data and international rankings show that one of America's globally preeminent industries — higher education — is now incontrovertibly in decline. tinyurl.com/d2287tzc

Once globally preeminent, U.S. universities are sliding into decline

High costs, political attacks take a toll as fewer students come, top scholars leave

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A conversation with USA Today about colleges closing. piped.video/watch?v=GXfxl7ou…

Why hundreds of private American colleges are shutting down | The...

When Vermont’s Sterling College shut down, it brought into focus a ...

youtube.com
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Jon Marcus retweeted
Washington Monthly
@monthly
Jul 23
Facing political attack and falling enrollment, colleges take the fight to … each other. @JonMarcusBoston of @hechingerreport on how competition is intensifying among schools and recruiters for a dwindling pool of students. washingtonmonthly.com/2026/0…

Facing Political Attack and Falling Enrollment, Colleges Take the Fight to … Each Other

As Americans have fewer children, competition is intensifying among institutions and recruiters for a dwindling pool of students.

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Under political attack and facing enrollment declines, colleges and universities are taking the fight to ... each other. tinyurl.com/3pw242dc

Facing political attack and falling enrollment, colleges take the fight to … each other

Competition is intensifying among institutions and recruiters for a dwindling supply of students

hechingerreport.org
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Hello Monday! Joining Zerlina: Higher Education Journalist @JonMarcusBoston, Former U.S. Rep. & Author of the new book LIFE OF THE PARTY @JoeCunninghamSC + UCLA History Professor & Writer Robin D. G. Kelley! ☎️866-997-4748 📻@SiriusXMProg Ch. 127 siriusxm.us/Zerlina
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How long-sought, bipartisan reforms to higher education have actually emerged, even as the sector is under political attack. tinyurl.com/36jkubfh

Behind ideological attacks on higher ed, surprising bipartisan reforms are happening

Long sought by both the right and left, some changes could protect consumers and lower costs

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“Everyone is on board to make it less complicated." How, in an era of falling enrollment, once-intimidating admissions officers are making sure accepted students have what they need to actually show up. tinyurl.com/mr3ceava @hechingerreport

College admissions offices take on a new role: Coaxing accepted students to show up

How a buyer’s market is transforming college admissions, even for students already admitted

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After suffering largely in silence through funding cuts and culture wars attacks, higher education is slowly trying to reclaim the narrative. shorturl.at/V4d7v @hechingerreport

Their value attacked and funding cut, universities and colleges start fighting back

After letting critics commandeer the message, higher education is trying to wrestle it back

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You can see it when you take your pets to the vet or your kids to the dentist, need a lawyer or an eye exam, see a therapist or pick up a prescription: Women now outnumber men in study toward all of these fields. @hechingerreport tinyurl.com/353buc94

Women far outnumber men in law school, med school, vet school and other professional programs 

Men have stopped opting into programs that lead to many top professions

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"The idea of males, including white males, being at the short end of the stick all of a sudden would be a truly ironic outcome.” How a Trump administration anti-DEI policy threatens an advantage in college admission for men. tinyurl.com/4325d3e6 @hechingerreport

Trump’s attacks on DEI may hurt men in college admission  

Attacks on racial preferences are also targeting gender, where male applicants have had an admissions advantage for decades

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The U.S. isn't the only place where international students are facing pushback. tinyurl.com/2pcj6d98

International Students Need Not Apply

Amid shifting attitudes on immigration worldwide, major English-speaking countries are erecting policy barriers to students from abroad

educationnext.org
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"I’ve always worried about Massachusetts being a little too complacent about our position in the academic world." The world of pain headed for Boston as a result of pushback against international college students. tinyurl.com/48syhs7n
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More than half of colleges that have closed since 2020 were religiously affiliated, which are among the institutions most imperiled by enrollment and financial challenges. tinyurl.com/5ax3pr3e @hechingerreport
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"We're kind of on an island where we only have the community college." How community colleges are adding four-year bachelor's degrees to fill rural higher education deserts. tinyurl.com/yc5awvy3 @hechingerreport

More states are allowing community colleges to offer bachelor's degrees

Diminishing access to four-year universities and majors has been holding rural students back. Community colleges say they can bridge the gap.

npr.org
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How the success of universities and colleges may now largely depend on enrolling Hispanic students -- something they have not historically done well. @hechingerreport tinyurl.com/bddajswy

As colleges lose enrollment, some turn to one market that’s growing: Hispanic students

Long neglected, Hispanic high school grads are getting attention because colleges need them. So far, anti-DEI sentiment hasn’t gotten in the way

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How online classes, which held the promise of making higher education cheaper, have somehow ended up costing the same as or more than in-person college. tinyurl.com/mrwe3jrp @hechingerreport

Most college students are taking online classes, but they’re paying just as much as in-person...

Rather than lowering the price, some universities use online courses to subsidize everything else

hechingerreport.org
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Jon Marcus retweeted
MDRC@MDRC_News
8 Jan 2025
A looming 'demographic cliff': Fewer college students and ultimately fewer graduates, reports @JonMarcusBoston @hechingerreport for @NPR. npr.org/2025/01/08/nx-s1-524…

A looming 'demographic cliff': Fewer college students and ultimately fewer graduates

The long-predicted downturn in the number of 18-year-olds is almost here. And it isn't just a problem for higher education. It's a looming crisis for the economy.

npr.org
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