From 2015 to 2022, visa denials for South American students rose sharply (from 10% to 24%), and African students were the most likely to be denied overall. However, demand remains stronger than ever, with the U.S. State Department setting a new record for student visas in 2022. Emi Tuyetnhi Tran examines the research for NBC. (July 2023) …
Leave a commentFederal prosecutors plan to seek a grand jury indictment of President Joe Biden’s son Hunter before the end of the month, according to court documents filed Wednesday. The filing came in a gun possession case in which Hunter Biden was accused of having a firearm while being a drug user, though prosecutors did not name exactly which charges they will seek. He has also been under investigation by federal prosecutors for his business dealings. Prosecutors under U.S. Attorney for Delaware David Weiss, newly named a special counsel in the case, said they expect an indictment before Sept. 29. Hunter Biden’smore
Leave a commentUS lawmakers face a long list of priorities as they return to work this week after their monthlong August recess. With battles looming over U.S. aid to Ukraine and a possible impeachment of President Joe Biden, the top concern remains funding the U.S. government to keep it from shutting down on Oct. 1. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more. …
Leave a commentAshley Villareal grew up in rural Kansas. Her parents didn’t have college degrees or know much English. Despite her outstanding grades, she seemed unlikely to make it to college – until a college counselor with a similar background stepped in to help. Read the inspiring story from Nick Fouriezos in USA Today. (July 2023) …
Leave a commentIf you plan to study medicine in the United States, you need to plan your finances first. Even schools that don’t carry the prestige of universities like Harvard or Stanford will require fees, tuition, books and materials, and you’ll need to cover living expenses for the eight years it takes to get an undergraduate and medical degree. The Education Desk of The Indian Express has some tips for helping students and parents prepare. (August 2023) …
Leave a commentThe University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill has forbidden the use of “race, sex, color and ethnicity” in admissions, in response to a Supreme Court decision that banned affirmative action there and at Harvard. However, the school will be free for all applicants whose families make less than $80,000. The Associated Press has the story. (July 2023) …
Leave a commentAll students at Indiana University are required to take a public speaking course. Now, they can practice their oratory in front of a simulated audience using a headset. The software judges the student’s skills, and the “audience” responds accordingly with boredom or interest. Ashley Mowreader breaks down the program in Inside Higher Ed. (July 2023) …
Leave a commentFrom $300 studded headboards and $100 coffee table books to custom-made cabinets to disguise your mini-fridge, students are spending big bucks to decorate their dorm rooms, adding yet another layer to the soaring costs of college. Some are even going so far as to hire interior designers to beautify their 12 feet by 20 feet of space. Lesley Lachman, 18, planned her furnishings for her dorm room with her roommate immediately after deciding to attend the University of Mississippi back in May. The Rye, New York resident scoured websites like Pinterest and designed her room herself — with hues ofmore
Leave a commentPoliticians and officials are sharing memories and reflections on the life of Bill Richardson following news of his death on Saturday. The two-term governor of the U.S. state of New Mexico, who served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and worked to free detained Americans, died in his sleep at his home in Chatham, Massachusetts. He was 75. In a statement Saturday, U.S. President Joe Biden said Richardson wore many weighty titles during his life – member of Congress, governor, ambassador, Cabinet secretary. “He seized every chance to serve and met every new challenge with joy, determined tomore
Leave a commentBillionaires, burner phones, alleged bribes: The impeachment trial of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is going to test the will of Republicans senators to oust not only one of their own, but a firebrand who has helped drive the state’s hard turn to the right for years. The historic proceedings set to start in the state Senate Tuesday are the most serious threat yet to one of Texas’ most powerful figures after nine years engulfed by criminal charges, scandal and accusations of corruption. If convicted, Paxton — just the third official in Texas’ nearly 200-year history to be impeached —more
Leave a commentU.S. President Joe Biden heads to Florida on Saturday to survey damage caused by Hurricane Idalia and comfort people affected by the storm, but he will not be meeting Ron DeSantis, the state’s Republican governor and a potential presidential rival. Biden, a Democrat, told reporters on Friday he would see the governor during the trip, but DeSantis’s spokesman Jeremy Redfern said later that no meeting was planned and that “the security preparations alone that would go into setting up such a meeting would shut down ongoing recovery efforts.” DeSantis, 44, is running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination to oustmore
Leave a commentMore than a dozen people nationally have been charged with threatening election workers by a Justice Department unit trying to stem the tide of violent and graphic threats against people who count and secure the vote. Government employees are being bombarded with threats even in normally quiet periods between elections, secretaries of state and experts warn. Some point to former President Donald Trump and his allies repeatedly and falsely claiming the 2020 election was stolen and spreading conspiracy theories about election workers. Experts fear the 2024 election could be worse and want the federal government to do more to protectmore
Leave a commentA one-time leader in the Proud Boys far-right extremist group has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for his role in the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, tying the record for the longest sentence in the attack. Ethan Nordean was one of several members convicted of spearheading an attack on the U.S. Capitol to try to prevent the peaceful transfer of power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden after the 2020 presidential election. Nordean was “the undisputed leader on the ground on January 6,” said prosecutor Jason McCullough. Prosecutors had asked the judge to sentence themore
Leave a commentU.S. colleges often slash thousands of dollars off the “sticker price” to entice students to enroll. The more options a student has, the bigger the discount a college needs to offer. However, the savings have disproportionately gone to white and Asian applicants. “Put merit in quotation marks,” says one admissions official. “It’s not really about rewarding students for their wonderful performance in high school, as much as it is trying to change that student’s enrollment decision.” Read more from Jill Barshay in The Hechinger Report. (July 2023) …
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