Advocate for student loan borrowers, Seth Frotman, has resigned from his position as student loan ombudsman with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Frotman was the government’s top official overseeing student loan market; student loan debt has ballooned to roughly $1.5 trillion this year.
New IRS rules that reduce the tax break that doners get for donating to the Alabama Accountability Act might impact state-supported private school scholarships for low-income students. Prior to the rules change, donors would get a dollar-for-dollar reduction on their income tax bill and also could claim a federal tax deduction.
Illinois Commitment, a University of Illinois program, is offering free tuition and fees to qualified in-state students to encourage them to go to college in state. Families of eligible students must have an income that is below $61,000 annually, and the free tuition and fees will cover eight semesters.
SUNY Oneonta implemented a new project that aims to help new students transition into college life with letters from alumni. Seventy letters were written to distribute to freshmen and transfer students. Students received letters from alumni that lived in the exact same dorm room when they attended the college.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have announced the first round of nearly $100 million to help middle and high schools in 13 states. This first round will benefit a specific 19 program initiatives, and Gates has also pledged $460 million over the next five years to fund programs to help low-income and minority students get into college.
Arizona Milk Producers have added a new component to their scholarship contest – online videos. The Arizona Milk Producers Scholarship Contest, which has been in existence for more than 50 years, is now having applicants create and share a :30 or less "Reel" Milk Moment video that features at least one dairy product.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded six California State University campuses $10 million to support Latino STEM Education fields. Fullerton, Northridge, Pomona, Sacramento, San Diego and Stanislaus are among the 31 colleges and universities to receive NSF’S first-ever grant program intended to increase retention and graduation rates for STEM students that are attending Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs).
Chemistry professor Guido Verbeck and one of his graduate students have spent the last nine years making PCP, fentanyl and meth. This drug-making, however, is all legal, and the drugs are being used to test a new type of breath analyzer.
This week's featured jobs on Hispanic Outlook's job board are: Dean, School of Business and Economics at Indiana University East; Dean, Soules College of Business at the University of Texas at Tyler; Dean, College of Population Heath at the University of New Mexico; and Professor, Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment at Princeton University.
All New York State public colleges at The State University of New York (SUNY) and The City University of New York (CUNY) will have a food pantry or stigma-free food access as part of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s Comprehensive “No Student Goes Hungry Program.”
Johns Hopkins University is giving financial aid to graduate student Daniela Gaona. Gaona is a part of the DACA program, however, a spokesperson for the university said the student being a part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is not a factor in such decisions.
Indiana University Southeast (IU Southeast) is one of a dozen college campuses nationally to receive federal grant money to help combat sexual violence. IU Southeast received $300,000, which will be used specifically for the New Albany campus. The money was awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women.
Three University of Florida area studies centers have received $5.9 million in major grants. The U.S. Department of Education Title VI Program has named UF’s African, European and Latin American studies centers Title VI Comprehensive National Resource Centers (NRC) and has awarded them Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship grants.
Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, is offering undergraduates whose parents, spouses or legal guardians work in “mission-centered” nonprofit and public-service jobs a 50 percent break in tuition. These jobs can include law enforcement professionals, teachers, church and faith-based employees, military personnel, and arts organizations workers.
Two hundred Colombians are slated to travel to Cuba in order to pursue medical degrees with the first group flying out today. The group of 200 include 22 former FARC rebels. This is all part of a scholarship program that is being financed by Cuba’s government.
