The Department of Education's announcement of new policy concerning the evaluation of college desegregation efforts could affect the monitoring of compliance in several states in which court-ordered desegregation plans have expired. The higher standards are based on the 1992 Supreme Court ruling, United States v. Fordice. (MSE)

A Missouri proposal that parents be allowed to set up special savings accounts for their children's college education that would be exempt from state income tax is described. It is compared to a plan in Michigan that allows parents to prepay tuition at colleges in the state. (MLW)

A federal appeals court has ruled that there are legitimate reasons a state can operate a single-sex college, provided appropriate programs exist for men and women. Virginia Military Institute provides "adversative" education, grueling physical training without privacy, that would suffer if women were admitted. A proposed separate…

A highly divided federal appeals court has ordered that South Carolina allow a woman to enter the Citadel, an all-male military college, unless it establishes a comparable program for women or allows the Citadel to become a private institution. Litigation arose over the Citadel's rejection of a woman applicant. (MSE)

Serving as a special master of a federal court, Paul R. Verkuil, the president of the College of William and Mary, developed a plan to integrate Louisiana's colleges. A governance structure, ending racial characteristics of historically Black colleges, and a quota for Black membership on the governing board are proposed. (MLW)

A federal district judge ruled that state officials failed to demonstrate the need to close Mississippi Valley State University and merge Mississippi University for Women with Mississippi State University to meet desegregation requirements. He ordered Mississippi to provide additional funds to two other black colleges, and approved a state plan…

A federal judge has ordered Alabama's two public, historically black universities to enroll more whites as part of a statewide effort to reduce racial segregation in public colleges. Critics are offended by the judge's comments that the colleges' black heritage discourages white enrollment. The ruling also contained some more welcome results,…

At a conference sponsored by the Oklahoma governor and state legislature, educators and politicians met to define goals for the college system. Colleges were urged to: meet the needs of nontraditional, older students, increase involvement with the public schools, recruit minority faculty, and better educate those involved in governance. (MLW)

The Supreme Court's finding that the University of Virginia acted unconstitutionally in denying funds to students for a Christian newspaper not directly affiliated with a church raises new questions about legal issues of church-state separation and the allocation of student fees. Some legal experts feel the ruling could spell the demise of campus…

At the request of governing boards and legislatures, increasing numbers of state colleges and universities are using "value-added" tests and surveys to measure student learning in college. The measures compare academic achievement and student analytical skills before and after certain periods of college study, usually using standardized…

In academic 1992-93, states will provide colleges and student-aid programs $300-million less than in 1991-92 and $200-million less than the previous year. Tables detail appropriations by state, rank states with percent changes noted, and list appropriations and changes for major institutions and activities by state. (MSE)