The Conversation

Endowments aren’t blank checks – but universities can rely on them more heavily in turbulent times

Written by Ellen P. Aprill, Senior Scholar in Residence at the UCLA Law School's Lowell Milken Center For Philanthropy And Nonprofit Law, University of California, Los Angeles

The Trump administration is demanding that at least 60 U.S. colleges and universities change their policies or lose out on billions of dollars in federal funding.

In Harvard University’s case, the government has accused the Ivy league school – so far without providing any specific evidence – of violating some students’ civil...

Exposure to perceptible temperature rise increases concern about climate change, higher education adds to understanding

Written by R. Alexander Bentley, Professor of Anthropology, University of Tennessee

Higher education can train students to carefully consider the evidence around them.Adam Crowley/Tetra Images/Getty images

Years ago, after taking an Earth science class, I found myself looking at the world differently. It was the 1990s, and lakes in Wisconsin where I lived at the time were beginning to freeze later in winter and thaw earlier in...

What will happen at the funeral of Pope Francis

Written by Joanne M. Pierce, Professor Emerita of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross

A side altar with reliquary at the St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome. Pope Francis has chosen to be buried in that basilica.Photo by Alberto Pizzoli/AFP via Getty Images

The 88-year-old pontiff had been well aware of his fragile state and advanced age. As early as 2015, Pope Francis had expressed the desire to be buried in the Basilica of Santa Maria...

How the next pope will be elected – what goes on at the conclave

Written by Mathew Schmalz, Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross

Cardinals attend Mass at St. Peter's Basilica, before they enter the conclave to decide who the next pope will be, on March 12, 2013, in Vatican City.Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Image

With the death of Pope Francis, attention now turns to the selection of his successor. The next pope will be chosen in what is called a “conclave,” a...

Scientists found a potential sign of life on a distant planet – an astronomer explains why many are still skeptical

Written by Daniel Apai, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Astronomy and Planetary Sciences, University of Arizona

An illustration of the exoplanet K2-18b, which some research suggests may be covered by deep oceans. NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)

A team of astronomers announced on April 16, 2025, that in the process of studying a planet around another star, they had found evidence for an unexpected atmospheric gas. On Earth, that gas – called...

‘I never issued a criminal contempt citation in 19 ½ years on the bench’ – a former federal judge looks at the ‘relentless bad behavior’ of the Trump administration in court

Written by John E. Jones III, President, Dickinson College

'You just didn't mess around with federal judges,' says a former federal judge. 'It was a good way to get your head handed to you.'sesame, DigitalVision Vectors/Getty Images

Legal battles between the Trump administration and advocates for deportees flown to prison in El Salvador have turned into conflicts between the government and the judges overse...

As views on spanking shift worldwide, most US adults support it, and 19 states allow physical punishment in schools

Written by Christina Erickson, Associate Dean in the College of Nursing and Professional Disciplines, University of North Dakota

Spanking in the U.S. generally ends around age 12, when children become big enough to resist or fight back. Sandro Di Carlo Darsa/Brand X Pictures via Getty Images

Nearly a half-century after the Supreme Court ruled that school spankings are permissible and not “cruel and unusual punishment”, many U.S. states allow physical punishment...

Crime is nonpartisan and the blame game on crime in cities is wrong – on both sides

Written by Justin de Benedictis-Kessner, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School

Neither party – Democrats nor Republicans – is doing a better job at fixing crime.Carl Ballou - iStock/Getty Images Plus

Following George Floyd’s death at the hands of police in Minneapolis in 2020, the U.S. has undergone a national reckoning over crime prevention and police reform.

Across the country, calls went out from activists...

With federal funding in question, artists can navigate a perilous future by looking to the past

Written by Johanna K. Taylor, Associate Professor, The Design School, Arizona State University

Keith Haring paints a mural in New York City on Aug. 20, 1987.Mark Hinjosa/Newsday RM via Getty Images

In a February 2025 Truth Social post, President Donald Trump declared a “Golden Age in Arts and Culture.”

So far, this “golden age” has entailed an executive order calling for the federal agency that funds local museums and...

Lawsuits seeking to address climate change have promise but face uncertain future

Written by Hannah Wiseman, Professor of Law, Penn State

Kelsey Juliana, a lead plaintiff in a federal lawsuit over responsibility for climate change, speaks at a 2019 rally in Oregon.AP Photo/Steve Dipaola

The U.S. Supreme Court in March 2025 ended a decade-old lawsuit filed by a group of children who sought to hold the federal government responsible for some of the consequences of climate change. But...