BIGGEST COLLEGE-RELATED NEWS OF THE WEEK

DOLLYWOOD LATEST EMPLOYER TO PAY FOR COLLEGE

Dolly Parton’s theme park announced this week that it will pay for full college tuition for employees, as well as books and fees. The perk is available to seasonal, part-time, and full-time employees. We love seeing stories like this about how employers support their employees’ pursuit of higher education!

LONGEST SENTENCE YET PASSED DOWN ON VARSITY BLUES

Trials continue for parents involved in the Operation Varsity Blues scandal, and the longest sentence yet - one year and one day - was handed down this week. Gamal Abdelaziz was one of the first parents to face trial in the case (others, like Lori Laughlin, pleaded guilty and did not go to trial). Meanwhile, two-thirds of parents charged have received sentences of three months or less. Abdelaziz’s lawyers intend to appeal the decision.

DONOR AND LEGACY PREFERENCE IN JEOPARDY DUE TO H.R. 6559

Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) introduced a bill last week to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965. He seeks to prevent colleges and universities from giving preferential treatment to donors and/or legacies - with the caveat that the ban on legacy preference could be waived if it is “in the best interest of students who have been historically underrepresented in higher education.” You may remember that when Colorado banned legacy preference last year, we mentioned it was a big deal because of the precedent it set. We’re particularly interested to follow this bill in light of the upcoming Supreme Court case on affirmative action.

SCHOOL MASK MANDATES STILL IN FLUX

The Virginia Supreme Court dismissed a parent lawsuit contesting Governor Glenn Youngkin’s mask-optional executive order this week. Currently in many counties in Northern Virginia - including Fairfax, Alexandria, and Arlington - mask mandates can remain in place while the order is on hold. On Thursday, Fairfax County announced that it would make masking optional once COVID transmission reached “moderate levels.” We expect to see more changes to mask orders in the coming weeks, in Virginia as well as around the country.

BEST ARTICLES OF THE WEEK

As debates around the country continue over banned books and school curricula, there have been several interesting articles this week that shed some light on these issues. This article argues that the purpose of higher education is “critical inquiry,” while The Atlantic this week explored the nuances of discussing versus using offensive language in the classroom. (Side note: If you’re particularly interested, FCPS community members can actually review and weigh in on elementary language arts instructional materials here until the end of February).

We also enjoyed this personal essay about how the author nearly “ruined” her daughter’s talent show - with the message that in some cases, it is important to allow children to be bad at something in order for them to learn and grow.

OFFICE HAPPENINGS

In case you missed it, we wrote a blog post earlier this week about UVA’s (very surprising!) EA decisions. If you, like us, are scratching your head at some of the decisions you’ve seen or heard about recently, this is worth a read!

Have you checked out our Summer 2022 Internships Database recently? If not, you might be missing out on some great opportunities! We update this page every week with local and virtual internships and college courses. Now is the time to get your plans set for this summer! If you are an employer with an internship or job opportunity for high school students, let us know - we would love to feature your posting on our page.

Lastly, some of you hit 100 days of school this past week - whether you’re a senior getting ready to graduate, or a junior getting ready to be done with this difficult year, it’s all downhill from here! Well, except for the 10th graders… buckle up :)