On his first day in office, President Joe Biden signed more than a dozen executive actions, some of which reverse decisions made by his predecessor, former President Donald Trump.
Several executive actions will make changes to the U.S. response to COVID-19 and try to ease some of the financial strain on Americans resulting from the pandemic. Other executive actions directly target and undo Mr. Trump's actions on the environment, immigration, the U.S. census, and regulatory changes.
WASHINGTON—Issuing a call for unity, Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States Wednesday, telling a nation battered by a pandemic and the recent storming of the U.S. Capitol: “We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue.”
Johns Hopkins University is revving up for a wider opening in Baltimore after a months-long clampdown to fight the pandemic. But undergraduate classes will remain online for the first week.
The College of William & Mary in Virginia and the University of Maryland at College Park won’t start teaching in person until the spring term is two weeks old. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will hold off for three weeks.
Pima County has begun administering Phase 1B vaccinations, and starting this week the University of Arizona will be the designated distribution point for the Phase 1B priority subpopulation of teachers and child care workers, including K-12 and higher education teachers and staff, as well as student teachers.
The U.S. Education Department on Thursday made available the $21.2 billion in help to higher education included in the coronavirus relief legislation Congress and President Trump approved in December, but undocumented students could be left out of getting help through emergency student grants again.
Meanwhile, billions more in aid could be on the way. President-elect Joe Biden on Thursday also released a summary of the $1.9 trillion relief package he is planning to propose upon taking office, including another $35 billion in help for colleges and universities.
Colleges and universities that received federal stimulus dollars last year will have an easier time accessing the second round of relief, but higher education experts say it will still take work to get money into the hands of students.
On Thursday, the Education Department made $21.2 billion from the latest stimulus package available to institutions of higher education to support students and school operations. The federal agency said it will soon release a separate pot of money for historically Black schools, minority-serving institutions and other hard-hit schools.
Public health officials, some unions who represent front-line workers and physicians are trying to educate people about COVID-19 vaccines and to knock down myths and conspiracy theories. Here are some common questions, and the answers to them:
How does the vaccine work?
Vaccines help our bodies develop immunity to the virus that causes COVID-19 without us having to get the illness. Both Pfizer and Moderna vaccines use mRNA, a single-strand of genetic code that triggers and teaches your body to make antibodies.
One of the aspects of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings that always receives a lot of attention is our measurement of reputation. Every year, we survey thousands of published academics across the world and ask them to name the universities that they believe are the best in research and teaching.
Your student loans may get cancelled in the new stimulus package.
Here’s what you need to know.
Student Loans
An aide for the incoming Biden administration said last week the president-elect will extend the payment pause and interest waiver for student loan borrowers beyond this month, when it was set to expire.
That means the 42 million Americans with federal student loans will have more time before they need to start making their monthly payments again.
Yet one detail was missing from the announcement: How much more time?