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Boston Globe
a day ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
As Trump administration punishes Ivy League, universities in the heartland stand to benefit
Advertisement 'A lot of higher education is in a political food fight because they don't like the flavor of the current leadership,' said Todd Graves, chair of the Mizzou board. 'We keep our head down, we educate the students, we conduct the research, and we don't try to tell people how to live their lives. We try to make people's lives better.' A new University of Missouri Research Reactor employee, Christopher Verbsky, right, operated a mock-up hot cell while two other MURR employees watched. Each of MURR's hot cells costs approximately $2 million. Bailey Stover for The Boston Globe As the Trump administration starves Ivy League schools received $473.1 million in new from an average of $425.9 million, according to an analysis by STAT prepared for this report. Advertisement In a few more years, as SEC school leaders see it, wealth and talent will be more broadly distributed at public universities around the country, and less concentrated in the coastal elite institutions. 'American higher education is going to thrive,' said Jay Greene, a fellow at the Heritage Foundation, the group behind The Trump administration is trying to force cultural changes in what it sees as the elite schools' At seven of the eight Ivy League schools, 20 to 25 percent of students are from foreign countries, according to US Department of Education data. At Columbia University, the figure is nearly 40 percent. The SEC colleges, by contrast, have some of the lowest percentages of international students in the United States. At most of these schools, non-Americans make up 5 percent or less of the student body. Advertisement At most SEC schools, at least 70 percent of the student body is white, though some schools have relatively large proportions of Black students. Just 33 percent of Harvard's students are white. Large public universities in the South, where Gaza protests were generally more muted last year than at Harvard or Columbia, have not seen the same kind of targeted attacks. Their science labs have lost money in President Trump's massive cuts to research funding, but their ambition to continue growth already underway in the last decade is fierce. @font-face { font-family: BentonSansCond-Regular; src: url(" format('woff2'), url(" format('woff'); font-weight: 600; font-style: normal; } @font-face { font-family: BentonSansCond-Bold; src: url(" format('woff2'), url(" format('woff'); font-weight: 600; font-style: normal; } .dnddicesarea__container{ display: block; max-width: 750px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; background-color: #fff; } .cvsillotitle { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Bold", "Impact", "Arial Narrow", "Helvetica", sans-serif; font-size: 20px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.28; text-align: center; color: #000; padding: 0; margin-top: 25px; } .cvsillotextblurb { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Regular", "Impact", "Arial Narrow", "Helvetica", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 800; line-height: 1.28; text-align: center; color: #000; padding: 10px 10px 10px 0; letter-spacing: .5px; } .cvsillotextblurb span { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Bold", "Impact", "Arial Narrow", "Helvetica", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 800; line-height: 1.28; text-align: center; color: #000; padding: 0 0 10px 0; letter-spacing: .5px; } /* Dek styles */ .cvsillo-well__dek { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Bold", "Impact", "Arial Narrow", "Helvetica", sans-serif; font-size: 38px; font-weight: 200; text-align: center; color: #000; padding-right: 10px; margin-left: 10px; line-height: 1.2; } .cvsillo-well__dekblurb { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Regular", "Impact", "Arial Narrow", "Helvetica", sans-serif; font-size: 20px; font-weight: 800; line-height: 1.2; text-align: center; color: #000; margin-bottom: 10px; letter-spacing: .5px; padding: 0 0 0px 0; } /* Link box styles */ .cvsillolinks { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Regular", "Impact", "Arial Narrow", "Helvetica", sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 2; letter-spacing: .8px; background-color: #fff; color: #333; cursor: pointer; padding: 5px; border: none; text-align: left; transition: 0.4s; margin: 0px 0; width: 100%; } .abovecredline { width: 100%; display: block; border-bottom: 0px solid rgba(000, 000, 000,1); height: 1px; background: #56849b; margin-bottom: 4px; margin-top: 4px; text-align: center; } /* Flex layout for responsive card grid */ .cvsillo-well__top-links { display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; justify-content: space-between; gap: 20px; margin-top: 0px; } .cvsillo-well__related-container { flex: 1 1 100%; max-width: 100%; } /* Medium screens: 2 per row */ @media (min-width: 600px) { .cvsillo-well__related-container { flex: 1 1 calc(50% - 10px); max-width: calc(50% - 10px); } } /* Large screens: 3 per row (optional) */ @media (min-width: 900px) { .cvsillo-well__related-container { flex: 1 1 calc(50% - 10px); max-width: calc(50% - 10px); } } .cvsillo-well__related-container { position: relative; } /* Show vertical divider between 2-per-row items, EXCEPT the last item */ .cvsillo-well__related-container:not(:nth-child(4n)):not(:last-child)::after { content: ""; position: absolute; top: 10%; right: -10px; width: 1px; height: 80%; background-color: #ccc; } /* Remove all dividers on desktop (4-per-row or more) */ @media (min-width: 1000px) { .cvsillo-well__related-container::after { content: none; } } @media (max-width: 599px) { .cvsillo-well__related-container:nth-child(2) { border-top: 1px solid #ccc; padding-top: 10px; margin-top: 10px; } } Total terminated NIH grants at Harvard vs. Vanderbilt The two universities have seen vastly different reductions from the federal funding cuts from the National Institutes of Health, as of May 27. Harvard $2,163,911,123 Vanderbilt $23,947,335 SOURCE: Scott Delaney and Noam Ross; Note: Some grant terminations may not be included in the total; RYAN HUDDLE/GLOBE STAFF The predominance of the Ivy League will hardly disappear overnight, of course; the schools have For now, though, public universities in red states stand to gain from East Coast campuses' losses. Jay Bhattacharya, director of the National Institutes of Health, made the administration's intentions plain Sixty to 65 percent of NIH funding goes to about 20 universities, he said: 'The system is set up almost to guarantee that that [concentration] happens,' Bhattacharya said. Advertisement NIH director Jayanta Bhattacharya said research funding should be more 'geographically dispersed. Win McNamee/Getty 'The way to combat scientific groupthink is by empowering researchers across the country, no matter where they are, to have a great opportunity if they have great ideas for NIH funding,' Bhattacharya said, referring to a common critique from the right that scientific research suffers from insularity. Even before Trump took office, the SEC schools had been making major gains in securing research dollars and recruiting students from around the country. Applications to SEC universities have soared by almost 300 percent since 2001, while elite colleges in New England have seen a smaller 188 percent increase in interest, said Kyle Whitman, chief data scientist of the Carnegie Classifications, a system used to organize universities based on research levels and degrees offered, managed by the American Council on Education. Fewer and fewer students from New England have enrolled in the region's most selective universities, while the SEC has successfully recruited more Northern students. 'There is a broader cultural shift to the Sun Belt right now,' he said. 'There's an attitude there that growth is good.' The SEC schools also offer attractive selling points that are hard to find in New England: booming Greek life, massive sporting events, lower sticker prices, and milder winters. The columns at the University of Missouri's David R. Francis Quadrangle in Columbia. Bailey Stover for The Boston Globe 'It's fun being a student at a university like ours,' said Mun Choi, chancellor of the University of Missouri and president of the Missouri system. 'Not only do you have a beautiful campus, excellent faculty members, and a thriving downtown . . . we're an SEC school where football weekends or major basketball games — literally it feels like electricity in there.' The SEC schools' big-time athletic programs help students and faculty members see 'themselves on this greater common mission,' said Ross Zafonte, who recently joined Mizzou's medical school administration after many years at Harvard University and Mass General Brigham, where he served as president of the Spaulding Rehabilitation Network. Advertisement 'On Fridays here, it sounds corny, people wear Mizzou Tiger stuff,' Zafonte said. The Ivy League schools, the Trump administration and its allies argue, have fraught campus cultures because they've become obsessed with identity politics, a byproduct of DEI initiatives, and because they enroll too many Graduates passed the John Harvard Statue during Harvard University's 374th Commencement in Cambridge on May 29. Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff When questioned about Harvard enrolling the 'best and brightest from around the world,' Trump said it had to offer 'Then you see the same people picketing and screaming at the United States, and . . . they're antisemitic,' he said. 'We don't want troublemakers here.' Some students and faculty members, said Greene, of the Heritage Foundation, may want to avoid the political drama consuming campuses like Harvard, and choose instead to go to 'universities in red states,' where, he argues, students can receive a great education in a less politicized environment. In this period of retrenchment for the elites, some SEC campuses are developing aggressive research growth plans. At the University of Texas Austin, federal funding cuts have affected $47 million in research funding for about 60 grants, or just 1 percent of its research enterprise, which spends about $1 billion annually on roughly 4,600 projects. Moving forward, UT Austin plans to expand its Texas Institute for Electronics, a semiconductor research and development facility that has received substantial government investment in the past, according to the university's 2025 strategic plan for research. Advertisement As applications from out-of-state students continue to soar, 'we see the caliber of those students exponentially increasing,' said Miguel Wasielewski, vice provost of admissions at UT Austin. And though the University of Tennessee system is wading through almost $38 million in federal funding cuts, its leaders expect research operations to continue to grow, said John Zomchick, provost and senior vice chancellor. The University of Missouri Research Reactor emits Cherenkov radiation, a blue glow. Bailey Stover for The Boston Globe In the last five years, the school's research expenditures increased by 21 percent to $384 million in fiscal 2024, and the university plans to hire more faculty to oversee research in engineering, artificial intelligence, and precision health, he said. Research expenditures at Harvard, by contrast, increased 13 percent to $1.02 billion from fiscal 2020 to fiscal 2024. In May, the University of Tennessee signed an agreement with Consolidated Nuclear Security, which operates a government office that was initially part of the Manhattan Project. A spokesperson said the deal will create 'new partnership-powered R&D initiatives that will enhance our nation's national and nuclear security.' Tennessee's Oak Ridge National Laboratory nearby is also partnering with the Department of Energy in plans to add hundreds of PhD students in its data, energy, and genome science programs. 'There's enormous optimism here,' said Zomchick. 'Are there some things that are happening that we will have to adapt to? Absolutely. But our intention is to hold the course, modify the course, as necessary.' The University of Alabama in 2018 was named among the universities with the highest levels of research activity in the country, a long-held goal of the Tuscaloosa campus. President Trump was applauded by graduates after his commencement speech at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa on May 1. HAIYUN JIANG/NYT The institution's big commencement speaker this spring was Trump himself. 'It is clear to see the next chapter of the American story will not be written by the Harvard Crimson,' Trump told a cheering crowd of thousands. 'It will be written by you, the Crimson Tide.' As a pall descended on major East Coast research schools this spring, Mizzou's president began pitching the research reactor to the Trump administration. In a March visit to Mar-a-Lago, Mun Choi was the only university president in the room, he said. Choi has calibrated his sales talk to resonate with a White House that has deep anxieties about global competition. If the university does not get the funding to build the new reactor, Choi said in his wood-paneled office overlooking Francis Quadrangle's six limestone columns, there is 'no other supplier in the Western Hemisphere.' 'We do not want to be in a situation where we are reliant on other countries' generosity to be able to share the radioisotopes with American patients,' Choi said. Mizzou, like other universities with burgeoning research enterprises, is working hard to diversify its research funding sources beyond the NIH to rely more on other sources, including the state and the Departments of Energy, Agriculture, and Transportation. 'Places like Harvard and Columbia and Yale, they are so heavily leveraged with NIH, which was a good thing for two generations,' said Richard J. Barohn, executive vice chancellor for health affairs and dean of Mizzou's School of Medicine. 'Now, maybe it's not such a good thing. . . . I think we're going to get faculty that are going to move here.' And in Choi, the university has a steady leader, several faculty and administrators said. His life story embodies the American dream, and he understands the political nature of the job. An immigrant from South Korea, Choi arrived in Akron, Ohio, as a 9-year-old and learned about resilience from watching his parents, who grew up during the Korean War, build a business making Taekwondo uniforms. University staffers and faculty members marvel at Choi's talent for remembering the name of everyone he meets. One evening, he worked the room at an alumni event held at an outdoor bar with live music, shaking hands, and clinking a pint of beer with guests. He's also a regular attendee at athletic events and games, cheering on the Tigers in an iridescent yellow jacket, he said. Mun Choi, chancellor of the University of Missouri and president of the Missouri system, said, 'Our objective is to create an epicenter of nuclear medicine right here in mid-Missouri." Bailey Stover for The Boston Globe His tenure at Missouri has not been without drama. Before Choi began the job in 2017, the Chronicle of Higher Education put the task ahead in stark terms: 'The University of Missouri system is looking for a new president, but given the system's recent upheaval a better title for the new leader might well be 'miracle worker.' ' The university, about two hours west of Ferguson, Mo., where police shot and killed Michael Brown in 2014, had been rocked by protests about race and Black students' experiences on campus in 2015. Two senior leaders resigned because of the conflagration, and school officials blamed subsequent declines in enrollment, donations, and state funding on the protests. While overall enrollment has improved since, Black enrollment continues to lag. Asked about what the university is doing to recruit students of color to recoup those losses, Choi answered carefully. 'It's very important for us to recruit very broadly, and to bring the very best students to our university so that they can benefit from what we offer,' Choi said. Race relations on campus made headlines again in 2020 after the police murder of George Floyd when student protesters called for the removal of a bronze statue of Thomas Jefferson because he was a slave owner. The university did not concede. There have been pro-Palestinian protests on Mizzou's campus over the Israel-Hamas war, though they were reportedly peaceful and did not attract the media frenzy many Northeast campuses experienced. Choi also forbade the student group Mizzou Students for Justice in Palestine from marching in the annual Homecoming Parade last fall, prompting criticism from students who accused university leaders of discrimination. 'I was concerned about the safety concerns, and also I didn't feel that what they planned to do, which I believe was to protest the war, was appropriate for the Homecoming Parade,' Choi said. It's that same pragmatism that brought him to Mar-a-Lago, at the invitation of an alum who had a meeting scheduled with Republican Representative Jason Smith to discuss tax issues. Choi said he spoke with lawmakers about his idea to offer tax credits for radioisotope production. The lawmakers didn't bite, but Choi remains optimistic about seeking federal support. The Missouri General Assembly earlier this month approved a request from the governor to provide $50 million in funding for the project. The university in April announced a $10 million agreement with a consortium that includes Hyundai Engineering America, the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, the Hyundai Engineering Co., and MPR Associates for the design and licensing of the new reactor. Mizzou has also successfully brought at least one paused project back online by working with the Department of Agriculture and congressional leaders, Choi said. Asked about the East Coast schools' plea for solidarity from campuses across the nation in their fight against what they see as dangerous government overreach that threatens academic freedom, Choi paused. Joint statements against the onslaught have crossed his desk, but he and his team made a 'conscious decision not to sign.' 'My words and my action can have dramatic impact to this institution, and I have to be very careful in what I say and what I do to ensure that those words and my actions do not negatively impact this university,' Choi said. 'I've been very mindful of that responsibility.' J. Emory Parker, data editor for the Globe's sister publication STAT, contributed to this report. Hilary Burns can be reached at Follow Us Subscribe Now My Account Contact More © 2025 Boston Globe Media Partners, LLC
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
UMKC provides updates on new schools to be built in St. Joseph
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Among the topics discussed at the University of Missouri's Board of Curators meeting, different aspects regarding the new UMKC School of Dentistry and School of Medicine buildings were shared. Curators unanimously approved the UMKC School of Dentistry project to move forward. The university building was previously announced with a target date set for FY 2026. While this is still the plan, the University is awaiting additional funds for capital renovations from the state and federal government, as well as philanthropic entities. A lot of people in the community have embraced our students," UMKC chancellor and president Mauli Agrawal said. "Some of us (are) doing the same here. I'm hearing people (receiving) take it home thanksgiving dinners. The community itself has wrapped its arms around this program. That's made everything (easier) from financing to the students feeling at home here." As for the School of Medicine, a ribbon cutting for the new building will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 20, at the building's site on Faraon Street, across from Mosaic Life Care's Campus. One overall message that was echoed by all the board members in anticipation of the new school buildings' arrival is that they can serve as a template for all the schools around Northwest Missouri. "We're not only a university for people who live in Columbia, Missouri, or the University of Missouri," University of Missouri Board of Curators Chair Todd Graves said. "And we're bringing many programs and opportunities for people across the state. No one's benefited more than Northwest Missouri, but certainly other areas have benefited a great deal as well. The School of Dentistry's expansion into St. Joseph is set to positively impact the dentist and dental hygiene practitioner shortages in rural Missouri communities. Currently, the UMKC School of Dentistry is Missouri's only public dental school and provides 63% of the state's dentists, according to a UMKC press release. The School of Medicine is looking to continue to grow, with plans to expand its program by enrolling 20 students per year into the four-year program.
USA Today
2 days ago
- Business
- USA Today
Raising Cane's is opening 5 restaurants next month. Did your state make the list?
As summer continues, more eateries are expanding, including Raising Cane's. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based chain is known for its chicken fingers, Cane's sauce and Texas toast. According to a Raising Cane's representative, new locations are opening in four different states next month, including California, Nevada, Illinois and Florida. Here's what to know about next month's Raising Cane's openings and where they'll be. Which states are getting new Raising Cane's locations? New locations will open: What is Raising Cane's known for? The company sells chicken sandwiches and chicken finger combos including crinkle-cut fries, Texas Toast, coleslaw and Cane's sauce, which the company said is made with a "special blend of spices." Raising Cane's owner Todd Graves initially planned to call his restaurant Sockeye's, a nod to the salmon he once fished in Alaska. However, a friend suggested he name the company after his yellow Labrador Retriever, Raising Cane, who spent lots of time at the construction site of the first Raising Cane's location at the north gates of Louisiana State University. The dog, Cane I, served as the company's mascot until he died in 1998, according to the company. He was friendly and loved to wear Graves' sunglasses, the company said. Raising Cane's second mascot, Cane II, stepped into her role in 1999. She was a therapy dog who visited hospital patients around the country. As the company mascot, Cane II spent time at the company's Restaurant Support Office and attended community events until 2016. Most recently, Cane III, born in 2017, was appointed mascot. "She loves visiting Raising Cane's Restaurants and receiving belly rubs from crewmembers," the company said, noting that Raising Cane's fans can follow her on social media at @RaisingCane3. Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Email her at sdmartin@
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Livvy Dunne Helps LSU Take Control in Jello Shot Competition
Livvy Dunne Helps LSU Take Control in Jello Shot Competition originally appeared on Athlon Sports. In the Tony award-winning musical Hamilton from 2015, the main character exuberantly proclaimed, "I'm not throwing away my shot!" Advertisement In many ways, this mentality can be used to describe the 2025 LSU Tigers baseball team. This squad is not nearly as dominant as the 2023 Paul Skenes-led national champions but the standard and the goals remain the same. While the team is mostly 'young, scrappy, and hungry,' after last night's win over Arkansas, they most definitely have a shot at glory in Omaha. For Olivia Dunne, there are no off days. The jet-setting LSU alumna was just in Chicago on Friday to see boyfriend Paul pitch against the Cubs. On Saturday, she was in Omaha to watch Skenes' old team take on Arkansas in the College Baseball World Series. Livvy Dunne at Omaha Jell-O shot competitionRocco's Pizza & Cantina Before the game, she was spotted at Rocco's Pizza & Cantina with Raising Cane's Founder and CEO Todd Graves. The famous Omaha establishment has long hosted a spirited Jell-O shot competition among fans of the College World Series participants. Graves paid for thousands of shots during LSU's record-breaking 2023 performance. The battle can get fierce, even too intense at times. Livvy Dunne didn't need to throw hands to make a point. When her school counted on her the most, she squared up to the bar, decked out in a Skenes cutoff Tigers jersey, and rallied the LSU faithful by downing the gelatin-based concoction. Just how many Jello shots Livvy consumed doesn't even matter. Dunne, who has battled many injuries throughout her collegiate gymnastics career, has always put her team and school first. Advertisement Saturday was no different. LSU won on the field and off. The Tigers toppled the third-ranked Razorbacks and at Rocco's, Livvy certainly did not throw away her Jello shot. Related: Livvy Dunne Shares Revealing Swimsuit Photos Related: Livvy Dunne is Officially a Supermodel after Walking the Runway at Miami's Swim Week Related: Livvy Dunne Reveals Her Go-To Fast Food Order Related: Livvy Dunne Shares Revealing Summer Photos Related: Livvy Dunne Shares Her Workout Secrets This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 15, 2025, where it first appeared.
Entrepreneur
06-05-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
The Cavinder Twins and Raising Cane's CEO on Success
Todd Graves, founder and CEO of Raising Cane's, and Hanna and Haley Cavinder, NIL trailblazers and entrepreneurs, discuss the passion and drive it takes to succeed in business on the new episode of "The Playbook." "I don't think entrepreneurs are created — entrepreneurs are born." So says Todd Graves, the billionaire founder and CEO of Raising Cane's, the chicken finger casual dining chain with over 900 restaurants nationwide. Graves joined twin sisters Hanna and Haley Cavinder, former University of Miami basketball players who became trailblazers in the NIL space, to talk about the drive it takes to succeed in business on a new episode of The Playbook. On each episode of The Playbook, produced by Sports Illustrated and Entrepreneur, athletes and entrepreneurs come together to share advice and lessons they've learned along their paths to greatness. Related: 'Hustle Like You're Broke': Michael Strahan Shares the Mindset That Drives His Success Although their businesses might vary greatly — Graves runs a restaurant empire while Hanna and Haley are influencers who created the TWOgether fitness app and co-founded Hustle Beauty for athletes — there is crossover in how they pursue their passions. It starts with showing up like an athlete. "It was very seamless when we got into the NIL space and then started our own business," Hanna says. "All of those traits from college athletics carried over. The discipline and routine and the commitment to give 100% because there are other people relying on you." Graves feels the same way. "You might be tired one day, but people show up to our restaurants and are willing to pay good money, so you've got to deliver." Graves, Hanna and Haley also believe in the power of connecting with customers through authenticity. "People love founder-driven businesses because a founder cares, and their business is an extension of them," Graves says. Haley adds that being positive and honest on social media has been the key to nurturing their community of millions. "That really helped us when we started the health and fitness side of things," she says. Putting out genuine content that spoke about mental health helped them build lasting relationships with their followers, and they say the feedback they've gotten keeps them fulfilled and eager to do more. Related: "You Have to Grow Up Fast": How This College Athlete Became a CEO Before Turning 18 Watch the entire conversation to get these amazing entrepreneurs' insights on how getting a "no" can be the best thing to fuel your drive, and learn the pivotal moments that showed them that they were on the right path. As Graves notes, "Champions are always thinking, Hey, what can we do next?"
