Looking back at 2024 in higher ed

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Photo illustration showing various images from throughout 2024

Photo illustration by Justin Morrison/Inside Higher Ed | Alexandr Baranov, Kevin Dietsch, Ryan M. Kelly, Spencer Platt and Michael Warren/Getty Images | NOAA

For much of 2024, higher education seemed to lurch from one crisis to another.

The year kicked off with the botched launch of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and the disruptions didn’t let up as leaders grappled with increased scrutiny from Washington, D.C., and rising tensions on campus that escalated to encampments and student and faculty arrests.

Meanwhile, colleges faced intensifying financial pressures, cutting programs and staff to stay afloat. Throughout much of the year, a fired University of Wisconsin chancellor fought to keep his job in what became a closely watched test of academic freedom. The presidential election and the implications for higher education as well as a growing conservative backlash against diversity, equity and inclusion programs loomed over the year.

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But, despite questions about the value of higher education, this year state higher education leaders said colleges are key to growing the workforce while analysts argued that public concerns about higher education are multifaceted and nuanced. A survey of colleges also showed that state aid kept tuition from outpacing inflation, and in some states lawmakers have made big investments in community colleges.

Here’s a look back at higher education in 2024, month by month.

January

Harvard president Claudine Gay, seated at a witness table in the foreground, at a Dec. 5 congressional hearing on antisemitism on campuses. Behind her former University of Pennsylvania president Elizabeth Magill can be clearly seen. — Harvard president Claudine Gay, in the foreground, was widely criticized for her responses to questions at a Dec. 5, 2023, congressional hearing on antisemitism on campuses.

Just two days into the new year, Harvard University president Claudine Gay resigned under pressure from her testimony the previous month before Congress and amid allegations of plagiarism. She was the second university president to resign after appearing at the congressional antisemitism hearing in December. There would be two more hearings in front of the House and another president resigning after giving testimony before the end of the year.

Other January news:

February

Two men in suits sit at a table with microphones — Education Secretary Miguel Cardona (right) faced strong criticism for his handling of the FAFSA launch.

Challenges with the new federal financial aid form turned into a full-blown fiasco in February, raising more questions about how the department botched the launch. Meanwhile, colleges grappled with the consequences: They moved back admissions deadlines, and the Education Department relaxed a number of requirements to ease the burden on colleges. Fewer high school students would ultimately fill out the form and enroll in college, leading to budget cuts for some institutions.

Other February news:

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March

A person is scraping text that says “Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” from a door. — Many colleges scrapped the phrase “diversity, equity and inclusion” from names of offices and divisions in 2024.

Momentum against college diversity, equity and inclusion programs had been mounting ever since the Supreme Court ruled against affirmative action in 2023, but Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin added fuel to the fire in March, requesting to review syllabi for diversity-themed courses at George Mason and Virginia Commonwealth Universities. In the months following, DEI departments would be dissolved, renamed or shut down entirely in Arkansas, Kentucky and Missouri as Republicans argued they stifle conservatives’ academic freedom.

Other March News:

April

Minouche Shafik sits at a table in a Congressional hearing room — Columbia president Minouche Shafik testifies before Congress in April. She resigned from the post in August.

Criticisms surrounding how elite university presidents were responding to antiwar protests on campus exploded after then–Columbia University president Minouche Shafik testified before Congress in April. Although Shafik denounced antisemitism more forcefully in her testimony than other Ivy League presidents, Republicans remained unsatisfied. The day of Shafik’s appearance in Congress, students erected encampments on the university’s south lawn, turning Columbia into the epicenter of protests that rapidly spread across the country, making national headlines as students and faculty camped out on campuses and clashed with police who were called in to break up the demonstrations.

Other April News:

May

A map of the United States showing the 15 states where the Title IX regulations are temporarily on hold

President Biden’s new rule overhauling Title IX infuriated Republicans, prompting backlash that eventually led to legal orders blocking the regulations in 26 states and at hundreds of colleges. Before the lawsuits, though, several Republican governors and state officials pledged in May that they wouldn’t follow the rule. Colleges, already scrambling to be in compliance with the new regulations by the Aug. 1 deadline, found themselves between a rock and a hard place, as not complying would risk their federal funding.

Other May News:

June

Dorrance Hamilton Hall at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia

The University of Arts abruptly closed in early June when the Philadelphia college didn’t have cash on hand to cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The decision left students and employees stunned, particularly after UArts officials walked away and handed over closure responsibilities to a management firm, forcing the accreditor to step in and help students navigate the next steps. The sudden closure renewed concerns about the financial sustainability of small, private institutions and raised questions about who is responsible for intervening when colleges are on the brink of closure.

Other June News:

July

JD Vance speaks into a microphone — Vice President–elect JD Vance is a vocal critical of higher ed.

The race for the White House heated up in July as then-candidate Donald J. Trump formally accepted the Republican Party’s nomination. Trump’s decision to pick Senator JD Vance as his running mate signaled that higher education could face greater pressure under a second Trump administration—Vance called professors “the enemy” and backed reforms to make colleges more open to conservatives.

Other July News:

August

In summer 2024, Ben Sasse resigned as president of the University of Florida.

Florida, seen as ground zero for conservative efforts to remake higher ed, continued to live up to its reputation in August. More than one-fifth of professors at the University of Florida who went through a post-tenure review process failed. The state had recently required the reviews, which faculty said have effectively killed tenure. Also, at the University of Florida, the departure of President Ben Sasse, a former Republican U.S. senator, continued to raise more questions following reports of his spending, including $17.3 million to hire consultants and former congressional staffers.

Other August News:

September

A photograph of West Virginia University’s central quad, with Woodburn Hall on the left. — West Virginia University’s slashing of faculty positions and academic programs last year drew national attention.

September marked the one-year anniversary of West Virginia University’s controversial decision to eliminate 143 faculty positions and 28 academic programs, including all foreign language and math graduate degrees. Although the national media attention and public scrutiny had died down, concerns about future enrollment and finances continued.

Other September News:

October

A few people stand on the edge of a washed-out road, surrounded by water. — Hurricane Helene dropped more than a foot of rain across much of the Southeast, washing out roads in Boone, N.C.

Many colleges in rural, mountainous North Carolina began October recovering from Hurricane Helene. The storm caused cataclysmic flooding and power outages that left university campuses across the western part of the state in shambles. For days, parents anxiously awaited contact from their kids. Power and cellular connection returned, but water services remained dicey as colleges slowly began picking up the pieces.

Other October News:

November

Donald Trump, in a suit and red tie, stands in front of a row of American flags and points his finger. — Trump won a second term in November.

Many went into election night on Nov. 5 expecting a close race and drawn-out ballot count, but Vice President Kamala Harris’s hopes to win the White House were extinguished in the wee hours of Nov. 6. Attention then turned to what former president Trump’s return to power would mean for higher ed and whether he could fulfill a campaign promise to abolish the Education Department. Trump’s ability to put his stamp on higher ed will largely depend on Linda McMahon, the former WWE CEO picked to lead the department.

Other November News:

December

Two shoes falling down a staircase — First-year enrollment dropped by 5 percent this year, a serious setback after last year’s gains.

As 2024 drew to a close, enrollment data from the fall showed a 5 percent drop among traditional 18-year-old first-year students while an Inside Higher Ed analysis found that at least 16 nonprofit colleges and universities announced closures, up slightly from 14 institutions in 2023. Enrollment woes for colleges will likely worsen as the number of 18-year-old high school graduates will peak in 2025 at around 3.9 million, followed by a 15-year decline.