Charlie Kirk was shot during an event at Utah Valley University today. Details of the incident are still unfolding.
Political violence is never an acceptable response to speech. Free speech allows us to settle our differences peacefully and is essential to a free and democratic society.
Our thoughts are with Charlie Kirk and his family.
Charlie Kirk, the young founder of Turning Point USA, a campus-focused conservative organization that rose to general prominence on the right, died Wednesday after he was shot during one of his group’s events at Utah Valley University in Orem.
Kirk, 31, leaves behind a wife and two children. He first rose to prominence in 2012 after creating Turning Point and speaking out about the need to reform higher education. In recent years, he became a close ally of Donald Trump.
Kirk died doing what he had become known and drawn protests for: visiting college campuses and sharing his right-wing views. He was at Utah Valley kicking off Turning Point’s The American Comeback Tour, which planned at least 10 stops on college campuses across the country. Some had urged the university to cancel his appearance. More than 3,000 people attended the event, Utah officials said.
Kirk, wearing a white shirt that said “freedom,” handed out red Make America Great Again hats and then sat under his signature “Prove Me Wrong” tent in the courtyard in the middle of campus to take questions from the audience. According to The Deseret News, Kirk had said there were “too many” mass shooters who were transgender and then fielded another question on the issue when he was shot.
“I want to be very clear this is a political assassination,” said Utah governor Spencer Cox at a press conference Wednesday evening.
Matthew Boedy, author of a forthcoming book on Kirk and head of the Georgia state conference of the American Association of University Professors, said Kirk’s death “could be compared to the second assassination [attempt] on President Trump. Assassination attempts—you would think they would unite us, but as we’ve seen, they have divided us even more so.”
Kirk’s group galvanized conservative activism on campuses nationwide and fueled criticisms of higher ed that are now shared by the White House and the Republicans who control Congress. As higher ed itself became a national political issue, Kirk transcended from a campus presence to a national conservative figure, speaking at the Republican National Conventions in 2020 and 2024, the Conservative Political Action Conference, and on other big stages. He had more than 5.4 million followers on X, where right-leaning profiles are prominent.
Turning Point’s website claims to have “a presence on over 3,500 high school and college campuses nationwide, over 250,000 student members, and over 450 full- and part-time staff all across the country.” And the group’s own events drew national political figures: Donald Trump Jr., Tucker Carlson, Steve Bannon, Tulsi Gabbard, Kristi Noem and others attended the Student Action Summit in July, Times Higher Education reported. Among other things, Kirk said at the event in Tampa, Fla., that no foreigners should be allowed to own homes or get jobs before U.S. citizens.
“This is the greatest generational realignment since Woodstock,” Kirk said. “We have never seen a generation move so quickly and so fast, and you guys are making all the liberals confused.”
Kirk expanded on his views in several books, which include Campus Battlefield: How Conservatives Can WIN the Battle on Campus and Why It Matters and The College Scam: How America’s Universities Are Bankrupting and Brainwashing Away the Future of America’s Youth.
In a statement on X Wednesday, Turning Point confirmed his death and said, “May he be received into the merciful arms of our loving Savior, who suffered and died for Charlie.” Leading Republicans and Democrats issued statements mourning his passing, which President Trump announced himself on Truth Social.
“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” Trump wrote. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us.”
Trump ordered U.S. flags to be lowered to half-staff.
Former president Obama posted on X that “we don’t yet know what motivated the person who shot and killed Charlie Kirk, but this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children.”
Education Secretary Linda McMahon called Kirk “a friend and an invaluable adviser” in a social media post.
“He loved America with every part of his being,” she added. “My heart is broken for his family and friends who loved him, and for the millions of young Americans whom he inspired.”
California governor Gavin Newsom, a potential Democratic presidential candidate who had Kirk on his podcast earlier this year, posted, “The attack on Charlie Kirk is disgusting, vile, and reprehensible. In the United States of America, we must reject political violence in EVERY form.”
Local, state and federal law enforcement are investigating the shooting.
Utah Valley closed campus and canceled classes until Sept. 14. Authorities searched the grounds for the shooter, and officials said in the evening that a person of interest was in custody.
Ellen Treanor, a university spokesperson, said Kirk was shot around 12:15 p.m. local time Wednesday, and that police believe the shot came from the Losee Center, about 200 yards away.
Treanor said Kirk’s private security took him immediately to a hospital, where he underwent surgery.
University police quickly arrested a person, who was later released when the officers determined he wasn’t the shooter, said Scott Trotter, another university spokesperson. The Utah governor’s office, the FBI and other agencies are coordinating with the university police department in investigating, Trotter said. (Utah law allows individuals to carry firearms on campuses.)
UVU officials said in a statement that they were “shocked and saddened” by Kirk’s death.
“We firmly believe that UVU is a place to share ideas and to debate openly and respectfully,” the statement said. “Any attempt to infringe on those rights has no place here.”
At the Wednesday press conference, Jeff Long, the UVU police chief, said that what happened was a “police chief’s nightmare.” Six officers were working the event alongside Kirk’s security team.
“You try to get your bases covered, and unfortunately, today, we didn’t,” he said. “Because of that, we have this tragic incident.”
Charlie Kirk was kicking off his “American Comeback Tour” at Utah Valley University.
Photo by Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images
Turning Point, headquartered in Phoenix, has been at the center of several controversies over the years. About a decade ago, it launched its Professor Watchlist, which has resulted in academics being the targets of vitriol and threats for their alleged views. Last year, two Turning Point workers admitted to charges from an October 2023 incident in which they followed and filmed a queer Arizona State University instructor on campus, with one of them eventually pushing the instructor face-first onto the concrete.
Boedy said Wednesday that Kirk was the most influential person who doesn’t work in the White House.
“He has made Turning Point into an indispensable organization for conservative causes,” he said. “He’s become the new face of Christian nationalism, which is a growing trend in America. And of course, he has, I would say, changed college campuses.”
He added that campus events like Wednesday’s were his “bread and butter.”
“He is very smart,” he said. “He was one of the pioneers of the ‘prove me wrong’ mantra.”
Steady lead generation for colleges and universities is what keeps enrollment strong. Without a consistent flow of qualified inquiries, even the best programs struggle to meet their targets. The challenge, however, is that prospective students now have more options than ever, online and on campus, at home and abroad. Competing for their attention requires more than just a few ads or a static website; it demands a thoughtful, multi-channel strategy that builds trust and delivers value.
The good news is that digital marketing offers powerful tools to do just that. From content that tells your school’s story to SEO, social media engagement, targeted ads, and personalized email campaigns, every channel plays a role in capturing interest and moving students closer to enrollment. Add in technologies like CRM systems, chatbots, and virtual events, and institutions can create highly tailored experiences that convert browsers into applicants.
This article explores nine proven strategies to boost lead generation for higher education in the current industry. We’ll highlight real-world examples, including case studies from HEM’s own work, and show how combining smart tactics with the right technology can help your institution attract, nurture, and convert more qualified student leads.
Our expert digital marketing services can help you attract and enroll more students!
Content marketing is one of the most reliable ways for higher education institutions to generate quality leads. By creating blog posts, videos, and downloadable guides that address real student questions, schools can attract organic traffic, build trust, and guide prospects through the enrollment funnel. Effective content also boosts SEO, keeping your institution visible when students search for programs or career paths.
How can content marketing help universities generate more leads? Content marketing attracts prospective students by answering their questions and showcasing institutional strengths. Blogs, guides, and videos build trust, improve SEO visibility, and highlight success stories. This engagement draws high-intent visitors to program pages, where they can convert into inquiries or applications.
Example: Discovery Community College’s official blog uses program-specific keywords in post titles to boost SEO. For example, one post is titled “3 Great Skills to Practice During Your Accounting and Finance Program,” directly incorporating the Accounting and Finance program name. This keyword-focused approach makes it far more likely that the content appears in search results when potential students are googling that training area. By optimizing blog content for high-intent queries, Discovery Community College increases its visibility to the right audience and draws in quality traffic (prospects already interested in those programs).
Source: Discovery Community College
Gated content like e-books or checklists can add another layer—prospects are more willing to share contact details if the resource provides clear value, such as a scholarship checklist or career outlook guide.
Even the best content won’t generate leads if students can’t find it. That’s why SEO is essential. Since most students begin their school search online, ranking on the first page of Google for program- and location-based keywords (“MBA programs in Canada,” “best nursing degree in Ontario”) is critical. The higher you rank, the more qualified traffic you attract.
Effective SEO starts with understanding what prospective students are searching for and weaving those terms naturally into your program pages, blog posts, and FAQs. On-page basics, like strong titles, meta descriptions, mobile-friendly design, and fast load times, should work hand in hand with technical SEO and local optimization.
How can universities leverage SEO to improve their lead generation efforts? SEO boosts visibility when students search for programs, scholarships, or career outcomes. By optimizing program pages, blogs, and local listings with relevant keywords, universities appear in top search results. This organic traffic delivers high-intent leads, students actively seeking education opportunities, directly into the recruitment funnel.
Example: Partnering with HEM, Cumberland College invested in multilingual SEO, optimizing its website in both English and French. Within a year, organic traffic grew by 27.5%, and leads from SEO traffic surged by 386%. This data-driven strategy directly fueled a 20–35% increase in new enrollments, proving how powerful SEO can be for lead generation for higher education.
Source: Higher Education Marketing
Attracting visitors is only half the battle; converting them into leads is what drives enrollment. Landing pages and inquiry forms are at the heart of conversion rate optimization (CRO) for higher education. With education landing pages averaging a 4.5% conversion rate, small improvements can mean a big jump in inquiries. To maximize results:
Example: The Academy of Learning Career College’s landing pages highlight clear program benefits and unique selling points to persuade visitors. AOLCC outlines its proposition value on landing pages, essentially listing what students gain from the program, and expands on each point to hold interest. By foregrounding these program benefits, AOLCC’s pages effectively communicate value and encourage prospects to take the next step (e.g., request info or apply).
Source: AOLCC
Today’s prospective students expect instant answers when they land on a university website. Chatbots and live chat make that possible, engaging visitors the moment they arrive instead of waiting for them to stumble upon a form. A chatbot that greets with a simple “Do you have questions about admissions or programs?” lowers barriers, creates an immediate connection, and often captures leads that would otherwise leave without taking action.
Configured well, education chatbots can handle common questions around deadlines, prerequisites, or housing 24/7. When a query requires a human touch, they can hand off to a live staff member or at least collect contact details for follow-up. This style of communication appeals especially to Gen Z, who spend significantly more time on messaging apps than older generations and respond well to the casual, conversational tone of chat.
Example: Unity Environmental University launched an AI virtual agent named “Una” to assist prospective students in finding suitable programs and navigating the application process. According to Unity’s press release, Una is available 24/7 as a personalized guide, providing instant answers about admissions and even helping complete application steps.
Source: Unity Environmental University
From a practical standpoint, institutions can blend live and automated support depending on resources. Staff-led chat during business hours provides personal attention, while chatbots can cover after-hours. The key is visibility: a small but inviting chat icon, integrated with your CRM to capture leads automatically, turns your site into an “always-on” recruitment assistant. In higher education lead generation, that combination of accessibility, speed, and personalization is increasingly what sets strong digital strategies apart.
Social media remains one of the most powerful tools for lead generation for colleges. Prospective students spend hours daily on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn, and X. Making these spaces essential for reaching and engaging them. Each channel serves a slightly different role: Instagram and TikTok connect best with high school and undergraduate audiences, LinkedIn appeals to graduate and professional prospects, while Facebook often reaches parents and working adults.
What role do social media platforms play in lead generation for higher education institutions? Social media connects universities with prospects where they already spend time. Authentic posts, student takeovers, and targeted ads spark awareness, build community, and drive traffic to lead forms. Engagement nurtures interest over time, transforming casual followers into applicants and amplifying recruitment campaigns.
To generate leads, institutions should focus on consistent posting, authentic storytelling, and quick responses to comments or direct messages. Content like student takeovers, alumni testimonials, and “day in the life” videos resonates strongly, helping prospects envision themselves at your school.
Example: The University of Cambridge leverages authentic, student-led “Day in the Life” videos on its official channels (website, YouTube, TikTok) to showcase everyday student experiences. These videos are produced through the university’s own outlets, not third-party media, ensuring they are direct primary sources from Cambridge. For instance, Cambridge’s Faculty of Law features a “Day in the life of a Law student” video on its official site and YouTube, where “three first year Law students, Robbie, Katie and Scott, give us an insight into a typical day in their lives, using hand-held cameras”. In this video, the students themselves film their lectures, study sessions, and social activities, offering a genuine glimpse into daily life in Cambridge.
Source: University of Cambridge
Done well, social media builds community, nurtures awareness, and funnels engaged viewers toward applications or info requests.
While organic search and social media build long-term visibility, paid advertising can accelerate lead generation for colleges by reaching the right students at the right time. Search engine marketing (SEM), such as Google Ads, is especially valuable for competitive programs or new offerings that don’t yet rank organically. Targeting keywords like “online MBA in healthcare” ensures your ads appear when students are actively searching, capturing high-intent leads ready to convert.
On social platforms, precise targeting by age, interests, location, or even undergraduate major allows you to reach audiences that align with your programs. Retargeting campaigns are equally powerful, reminding visitors who viewed your site or started an application to take the next step.
Example: Stenberg College leveraged Google Ads to attract more qualified leads for its healthcare and nursing programs. HEM’s case study notes that Stenberg uses Google Ads as a “key marketing tool to recruit students,” and with HEM’s expertise, the college’s ads now generate both more leads and better-qualified leads for admissions. The partnership allowed Stenberg to optimize keywords, ad creatives, and targeting, resulting in improved ROI on their ad spend and a healthier enrollment pipeline.
Source: Higher Education Marketing
Capturing a lead is only the start. The real work begins with nurturing that interest into enrollment. Email marketing remains one of the most powerful tools in higher ed lead generation, delivering an estimated ROI of $36 for every $1 spent. Students also welcome it: surveys show nearly 70% prefer to hear from institutions via email.
The key is relevance. Segment leads by program, stage in the decision journey, or demographics, and tailor messages accordingly. Personalization should go beyond using a first name. It should highlight specific programs, address common concerns, or share stories aligned with student interests. Mapping emails to the student journey also ensures prospects receive the right content at the right time, from early-stage guides to deadline reminders.
Example: By developing email campaigns tailored to specific learner personas (“Emailing with Intention”), McMaster’s Continuing Ed achieved email engagement far above industry benchmarks. In fact, its automated drip emails earned about a 27.9% open rate, outperforming average open rates (~21.5%) for education emails. This persona-driven strategy was recognized with national marketing awards, underscoring how segmenting messaging to audience needs leads to more engaged prospects and higher conversion potential.
Source: McMaster University
Events remain one of the most effective lead generation tools in higher education because they let prospects experience your institution firsthand. In-person open houses, campus tours, and information sessions build emotional connections as students meet faculty, see facilities, and imagine themselves on campus. From a lead gen perspective, event registrations and check-ins capture valuable contact information, which can then be nurtured with timely follow-up emails or calls.
Virtual events have expanded this reach even further. Online open houses, live webinars, and 360° virtual tours allow schools to engage international prospects and those unable to travel. The University of Bristol, for example, hosts a dedicated page for virtual campus and city tours, giving global audiences a way to explore on their own time.
Example: Bristol has embraced virtual engagement to reach students globally. The university maintains a dedicated page for virtual events and tours, where prospects can take self-guided 360° campus tours and even explore the city online. During the pandemic, such virtual open days were crucial: over half of UK prospective students surveyed (59%) attended at least one virtual open day. By offering rich virtual events and tours, the University of Bristol kept students engaged during lockdowns and expanded its reach beyond those able to visit in person. This virtual strategy not only sustained interest through difficult times but continues to complement in-person events as a convenient lead generator.
Source: Bristol University
The most effective events, whether in-person or online, blend interactivity with personal connection. Live chats, Q&As, and student ambassador involvement ensure attendees feel engaged, while follow-up communications help convert that interest into applications.
Behind every strong lead generation program is a system that manages, tracks, and optimizes outreach. A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform, such as HubSpot, Slate, or HEM’s own Mautic CRM, centralizes prospect data, automates follow-ups, and makes it easier to measure performance.
Every new lead, whether from a form, ad, or event, flows into the CRM, where it can be segmented, scored, and assigned to counselors. Automated workflows ensure timely engagement: for example, sending a personalized welcome email immediately after an inquiry and triggering reminders if no action follows.
Example: Michael Vincent Academy overhauled its recruitment process by adopting a customized CRM automation solution with HEM. Michael Vincent Academy automated key workflows using the CRM, which dramatically improved efficiency in managing inquiries. Staff could spend less time on manual follow-ups and more on building relationships with prospects. The result was a smoother funnel, inquiries were responded to promptly, and no prospective student fell through the cracks, ultimately leading to higher enrollment yields.
Source: HEM
Analytics make this even more powerful. By monitoring lead sources, campaign performance, and student behaviors, institutions can refine targeting and invest where returns are strongest. Business School Lausanne, for instance, leverages data insights to optimize international outreach and ensure global diversity in recruitment.
In short, a data-driven CRM approach ensures no lead slips through the cracks and every prospect receives timely, personalized attention.
Effective lead generation in higher education isn’t driven by one silver bullet; it’s the outcome of multiple strategies working together. Content fuels SEO, SEO drives visitors to optimized landing pages, social media and paid ads amplify your reach, while email and CRM workflows nurture prospects into applicants. Layered on top, data and analytics help refine every stage, creating a cycle of attraction, engagement, and conversion that grows stronger over time.
Real-world outcomes show the power of this integrated approach. Webster University Geneva reported a 30% surge in enrollments through digital marketing and timely follow-ups, while Cumberland College doubled its lead flow by combining SEO content with paid ads and social engagement. Even more targeted initiatives, like Queen Anne’s School’s multi-platform ad campaigns or McMaster University’s persona-based email drips, prove that each tactic can meaningfully contribute to the bigger picture when executed strategically.
Think of your role as designing a system that balances creativity with data. Keep testing new formats, from TikTok challenges to interactive quizzes, while staying agile to shifts like AI tools or evolving privacy rules. Above all, keep the student experience front and center: personalization, authenticity, and responsiveness are what today’s learners value most.
By applying the nine strategies outlined in this guide, your institution can not only attract more qualified leads but also convert them into enrolled students in a sustainable, scalable way. Lead generation may be challenging, but with a student-first mindset and a data-informed strategy, you’ll build a steady pipeline of future students ready to join your community.
Our expert digital marketing services can help you attract and enroll more students!
Question: How can content marketing help universities generate more leads?
Answer: Content marketing attracts prospective students by answering their questions and showcasing institutional strengths. Blogs, guides, and videos build trust, improve SEO visibility, and highlight success stories. This engagement draws high-intent visitors to program pages, where they can convert into inquiries or applications.
Question: What role do social media platforms play in lead generation for higher education institutions?
Answer: Social media connects universities with prospects where they already spend time. Authentic posts, student takeovers, and targeted ads spark awareness, build community, and drive traffic to lead forms. Engagement nurtures interest over time, transforming casual followers into applicants and amplifying recruitment campaigns.
Question: How can universities leverage SEO to improve their lead generation efforts?
Answer: SEO boosts visibility when students search for programs, scholarships, or career outcomes. By optimizing program pages, blogs, and local listings with relevant keywords, universities appear in top search results. This organic traffic delivers high-intent leads, students actively seeking education opportunities, directly into the recruitment funnel.
Every conversation I have with higher ed leaders seems to start in the same place: competition is tougher than ever. Enrollment pressures, shifting demographics, rising expectations from students — it’s a lot. And in the middle of it all, I see so many institutions sitting on a resource that could help them compete more effectively: their own data.
The truth is, higher ed doesn’t have a data shortage. Colleges and universities already collect enormous amounts of information across their systems. The challenge is knowing how to put it to work in ways that actually move the needle. Too often, that data stays trapped in silos, reduced to static reports, or only pulled out for compliance.
The difference isn’t the data itself — it’s how you use it.
Think about how personalized the world around us has become. From the playlists that show up in your music app to the recommendations in your shopping cart, people expect experiences that feel unique and relevant. Students are no different.
A high schooler exploring a summer program and a mid-career professional considering a certificate have very different motivations. Yet both expect a journey that recognizes their goals and helps them take the next right step.
That’s where higher ed data becomes a real advantage. When institutions use it strategically, they can anticipate student needs, personalize outreach, and build relationships that feel relevant, timely, and supportive rather than transactional.
Here’s the challenge: most colleges are juggling a patchwork of CRMs, SIS, LMS, and marketing platforms that don’t really talk to each other. Each contains valuable data, but without a way to connect them, the view of the student is incomplete.
This is where the concept of a digital twin comes in. Imagine having a single, dynamic model that reflects each student’s real journey — from first click to graduation. A digital twin takes fragmented data from across systems and turns it into a living, actionable picture.
During a recent conversation with a prospective partner, our team walked through this idea in action. We demonstrated how a digital twin could anticipate critical student moments, unify siloed systems, and make engagement more intentional. The “aha” moment came when leaders realized it wasn’t about another dashboard, but about creating a foundation that turns information into action.
With that kind of visibility, institutions can do things like:
That kind of transformation doesn’t just look good on paper — it delivers measurable outcomes.
I’ve seen what happens when institutions make this shift.
I recall one university partner that had been struggling with years of declining graduate enrollment. By unifying their data and creating a clear view across the funnel, they grew spring enrollment by 20% in a single term while re-engaging 120 stop-out students.
Another school was questioning the ROI of their marketing spend. Once they integrated campaign data with enrollment outcomes and student sentiment, they were able to adjust quickly. The result? A 30% increase in online applications and a 46% reduction in cost-per-deposit.
These stories aren’t about magic formulas. They’re about what’s possible when institutions stop letting data sit unused and instead create a digital twin that brings the student journey to life.
Too often, data is seen and treated as a back-office function. That approach is a liability. I believe higher ed data must be treated as a core part of strategy, student engagement, and institutional health.
If you’re wondering where to start, ask yourself:
If the answer to any of these is “No,” it’s time to rethink your approach to data.
I’ve spent more than a decade working alongside higher ed leaders, and one thing I know is this: data alone isn’t the advantage. What matters is how you use it to serve students and strengthen your institution.
The colleges and universities that will lead the next era of higher education won’t be the ones with the biggest datasets. They’ll be the ones that create a connected, holistic view of each student — able to anticipate needs, personalize engagement, and act with precision. They’ll be the ones treating data as the engine of innovation, not just a byproduct of operations.
Are you ready to take advantage of your data?
Higher ed is evolving — don’t get left behind. Explore how Collegis can help your institution thrive.
When Russia invaded Ukraine, hopes for action by “the international community” were dashed within days when the UN General Assembly failed to pass a resolution demanding the immediate withdrawal of invasion forces: five countries voted against it and 35 others abstained.
They included two of the five countries that have permanent seats on the UN Security Council. Any of those five countries can veto any joint measure even if the entire rest of the world is in favour.
But even as the UN failed to intervene in the Ukraine conflict in the role of “the international community” as it was perceived by many during the Cold War, a group of countries — led by the United States but including NATO and the European Union — have since supported Ukraine with billions worth of weapons and economic aid.
On an anniversary of the civil war in Syria, meanwhile, the advocacy group Amnesty International blamed “the international community’s catastrophic failure to act” for the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in that conflict. It was Russian air power that turned the tide of war in favour of President Bashar al-Assad’s government.
Assad might be a pariah in the West. But he was embraced by the Arab League in May. That’s a 22-member organization of nations in North Africa, West Asia and parts of East Africa. It had expelled Syria in 2011 for cracking down on anti-government protestors with a brutality so savage it was shocking even to an organisation with a poor record of concern for human rights.
If the United Nations is powerless because it can’t reach unanimity of its members and if Russia and its allies have different world views than the member nations of NATO and these views differ from the concerns of the members of the Arab League, what “international community” is there?
As for the shared vision for a better world visualized by Annan: is it becoming dimmer or brighter?
There is reason for pessimism. Around the world, democracy is in decline and authoritarian leaders, such as Syria’s Assad and Russia’s Putin, are literally getting away with murder.
Freedom House, a Washington-based non-governmental organisation that keeps track of global freedom and peace, says in its latest report that global freedom has declined for 17 consecutive years.
The United States was once considered a model for others to follow. But Donald Trump, in his four years as president, has encouraged authoritarian leaders. After he lost the presidential election in 2020, he attempted to halt the peaceful transfer of power.
Trump loathed international agreements and pulled the United States out of the International Criminal Court, the UN Human Rights Council, the global compact on migration and the Paris Climate Accords.
Every country in the world has signed the Paris agreement, making it one of the few actions that can be ascribed to the entire international community. Trump’s successor, Joe Biden, signed the paperwork to bring the United States back into the Paris agreement on his first day in office.
As far as the more routine use of the phrase is concerned, Richard Haas, long-time president of the New York-based think tank Council on Foreign Relations until he retired in June, once described the dilemma in unusually blunt terms:
“The problem is that no international community exists,” he said. “It would require that there be widespread agreement on what needs to be done and a readiness to do it. Banning the term would mean that people and governments assume a greater responsibility for what takes place in the world.”
In some ways governments are assuming greater responsibility, if not as one giant international bloc than by an alphabet soup of sub-groups. There is the G-7, an informal bloc of wealthy democracies (the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Canada, Italy and Japan). There is the G-20 of 19 countries and the European Union. There is ASEAN, the Association of 10 South East Asian Nations. There is the OAS, the Organization of American States. Finally, there is the African Union which brings together 55 countries across that continent.
In theory, they could work towards agreement on what needs to be done to make the world a safe, secure and prosperous place.
Much of their emphasis tends to be on economic matters, none more than BRICS, an acronym coined by Goldman Sachs banker Jim O’Neill for a grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Moves are underway to widen that group and turn it into a counterweight to the industrialized West.
Could all those groups, working on parallel tracks, result in a true international community? Perhaps the next generation of politicians and citizen activists will succeed where their elders failed.
1. Can you think of a way to replace the phrase “the international community”?
2. Do you consider your own country part of it?
3. Can you think of cases where engaged citizens changed their governments’ policies?
Monday, we looked at the country’s overall financial situation (dire), and yesterday we looked at how cuts of a magnitude of 15% might affect key programs like the Canada Education Savings Program and the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program. Today, we’re going to look at how a 15% cut might affect the Government of Canada’s research subsidies, which in the main are run through the Ministry of innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED).
(I will be speaking about “the tri-councils” as a single funding line; I am aware that the Canadian Institute for Health Research (CIHR) is funded through Health Canada but for this exercise it is easier just to lump them together).
Let’s start by acknowledging that ISED is a sprawling mess of a department with small programs with very little political protection littered all over the place. I wouldn’t bet the farm on the $12 million “Futurpreneur Canada” making it out of this budget round alive. I also doubt the Universal Broadband Fund is going to continue at $900 million per year. Computers for Schools (sounded great in the 90s, less so now) and Computers for Schools Interns would also be on my endangered list. I suspect that the various regional development funds might be in for an outsized hit as well. All of which is to say that it is possible that the research enterprise – that is, the tri-Councils, the National Research Council (NRC), the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) and all those organizations that get part or all their money through the Strategic Science Fund – might not get hit with a 15% cut. It’s quite possible all these other areas might take an outsized hit and allow the actual science stuff to get off with a lighter cut.
That said, remember this key point: the budget exercise is not about cutting 15% of funding from where it should theoretically be in three years’ time (the government has a fiscal framework that extends out four or five years). It is about cutting expenditures from a 2024-25 baseline. That means that to get through any previously planned increase in spending, the cuts to existing programs must be more than 15%.
This matters for two reasons. First, it is because the government runs its subsidies to electric vehicles manufacturers through ISED. Those subsidies were worth $39M in 2024-25; they were planned to cost $2.1 billion this year and $4.2 billion in 2027-28 (i.e. it’s about half the department’s direct budget spend come two years from now, and about a third of total sci/tech spend if you include the tri-councils). To accommodate that increase while following the letter of the budget reduction request would basically mean requiring the entire department to shut down. That’s probably not happening (though one presumes that Carney’s announcement last week releasing Canadian auto manufacturers from their 20% EV sales target in 2026 might also lead to a reduction in EV subsidies to manufacturers).
Second, remember budget 2024? The one where the Liberals promised $1.8 billion in new spending on research and the whole sector cheered with relief? Yeah, well only $75 million went into the budget framework for 2024-25; 87% of that 1.8 billion is backloaded until after spring 2026. So, basically none of it is protected, and it’s all at risk. I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if they just cancelled the whole thing. And then, on top of that, we must worry about what happens to existing programs, and whether they take a 15% hit.
CIHR transfers about $1.2 billion to Canadian post-secondary institutes each year, while the National Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) transfers about $1 billion, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) transfers about $440 million (although a fair bit of that last one includes combined tri-council projects which administratively run through SSHRC, including – if I am not mistaken – funding for the Canada First Research Excellence Fund). CFI is another $550 million a year or so. NRC is about $1.7 billion per year. The Strategic Science Fund is another $900 million or so, closer to a billion if you include base funding for Genome Canada. Canada Research Chairs are another $300 million. Call it $6.2 billion in total. Required savings to get to a 15% cut is therefore just under $1 billion.
Where to start?
Ask most researchers at universities what they would prefer, and the answer is likely that they would eliminate everything except the tri-council funding. Ditch CFI, significantly cut NRC, definitely obliterate the Strategic Science Fund – anything, anything, anything but touch tri-Council grants. I understand the preference, but as I noted last week, this is a monumentally detrimental position for the sector to take. Yes, basic research and the existing grant system are the basis of the existing tenure and promotion system, and as such is naturally dear to those in the system, but almost no one in Ottawa thinks that’s what these systems are for. If we’re going to keep research funding afloat, it’s probably going to be through more spending on things like the Strategic Science Fund.
I have very little insight into the state of official Ottawa’s current thinking on the relative value of these various programs, but I could imagine three basic scenarios that get us to $1 billion in savings.
Option 1 is a straight 15% cut across the board. Take out $400 million or so from the granting councils, $80 million from CFI, $250 million from NRC, cut the Strategic Science Fund and Genome Canada to the tune of $150 million or so, and lose about 350 Canada Research Chairs.
Option 2 would be the spare the professors approach. Now, you probably can’t spare them entirely, because they are such a big proportion of the overall expenditure, but if you jacked up the cuts to CFI, NRC and Strategic Science to say 25%, you could hold the losses to CRCs and the tri-councils to under $100M. I think this is unlikely, but it is a possible scenario.
Option 3 would be the hammer the tri-councils approach. Because, as I said, I don’t think they are particularly well-liked at Finance/PMO. This is close to the inverse of option 2; zero cuts to NRC and Strategic Science, keep the CFI cut at 15% and take the rest of the necessary money out of the tri-councils. That would mean a cut of about $800 million or about 30% to council funding.
And remember, all of this is on top of walking back the measures announced in the 2024 Budget. Ugly doesn’t even begin to cover it.
To be clear: I suspect it is unlikely that the research area will get a cut of 15%, in part because officials will feel bad about doing serious damage to existing budgets after, I suspect, already taking away the Budget 2024 measures. If I had to guess, I would say that the department will probably come down hardest on regional development subsidies. Nevertheless, the scenarios above are possible even if not probable. Universities should start thinking about what they might mean and how they might cope.
Key points:
In classrooms across the country, students are mastering their ABCs, solving equations, and diving into science. But one essential life skill–behavior–is not in the lesson plan. For too long, educators have assumed that children arrive at school knowing how to regulate emotions, resolve conflict, and interact respectfully. The reality: Behavior–like math or reading–must be taught, practiced, and supported.
Today’s students face a mounting crisis. Many are still grappling with anxiety, disconnection, and emotional strain following the isolation and disruption of the COVID pandemic. And it’s growing more serious.
Teachers aren’t immune. They, too, are managing stress and emotional overload–while shouldering scripted curricula, rising expectations, and fewer opportunities for meaningful engagement and critical thinking. As these forces collide, disruptive behavior is now the leading cause of job-related stress and a top reason why 78 percent of teachers have considered leaving the profession.
Further complicating matters is social media and device usage. Students and adults alike have become deeply reliant on screens. Social media and online socialization–where interactions are often anonymous and less accountable–have contributed to a breakdown in conflict resolution, empathy, and recognition of nonverbal cues. Widespread attachment to cell phones has significantly disrupted students’ ability to regulate emotions and engage in healthy, face-to-face interactions. Teachers, too, are frequently on their phones, modeling device-dependent behaviors that can shape classroom dynamics.
It’s clear: students can’t be expected to know what they haven’t been taught. And teachers can’t teach behavior without real tools and support. While districts have taken well-intentioned steps to help teachers address behavior, many initiatives rely on one-off training without cohesive, long-term strategies. Real progress demands more–a districtwide commitment to consistent, caring practices that unify educators, students, and families.
A holistic framework: School, student, family
Lasting change requires a whole-child, whole-school, whole-family approach. When everyone in the community is aligned, behavior shifts from a discipline issue to a core component of learning, transforming classrooms into safe, supportive environments where students thrive and teachers rediscover joy in their work. And when these practices are reinforced at home, the impact multiplies.
To help students learn appropriate behavior, teachers need practical tools rather than abstract theories. Professional development, tiered supports, targeted interventions, and strategies to build student confidence are critical. So is measuring impact to ensure efforts evolve and endure.
Some districts are leading the way, embracing data-driven practices, evidence-based strategies, and accessible digital resources. And the results speak for themselves. Here are two examples of successful implementations.
Evidence-based behavior training and mentorship yields 24 percent drop in infractions within weeks
With more than 19,000 racially diverse students across 24 schools east of Atlanta, Newton County Schools prioritized embedded practices and collaborative coaching over rigid compliance. Newly hired teachers received stipends to complete curated, interactive behavior training before the school year began. They then expanded on these lessons during orientation with district staff, deepening their understanding.
Once the school year started, each new teacher was partnered with a mentor who provided behavior and academic guidance, along with regular classroom feedback. District climate specialists also offered further support to all teachers to build robust professional learning communities.
The impact was almost immediate. Within the first two weeks of school, disciplinary infractions fell by 24 percent compared to the previous year–evidence that providing the right tools, complemented by layered support and practical coaching, can yield swift, sustainable results.
Pairing shoulder coaching with real-time data to strengthen teacher readiness
With more than 300,000 students in over 5,300 schools spanning urban to rural communities, Clark County School District in Las Vegas is one of the largest and most diverse in the nation.
Recognizing that many day-to-day challenges faced by new teachers aren’t fully addressed in college training, the district introduced “shoulder coaching.” This mentorship model pairs incoming teachers with seasoned colleagues for real-time guidance on implementing successful strategies from day one.
This hands-on approach incorporates videos, structured learning sessions, and continuous data collection, creating a dynamic feedback loop that helps teachers navigate classroom challenges proactively. Rather than relying solely on reactive discipline, educators are equipped with adaptable strategies that reflect lived classroom realities. The district also uses real-time data and teacher input to evolve its behavior support model, ensuring educators are not only trained, but truly prepared.
By aligning lessons with the school performance plan, Clark County School District was able to decrease suspensions by 11 percent and discretionary exclusions by 17 percent.
Starting a new chapter in the classroom
Behavior isn’t a side lesson–it’s foundational to learning. When we move beyond discipline and make behavior a part of daily instruction, the ripple effects are profound. Classrooms become more conducive to learning. Students and families develop life-long tools. And teachers are happier in their jobs, reducing the churn that has grown post-pandemic.
The evidence is clear. School districts that invest in proactive, strategic behavior supports are building the kind of environments where students flourish and educators choose to stay. The next chapter in education depends on making behavior essential. Let’s teach it with the same care and intentionality we bring to every other subject–and give every learner the chance to succeed.
For years, Higher Education Inquirer (HEI) has documented how the climate crisis intersects with higher education. The evidence shows universities caught between their public claims of sustainability and the realities of financial pressures, risky expansion, and—in some cases—climate denial.
Bryan Alexander’s Universities on Fire offers a framework for understanding how climate change will affect colleges and universities. He describes scenarios where institutions face not only physical damage from storms, floods, and wildfires, but also declining enrollments, strained budgets, and reputational harm if they continue business as usual.
HEI’s reporting on Stockton University illustrates this problem. Its Atlantic City campus was celebrated as a forward-looking project, but the site is highly vulnerable to sea-level rise. Projections show more than two feet of water by 2050 and as much as five feet by 2100. Despite this, the university has continued to invest in the property, a decision that raises questions about long-term planning and responsibility.
The problems are not only physical. HEI has reported on “science-based climate change denial,” where the language of research and inquiry is used to delay or undermine action. This type of denial allows institutions to appear rigorous while, in practice, legitimizing doubt and obstructing necessary changes.
Even the digital infrastructure of higher education is implicated. Data centers and cloud computing require enormous amounts of water for cooling, a fact made more urgent in drought-stricken regions. HEI has suggested that universities confront their digital footprints by auditing storage, deleting unnecessary data, and questioning whether unlimited cloud use is consistent with sustainability goals.
The federal safety net is also shrinking. FEMA cuts have reduced disaster relief funding at a time when climate-driven storms and floods are growing more severe. Colleges and universities that once relied on federal recovery dollars are now being forced to absorb more of the financial burden themselves—whether through state appropriations, private insurance, or higher tuition. In practice, this means students and working families will bear much of the cost of rebuilding.
Meanwhile, contradictions continue to pile up. Camp Mystic, a corporate retreat space that hosts gatherings for university-affiliated leaders, has become a symbol of institutional hypocrisy: universities stage climate conferences and sustainability summits while maintaining financial and cultural ties to industries and donors accelerating the crisis. These contradictions erode trust in higher education’s role as a credible leader on climate.
Climate disruption does not occur in isolation. HEI’s essay Let’s Pretend We Didn’t See It Coming…Again examined how higher education is entangled with a debt-driven economy vulnerable to collapse. With more than $1.7 trillion in student loans, heavy reliance on speculative finance, and partnerships with debt-financed ventures, universities are already positioned on fragile ground. Climate change adds another layer of instability to institutions already at risk.
Taken together, these trends describe a sector moving into uncertain waters. Rising seas threaten campuses directly. Digital networks consume scarce resources. FEMA funding is shrinking. Denial masquerades as academic debate. Debt burdens and speculative finance amplify risks. Universities that continue to expand without accounting for these realities may find themselves not only unprepared but complicit in the crisis.
HEI will continue to investigate these issues, tracking which institutions adapt responsibly and which remain locked in denial and contradiction.
Tribal colleges and universities are known to play an outsize role in educating and employing members of their local tribal communities. But they also offer major returns to taxpayers and the economy at large, according to a new economic impact study by the American Indian Higher Education Consortium and Lightcast.
The study, released on Tuesday, drew on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Census Bureau and institutional reports from the 2022–23 academic year at all 34 tribal colleges and universities across the country.
It found that associate degree graduates from tribal colleges earned, on average, $9,400 more per year than those with just a high school diploma. Students earned $7.50 in future returns for every dollar invested in their tribal college education, an annual return of 27.2 percent.
Meanwhile, alumni of tribal institutions contributed $3.8 billion to the U.S. economy through the higher wages they earned, the increased output of the businesses that employed them and the money students and their employers spent. Tribal college alumni also supported 40,732 jobs nationwide, particularly in industries such as health care and social assistance, retail, and professional and technical services.
For every federal dollar invested in tribal colleges, the institutions return $1.60 in tax revenue through the increased tax payments of their alumni and alumni’s employers. According to the study, the colleges generate a total of $785.6 million in additional tax revenue and save taxpayers $96.8 million because of higher education’s benefits to alumni, including improved health, fewer interactions with the justice system and less reliance on income-assistance programs.
“Tribal Colleges and Universities are powerful engines for opportunity, growth, and stability, not just for Native people, but for everyone,” Ahniwake Rose, president of AIHEC, said in a statement to Inside Higher Ed. “The evidence is clear: Supporting Tribal higher education is not only the right thing to do, it is one of the smartest investments this country can make.”
Florida State University is home to over 50 fraternity and sorority chapters, with total Greek membership over 6,800—about 23 percent of the undergraduate population. Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) students are generally representative of the student population’s demographics, but they’re more likely to persist, graduate and land a job after graduation compared to their peers.
A new center on campus seeks to ensure that Greek organizations promote holistic student development, in part by partnering with student leaders and providing for-credit leadership classes.
What’s the need: Past grievances with FSL organizations on campus prompted the development of the center to prevent hazing and other harmful practices often associated with Greek life. In 2017, FSU banned all fraternities and sororities following the death of a fraternity pledge. The ban was lifted in 2018 with provisions.
“The challenge we had was to solve [misconduct] as almost a student success issue, and [we] try to focus on how do we help our students be way more successful, focusing in on their leadership and their wellness and holistic student experience,” said Freddy Juarez, FSU’s director of strategic initiatives and fraternity and sorority life.
Now, to maintain good standing, Greek organizations must meet a variety of standards, including that members fulfill mandatory volunteer hours and sustain minimum GPAs. The university also maintains a publicly available scorecard on campus chapters to provide transparency into FSL activities, including philanthropic efforts and past disciplinary charges.
The Center for Fraternity and Sorority Organizational Wellness launched in fall 2024 as an extension of these efforts, with the goal of identifying best practices in the field.
“What are those markers that we can identify early on so that we can intervene with the right intervention that will stop them from going down that path of not being a ‘well’ organization?” Juarez said. “We’re trying to figure out what are all these components and pieces as we start to bring on national research agendas.”
FSL students are also embedded throughout campus as tour guides, student government members and orientation leaders, so providing them with leadership training has far-reaching effects on the campus culture, Juarez said.
How it works: The center engages FSL organizations in a variety of ways. Juarez and Brittany Devies, director of the Center for Fraternity and Sorority Wellness, meet with chapter leaders regularly to discuss governance, risk management, recruitment and new member education, among other topics.
“We’re doing training and helping them navigate these complex issues, because these students are managing multimillion-dollar budgets and facilities that cost multimillion dollars. Our largest chapter is 320 members; that is a lot to manage,” Juarez said.
The center also houses a 12-credit leadership studies certificate exclusively for FSL members in the Anne Spencer Daves College of Education, Health and Human Sciences, which is taught by FSL staff members.
The courses focus on leadership contexts broadly but also provide developmental opportunities for students interested in being leaders in their Greek organization. Some of the courses also fulfill general elective and graduation requirements, aiding in degree completion.
Approximately 50 students are currently enrolled in the certificate program; next semester they hope to increase that number to 200, Devies said. “Our students are seeing the direct impacts of that on career readiness,” Devies said, referencing another goal of the center.
Staff also consult other institutions on the lessons they learned from revamping FSL requirements over the past few years, including the importance of data collection and how to partner with chapter leaders.
What’s next: FSU doesn’t have one definition of organizational wellness, Juarez said, but the university is conducting research on positive outcomes from FSL organizations to understand how they can aid in students’ career outcomes, graduation and persistence rates.
“We believe that our organizations could be vehicles that are instrumental in student success,” Juarez said. “We’re seeing that with early numbers if you compare our fraternity and sorority students to our non–fraternity or sorority students.”
Positive career outcomes for members have become a top priority at FSU, so establishing stronger partnerships with the campus career center is a growing focus. FSL added a new staff member specifically to liaise with career services.
FSL is also creating a six-week study abroad experience for students in the leadership certificate program based in Florence, Italy, to help them apply leadership principles beyond the campus environment, Devies said.
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