Tag: Andrew

  • ‘What the hell just happened?’ Australia’s flirtation with a levy on international students – By Professor Andrew Norton

    ‘What the hell just happened?’ Australia’s flirtation with a levy on international students – By Professor Andrew Norton

    • This blog has been kindly written for HEPI by Andrew Norton, Professor of Higher Education Policy at Monash Business School, Monash University.
    • The thoughts of Nick Hillman, HEPI’s Director, on the levy can be read on the Research Professional News website here.

    For an Australian reader the UK immigration white paper’s proposal for a levy on international student fee revenue sounds familiar. In mid-2023 just such a levy was suggested for Australia by the interim report of a major higher education policy review. Like its UK version, the idea was to reinvest levy revenue in education. While the interim report lacked white paper status, education minister Jason Clare liked the idea enough to mention it in his report launch speech

    But now the levy has vanished from the Australian policy agenda. When the Universities Accord final report was released in February 2024 the levy idea was there but postponed, shunted off until after other major funding reforms that will start in 2027 at the earliest. So far as I can find, the Minister – newly reappointed this week after Labor’s election victory on 3 May – has not mentioned the idea in public for 18 months.

    So what happened? Predictably, the universities that stood to lose the most from the levy opposed it. But the bigger reason was that between mid-2023 and late 2023 the politics of international education in Australia were turned upside down. In a few months international education went from a valuable export industry to a cause of Australia’s housing shortages. International student numbers had to be cut. 

    As originally proposed in Australia the international student levy was not linked to migration policy. Some reduction in student demand was predicted, as levy costs were passed on through higher fees. But this was a policy side-effect, not its goal. If too many international students were deterred the levy would not raise enough money to achieve its domestic objectives. The Government needed more effective ways of bringing international student numbers back down. 

    Between October 2023 and July 2024 the Australian Government introduced, on my count, nine measures to block or discourage would-be international students. 

    Among the Government’s nine measures was one that delivered it international student revenue much more quickly than the proposed levy. The Government more than doubled student visa application fees from A$710 (~£330) to A$1,600 (~£745), claiming that the money would be spent on policies benefiting domestic students. During the 2025 election campaign Labor said it would increase visa fees again, to A$2,000 (~£930). The UK’s £524 fee looks cheap by comparison. 

    Higher visa fees and other migration measures had two big advantages over the once-proposed levy from the perspective of the Australian Government – legal ease and speed in delivering on migration goals. In Australia, many migration changes can be made by ministerial determination without parliamentary review. The levy required legislation. Australia’s system of sending controversial legislation to often-bruising Senate inquiries increases political costs, even when the bill ultimately passes.

    What visa fees lack is the Robin Hood element of the Australian levy as proposed. In 2023 the University of Sydney alone earned 14% of all university international student fee revenue. The top six universities received more than half of the total. Levy advocates argue that these gains are built on past taxpayer subsidies and prime real estate. Profits built on these foundations can legitimately be taxed for the wider benefit of Australian higher education. 

    In Australia generally, and under Labor governments especially, an egalitarian political culture gives these levy arguments some resonance. But for the foreseeable future migration is a bigger issue than university funding, and visa policies a more straightforward way of bringing down international student numbers than levies. Perhaps the levy idea will return, but the government’s long silence on the subject suggests that this will not happen anytime soon.

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  • Franklin & Marshall College Names Dr. Andrew Rich as 17th President

    Franklin & Marshall College Names Dr. Andrew Rich as 17th President

    FDr. Andy Richranklin & Marshall College has appointed Dr. Andrew “Andy” Rich, current dean of the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership at City College of New York (CCNY), as its 17th president following a unanimous vote by the Board of Trustees. Rich will take office in July, succeeding outgoing president Dr. Barbara K. Altmann, who has led the institution since 2018.

    During his six-year tenure at the Colin Powell School, Rich demonstrated exceptional ability in institutional growth and fundraising, according to officials at the private school located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He spearheaded a 40 percent enrollment increase, bringing the student body to 4,000, while simultaneously launching innovative student success initiatives. Under his leadership, the school established eight new fellowship programs and created an Office of Student Success offering comprehensive mentoring, professional development, and career services.

    One of Rich’s notable achievements at CCNY was the formation of a Public Service Career Hub, which more than doubled student placement in public service internships and jobs. The initiative’s success earned the 2023 Exemplary Model Award from the American Association of University Administrators. Rich also led a transformative fundraising campaign that generated over $85 million in new investments for scholarships, student services, faculty positions, and academic initiatives.

    “I am excited to become an F&M Diplomat,” said Rich. “For more than 235 years, Franklin & Marshall has been a beacon for excellence in liberal arts education. We prepare students for fulfilling lives, inspiring them to achievements that enrich every sector of society.”

    Prior to his role at CCNY, Rich served as CEO and executive secretary of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation from 2011 to 2019, where he oversaw the prestigious federal program supporting future public service leaders. His connection to F&M includes oversight of two recent Truman Scholars from the college: Makaila Ranges, a 2022 graduate and Akbar Hossain, who graduated in 2013. Rich also served as president and CEO of the Roosevelt Institute, a national think tank and leadership development organization, from 2009 to 2011.

    Eric Noll, chair of the College’s Board of Trustees, praised Rich’s appointment:

    “He will build on Barbara Altmann’s successful presidency with his sharp strategic sensibilities and deep appreciation for our excellent liberal arts college and its importance in our society’s future,” he said.

    Rich’s academic credentials include a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Richmond, where he was awarded a Truman Scholarship, and a doctorate in political science from Yale University. He has taught at both CCNY and Wake Forest University and is known for his scholarship on think tanks and foundations in American politics, having authored Think Tanks, Public Policy, and the Politics of Expertise.

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