Education
Why higher education should be mourning the loss of its independence on July 4th
The University of Virginia describes itself as a place where “differing perspectives not only coexist, they co-create.” It’s a sentiment that may no longer ring true at the prestigious public university, and, potentially, all of higher education.
Today, the venerable research institution created by Thomas Jefferson suddenly finds itself in big trouble, its mission and independence threatened by the Trump administration’s demands to weaken its diversity, equity and inclusion programs or risk losing millions of dollars in federal funding.
James E. Ryan, the university’s ninth president, resigned under pressure last week, part of a settlement with the Justice Department into ending the school’s diversity practices. His resignation is among the many signals that we are in a new and unprecedented era for higher education, traditionally a bastion for freedom of thought and speech. It likely marks the first time the federal government has pushed a university to remove its leader.
Ryan’s resignation is a stark reminder that it’s not just the Ivy League that has incurred the wrath of President Donald Trump and suffered from federal overreach into every echelon of university life. The move against UVA will “spread fear across the academy and American society at large,” Siva Vaidhyanathan, a professor of media studies at the university, wrote for The New Republic. “Students, faculty and university leaders will cower, believing that no institutional power will protect us if the right comes after us.”
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As UVA president, Ryan has been a champion of maintaining diversity, and he acknowledged having to resign against his will because the Trump administration does not believe he went far enough in dismantling DEI initiatives aimed at making all students feel included. The university dissolved its DEI office in March, but conservative alumni and others have complained that Ryan did not do more.
“I cannot make a unilateral decision to fight the federal government in order to save my own job,” Ryan said in a statement Friday, while faculty and students protested on the leafy Charlottesville campus. The 58-year-old president noted that he is “heartbroken to be leaving this way,” and many students also said they were sorry to see Ryan go.
Democratic lawmakers in Virginia vowed over the weekend to fight back, including Sen. Mark Warner. “This federal DOE and Department of Justice should get their nose out of the University of Virginia,” Warner said during a television appearance on Sunday. “They are doing damage to our flagship university. And if they can do it here, they’ll do it elsewhere.”
Related: Tracking Trump: His actions to abolish the Education Department, and more
UVA opened with a faculty of eight and a student body of just 68 men, a crowning achievement for Jefferson, who famously believed that an educated citizenry is key to a democratic society. The first Black student was not admitted until 1950; the first woman 20 years later. Today, the top-ranked public research institution enrolls more than 25,000 students, 9.4 percent of whom are Black or African American and 10 percent of whom are Hispanic, the most recent university data shows.
The issue of Ryan’s departure, of course, is about far more than what he did or is perceived to have not done. All of higher education has been under pressure since a divided Supreme Court struck down affirmative action, and even more so since Trump took office and promised to address what he calls an “anti-white feeling” in America.
Trump has questioned the tax-exempt status of universities, issued executive orders aimed at eliminating DEI, gutted funding for critical research and launched an array of civil rights investigations. His Justice Department last week opened an investigation into hiring practices at the University of California, and on Monday said it had determined that Harvard violated federal civil rights law by ignoring the concerns of Jewish and Israeli students during Gaza war protests and threatened to withhold all federal funding from the university.
The University of Virginia has also been pressured by the Jefferson Council, a group of conservative alumni that has been highly critical of Ryan’s leadership, as it details on a website called Reset UVA. “For too long, policies driven by ideology rather than merit, achievement and character have eroded trust, divided the community and betrayed the university’s founding ideals,” Joel Gardner, president of the Jefferson Council, said in a statement.
Ryan previously worked as an education school professor and dean at Harvard (the university that has attracted a great deal of Trump’s ire) and earned a reputation as a supporter of first-generation students during his nearly seven years at UVA, at a time when many college presidents are quietly folding scholarships, pipeline initiatives, race-based mentoring and offices devoted to racial equality.
Many college presidents have been reluctant to speak out openly in opposition to Trump, but not Patricia McGuire, the longtime president of Trinity Washington University, a small Catholic institution. Ryan’s resignation, she told me, “lays bare once more the intent of the Trump administration to silence the leadership of American higher education and to debilitate its leading institutions so that the regime can continue its campaign to deconstruct our democracy without opposition.”
Related: Trump is bullying, blackmailing and threatening colleges, and they are just beginning to fight back
A few other leaders have recently joined forces, including in a new campaign, From Campus to Community; many of the college presidents involved posted commencement speeches filled with calls for courage, including Wellesley College President Paula Johnson, who told graduates: “We are in the midst of a degree of meddling that American colleges and universities have not seen since the McCarthy era in the late 1940s and 1950s.”
Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, called Ryan’s resignation “a dark day for the University of Virginia, a dark day for higher education.”
“It’s clear the administration is not done and will use every tool that it can make or invent to exert its will over higher education,” he added.
In the meantime, it’s the loss of its freedom that higher education, already under pressure due to declining enrollment and lagging public support for its value, needs to be worried about on Independence Day.
Contact Liz Willen at willen@hechingerreport.org
This story about UVA was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. Sign up for the Hechinger newsletter.
Education
America’s future depends on more first-generation students from underestimated communities earning an affordable bachelor’s degree
I recently stood before hundreds of young people in California’s Central Valley; more than 60 percent were on that day becoming the first in their family to earn a bachelor’s degree.
Their very presence at University of California, Merced’s spring commencement ceremony disrupted a major narrative in our nation about who college is for — and the value of a degree.
Many of these young people arrived already balancing jobs, caregiving responsibilities and family obligations. Many were Pell Grant-eligible and came from communities that are constantly underestimated and where a higher education experience is a rarity.
These students graduated college at a critical moment in American history: a time when the value of a bachelor’s degree is being called into question, when public trust in higher education is vulnerable and when supports for first-generation college students are eroding. Yet an affordable bachelor’s degree remains the No. 1 lever for financial, professional and social mobility in this country.
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A recent Gallup poll showed that the number of Americans who have a great deal of confidence in higher education is dwindling, with a nearly equal amount responding that they have little to none. In 2015, when Gallup first asked this question, those expressing confidence outnumbered those without by nearly six to one.
There is no doubt that higher education must continue to evolve — to be more accessible, more relevant and more affordable — but the impact of a bachelor’s degree remains undeniable.
And the bigger truth is this: America’s long-term strength — its economic competitiveness, its innovation pipeline, its social fabric — depends on whether we invest in the education of the young people who reflect the future of this country.
There are many challenges for today’s workforce, from a shrinking talent pipeline to growing demands in STEM, healthcare and the public sector. These challenges can’t be solved unless we ensure that more first-generation students and those from underserved communities earn their degrees in affordable ways and leverage their strengths in ways they feel have purpose.
Those of us in education must create conditions in which students’ talent is met with opportunity and higher education institutions demonstrate that they believe in the potential of every student who comes to their campuses to learn.
UC Merced is a fantastic example of what this can look like. The youngest institution in the California University system, it was recently designated a top-tier “R1” research university. At the same time, it earned a spot on Carnegie’s list of “Opportunity Colleges and Universities,” a new classification that recognizes institutions based on the success of their students and alumni. It is one of only 21 institutions in the country to be nationally ranked for both elite research and student success and is proving that excellence and equity can — and must — go hand in hand.
In too many cases, students who make it to college campuses are asked to navigate an educational experience that wasn’t built with their lived experiences and dreams in mind. In fact, only 24 percent of first-generation college students earn a bachelor’s degree in six years, compared to nearly 59 percent of students who have a parent with a bachelor’s. This results in not just a missed opportunity for individual first-generation students — it’s a collective loss for our country.
Related: To better serve first-generation students, expand the definition
The graduates I spoke to in the Central Valley that day will become future engineers, climate scientists, public health leaders, artists and educators. Their bachelor’s degrees equip them with critical thinking skills, confidence and the emotional intelligence needed to lead in an increasingly complex world.
Their future success will be an equal reflection of their education and the qualities they already possess as first-generation college graduates: persistence, focus and unwavering drive. Because of this combination, they will be the greatest contributors to the future of work in our nation.
This is a reality I know well. As the Brooklyn-born daughter of Dominican immigrants, I never planned to go away from home to a four-year college. My father drove a taxi, and my mother worked in a factory. I was the first in my family to earn a bachelor’s degree. I attended college as part of an experimental program to get kids from neighborhoods like mine into “top” schools. When it was time for me to leave for college, my mother and I boarded a bus with five other students and their moms for a 26-hour ride to Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.
Like so many first-generation college students, I carried with me the dreams and sacrifices of my family and community. I had one suitcase, a box of belongings and no idea what to expect at a place I’d never been to before. That trip — and the bachelor’s degree I earned — changed the course of my life.
First-generation college students from underserved communities reflect the future of America. Their success is proof that the American Dream is not only alive but thriving. And right now, the stakes are national, and they are high.
That is why we must collectively remove the obstacles to first-generation students’ individual success and our collective success as a nation. That’s the narrative that we need to keep writing — together.
Shirley M. Collado is president emerita at Ithaca College and the president and CEO of College Track, a college completion program dedicated to democratizing potential among first-generation college students from underserved communities.
Contact the opinion editor at opinion@hechingerreport.org.
This story about first-generation students was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education. Sign up for Hechinger’s weekly newsletter.
Five years ago, Traya Health, a holistic hair loss solution, was born out of a deeply personal health struggle faced by co-founder Saloni Anand and her husband. What began as a quest for personal well-being has blossomed into a pioneering brand that challenges conventional wisdom in the hair care industry. Saloni shared Traya’s science-first approach in a session at the ETBrandEquity Brand World Summit 2025.
The genesis of a solution
Saloni Anand, co-founder of Traya, recounted the origins of the brand. Her co-founder, armed with a biomedical chemistry background, embarked on extensive research to address his uncontrollable hypothyroidism. During this challenging journey, a surprising side effect emerged: his hair began to grow back.
“About two years later, we realised that this is something awesome, and everything out there in the industry is not able to grow hair, but we could, so there’s some potential to explore this,” Anand shared. This discovery spurred intensive research into hair science, revealing critical insights that would become the bedrock of Traya’s unique approach.
Dispelling hair loss myths: Traya’s foundational learnings
Traya’s deep dive into hair science led to three fundamental revelations that shaped their model:
Diagnosis is key: “We learned hair loss is genetic mostly, but has multiple types. Not everyone has hair loss because medically multiple types of it require diagnosis.”
Follicle potential: Hair regrowth is possible if follicles are still present, meaning it’s achievable for most individuals not in very advanced stages of hair loss.
No magic bullet: “There is no magic molecule for one product that can grow everyone’s hair. It’s a wider thing that’s happening. It’s more like diabetes than anything.”
Analysing the existing hair industry, Anand observed, “More than 10,000 products on Amazon today sell with the label of hair fall and are topical. Selling you a shampoo, conditioner that has wrongful claims, promising 30-day results, sometimes even worse.” This landscape, rife with superficial solutions, solidified Traya’s mission: “We are here to grow hair, and we will do everything it takes to get that emphasis.”
The “three sciences” model: Traya’s holistic prescription
The first year was dedicated solely to building formulations. This led to Traya’s distinctive model: a hair solution built on diagnosis and a holistic approach. The brand name, “Traya,” is Sanskrit for “three sciences,” embodying their core philosophy: Ayurveda, Allopathy (Dermatology) and Nutrition.
The consumer journey begins with an online diagnosis. The solution provided is a customised kit incorporating elements from all three sciences, including a diet plan, recognising that hair loss often stems from internal imbalances.
Initial skepticism from investors was high. Saloni and her husband launched Traya with personal funds. Six months later, with tangible results from their first critical trials, they secured their initial investment.
Breaking the rules: A D2C brand of the future
Traya today stands as a largely scaled, profitable brand, having served over 10 lakh Indians. A distinctive aspect of its D2C model is that 100 per cent of its revenue comes directly from its platform. “If you download the Traya app, take a long diagnosis. They buy a gift. If the consumer cannot choose which product they are buying. We tell them what they should buy,” Anand stated, emphasising their doctor-led, personalised approach.
Eighty per cent of Traya’s revenue comes from repeat customers. “This happened because we did not have the baggage of how,” she noted.
Education, retention and AI: The pillars of growth
Anand highlighted three critical pillars for modern D2C success:
Believe in education: Traya faced the challenge of educating consumers on why previous topical solutions had failed and why a holistic, science-backed approach was necessary. “Our journey from zero to one crore per month is really smooth. We really had to build these fundamentals,” she revealed. This rapid scale was driven by a deep commitment to educating their audience. Traya’s culture prohibits discussing competitor brands, focusing solely on their consumers. “The moment you do that and you just focus on your consumer, you have the ability to do something,” she added.
Retention over acquisition: Traya defines itself internally as a “habit building organisation,” treating hair loss as a chronic disease. Their North Star metric is retention, supported by a data-tech engine and over 800 hair coaches who ensure adherence and usage. “Back in 2023, when we were having that growth chart, we reached a point where we saw retention numbers there, and we cautiously stopped all our marketing scale up,” Anand disclosed. This move underscored their commitment to long-term customer success over short-term acquisition. “How can you be a D2C brand in 2025? That’s not too little but is just too little today to differentiate. Can you add a service there? Can you add a community? How can you be more than just a product gone?”
Embrace AI: While acknowledging AI as a buzzword, Anand firmly believes it will be a pivotal theme in brand building. Traya, despite its 800-person team, has already seen impressive results from integrating AI. “Three months ago, I took a mandate at Traya that no more tech hiring, and we are about since then, we have done zero tech hiring, and we’ve increased the tech productivity four times,” she shared, emphasising the transformative power of AI in consumer evaluation, discovery and shopping.
Saloni Anand concluded by summarising her key takeaways for aspiring D2C brands: “Think more than product solutions. Think of efficiency. Think science, if your product works, everything else will fall in place. Think AI. Think of the review word and think of retention first.”
Ministers are facing calls to not cut education plans for children and young people with special needs and disabilities (Send).
Campaigners say education, health and care plans (EHCPs) are “precious legal protections”, warning that thousands of children could lose access to education if the plans are abolished.
The government has said it inherited the current system “left on its knees”. Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson described it as a “complex and sensitive area” when asked if she could rule out scrapping EHCPs.
But Neil O’Brien, the shadow education minister, has criticised the government for “broken promises and U-turns”.
An EHCP is a legally binding document which ensures a child or young person with special or educational needs gets the right support from a local authority.
Full details of the proposed changes are due in October, but ministers have not ruled out scrapping the education plans, insisting no decisions have been taken.
In a letter to the Guardian newspaper, campaigners have said that without the documents in mainstream schools, “many thousands of children risk being denied vital provision, or losing access to education altogether”.
“Whatever the Send system’s problems, the answer is not to remove the rights of children and young people. Families cannot afford to lose these precious legal protections,” they added.
Signatories to the letter include the heads of charities, professors, Send parents including actor Sally Phillips, and campaigners including broadcaster Chris Packham.
Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, Ms Phillipson saidL
“What I can say very clearly is that we will strengthen and put in place better support for children.
“I’ve been spending a lot of time listening to parents, to disability rights groups, to campaigners and to others and to colleagues across Parliament as well, because it’s important to get this right,” she added, but said it is “tough”.
Mr O’Brien, the shadow minister, said the government had “no credibility left”.
“This is a government defined by broken promises and u-turns. They said they would employ more teachers and they have fewer. They said they would not raise tax on working people but did,” Mr O’Brien said.
Data from the Department for Education released in June showed that the number of EHCPs has increased.
In total, there were 638,745 EHCPs in place in January 2025, up 10.8% on the same point last year.
The number of new plans which started during 2024 also grew by 15.8% on the previous year, to 97,747.
Requests for children to be assessed for EHCPs rose by 11.8% to 154,489 in 2023.
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “We have been clear that there are no plans to abolish Send tribunals, or to remove funding or support from children, families and schools.”
The spokesperson added that it would be “totally inaccurate to suggest that children, families and schools might experience any loss of funding or support”.
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