IBL News

Author: IBL News

  • Cornell and Several More Universities Will Require Students to Be Vaccinated

    Cornell and Several More Universities Will Require Students to Be Vaccinated

    IBL News | New York

    The number of universities mandating the COVID grows every day.

    At least six more universities — Cornell University, Brown University, Nova Southeastern University, Fort Lewis College in Durango, Oakland University, St. Edward’s University, and Roger Williams College in Rhode Island — have joined Rutgers in requiring students to be vaccinated for the upcoming fall term. Students with health issues or religious beliefs will be the only exceptions.

    In the case of Cornell, President Martha E. Pollack and Provost Michael I. Kotlikoff
    announced that it will require vaccination for students returning to Ithaca, Geneva, and Cornell Tech campuses for the fall semester.

    Cornell’s students, faculty, and staff members are required to register their status through the university’s Daily Check portal, adding proof of vaccination.

    The institution is planning for several possibilities for instruction, depending on the level of immunity achieved. With herd immunity, classes would return to in-person modality.

    Nova Southeastern University (NSU) in Florida said that it intends to resume full, in-person classroom learning for the fall 2021 semester. The requirement to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 will be effective August 1st.

    Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado, with 3,500 students enrolled, announced to staff and students Friday that it will require students to get vaccinated, as well. It’s the first Colorado university to initiate a vaccine mandate.

    Yesterday, Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, announced it will be mandating immunizations for student-residents to fall move on August 27.

     

  • Soros Pledges $500 Million to Bard College in New York, One of Founders of His University Arm

    Soros Pledges $500 Million to Bard College in New York, One of Founders of His University Arm

    IBL News | New York

    Billionaire investor George Soros pledged last week a $500 million endowment to Bard College, a private liberal arts college in New York.

    The financier explained that “Bard has had an outsized impact, setting the standard in liberal arts education in prisons, in high school age students, and in the arts and in its international work.” 

    Bard College is one of two founding partners of the new Open Society University Network, a global network created with the Central European University in partnership with George Soros’s Open Society Foundations. Soros previously pledged $1 billion to help establish the Open Society University Network. Last summer, he committed $100 million to Bard his Open Society Foundation.

    “This grant to Bard — among the largest ever made to higher education in the United States – facilitates and strengthens Bard’s exemplary educational and social initiatives,” said the school.

    In response to Soros’ donation, Bard announced it has raised an additional $250 million from trustees, alumni, and supporters, and will raise another $250 million over the next five years.

    “This is the most historic moment since the college’s founding in 1860,” said Bard College President Leon Botstein. “When this endowment drive is complete, Bard will have a $1 billion endowment, which will ensure its pioneering mission and its academic excellence for the future.”

    Bard College enrolls 2,200 students at its main campus in New York’s Hudson Valley and the Catskill Mountains. Its tuition costs are roughly $55,000 for a first-year student without room and board.

  • Coursera’s CEO Says that Its Valuation Won’t Drop After the Pandemic Winds Down

    Coursera’s CEO Says that Its Valuation Won’t Drop After the Pandemic Winds Down

    IBL News | New York

    Coursera (NYSE: COUR) ended up its successful debut in Wall Street with a small gain of 1.73%, closing at $45.78 a share, it hit a high of $56.48 at 11:00 am.

    On Wednesday, the stock rallied 36%, until $45, giving the company a whopping valuation of $5.9 billion.

    On Tuesday, the IPO priced Coursera’s shares at $33, allowing the educational company to raise nearly $520 million.

    The CEO at Coursera, Jeff Maggioncalda, predicted yesterday at Yahoo Finance that the stock price would stay even after the pandemic winds down.

    He said: “The world needs more access to high-quality learning. There will be a new normal that emerges. We don’t know what that will look like either in terms of how we work remotely versus in an office and how we will learn online and also on campus. But it’s pretty clear that the world will never be the same again and that online learning will be a big part of it.”

    “So we really think about the long term, all the structural reasons why people will need to learn continuously through their lives to learn new skills as the world goes more digital,” he added.

     

  • Higher Ed Sees an Increased Number of Malware Attacks Demanding Payment

    Higher Ed Sees an Increased Number of Malware Attacks Demanding Payment

    IBL News | New York

    The FBI issued a warning about the increase in cyberattacks targeting higher education, K-12 schools, and seminaries in 12 U.S. states and the United Kingdom.

    Cyberattacks have disrupted virtual classes and registrations at a number of institutions amid the pandemic this year.

    Cybercriminals steal sensitive information, block access to essential systems, and demand payment before they return access. Some institutions have already paid those ransoms.

    The average cost of a data breach was $3.9 million in 2020, according to the Ponemon Institute.

    These attacks are identified as PYSA ransomware, also known as Mespinoza. This is malware capable of exfiltrating data and encrypting users’ critical files and data stored on the attacked institutions’ systems.

    Unidentified cyber actors exfiltrate data, encrypt victim’s systems, and use it as leverage in eliciting ransom payments. These criminals use Advanced Port Scanner and Advanced IP Scanner1 to conduct network reconnaissance and proceed to install open-source tools, such as PowerShell Empire2, Koadic3, and Mimikatz4. The cyber actors execute commands to deactivate antivirus capabilities on the victim network prior to deploying the ransomware.

    Upon malware execution, a detailed ransom message is generated and displayed on the victim’s login or lock screen. The ransom message contains information on how to contact the actors via email, displays FAQs, and offers to decrypt the affected files. If the ransom is not met, the actors warn that the information will be uploaded and monetized on the darknet.

    The FBI recommends no to pay ransoms. “Payment does not guarantee files will be recovered. It may also embolden adversaries to target additional organizations, encourage other criminal actors to engage in the distribution of ransomware, and/or fund illicit activities,” says the Bureau.

     

  • Coursera Rallies 36% on Its Debut, Giving the Company a Whopping Valuation of $5.8 Billion

    Coursera Rallies 36% on Its Debut, Giving the Company a Whopping Valuation of $5.8 Billion

    IBL News | New York

    Coursera stock rose 36% Wednesday, closing at $45 a share, on its first day of trading on the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange).

    This surge gave the online learning platform a whopping market valuation of $5.86 billion, despite the company is still unprofitable.

    On Tuesday, Coursera priced its 15.73 million shares of the IPO at $33 a share, at the high end of Coursera’s expected range of $30 to $33.

    In its offering, the company raised nearly $520 million at an implied $4.3 billion valuation.

    Prior to its debut, Coursera was last valued in the private market at $3.6 billion.

    As shown in the picture above, Coursera’s founders and CEO rang virtually the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange today, as the whole event was online, due to the pandemic.

    Jeff Maggioncalda, CEO at Coursera said to EdSurge that the new influx of money would be used to build more AI-based teaching.

    “We are always building more AI into the teaching experience and the learning experience,” he said. “On the learning side, that means more personalized learning. On the teaching side, [it means] improved student-success dashboards that predict every student’s grade every day and predict the chance that students stop [out of] the degree program.”

    The stock trades under the ticker symbol “COUR.”

     

    [Written by Mikel Amigot]

    • Coursera CEO on IPO: this was a ‘good time’ for public debut

    • News about Coursera at IBL News

     

     

  • Google Expands its Search Tools into Math and Science Homework Problems

    Google Expands its Search Tools into Math and Science Homework Problems

    IBL News | New York

    Google released new tools to search on science and math problems in English, “with plans to expand to more languages.”

    The search giant now has the ability to look up over 2,000 STEM concepts — including useful examples and helpful videos — and a million practice problems.

    “You’ll be one click away from learning resources from educational providers like BBC Bitesize, Byjus, Careers360, Chegg, CK12, Education Quizzes, GradeUp, Great Minds, Kahoot!, OpenStax, Toppr, Vedantu, and more,” says the company. Providers such as Symbolab, Mathway (a Chegg Service), and Tiger Algebra are expected as well.

    Some search results can be 3D augmented reality lessons on chemistry, biology, and anatomy concepts.

    Google’s new tools — including the Google App Lens — are particularly useful for math equations homework, although they can be used for cheating on problems and exams (many are doing so).

  • The NCC and Google Will Train State Lawmakers on Cybersecurity Attacks

    The NCC and Google Will Train State Lawmakers on Cybersecurity Attacks

    IBL News | New York

    The National Cybersecurity Center (NCC) and Google launched on Monday a nationwide training program to educate state lawmakers and their statehouse staff and prepare them on best practices on cyber attacks, as the nation faces the 2022 midterm elections.

    The Cybersecurity for State Leaders initiative, extended to all 50 states, will include live virtual forums and interactive, on-demand workshops.

    In those forums will participate national figures in security such as investor on ABC’s Shark Tank and Founder and CEO of Herjavec Group Robert Herjavec, former State Department Spokesperson and Undersecretary of State for Public Affairs Heather Nauert, Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chief Information Security Officer for the Information Security Division of the U.S. Small Business Administration James Saunders, and representatives from Google, IBM, Microsoft’s Defending Democracy Program.

    Launched with bipartisan signing, the project will prepare lawmakers and their staff “to be vigilant against cyber threats by offering a deep dive into the ecosystem of cybersecurity, common types of cyberattacks, how and why cyber attacks work, and best practices on how to protect individuals against cyber threats,” according to the official release.

    Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R-OH) and Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold (D-CO) announced their commitment to promote a stronger culture of cybersecurity awareness in their offices and throughout their state.

    “Americans must have confidence in their elections; that can’t happen if we aren’t vigilant in our defense of the digital systems that make up our election infrastructure,” said LaRose.

  • Adam Medros Leaves edX; Anant Agarwal Remains as Unique CEO

    Adam Medros Leaves edX; Anant Agarwal Remains as Unique CEO

    IBL News | New York

    Anant Agarwal, Founder and CEO at edX Inc., will consolidate his leadership at the educational non-profit as a unique Chief Executive Officer.

    The co-CEO and President, Adam Medros announced his departure through his Twitter account last March 15th. In parallel, Medros reported about his appointment as Chief Operating Officer (CCO) at Embark Veterinary, “a leader in dog genetics.”

    The reason for the departure has not been explained and edX hasn’t made an official announcement, although the leadership page at edX.org reflects the change now.

    Prior to edX, Medros spent 13 years at TripAdvisor as Senior Vice President (SVP) of global product. With no previous experience in higher education, he joined edX in October 2017, and two years later, he was promoted to co-CEO, joining Anant Agarwal in this position.

    edX’s move was intended to adopt a more business and less academic-focused structure with two running CEOs, as it was reported.

    “Adam Medros will partner with Agarwal to drive the company’s continued growth and innovation, in service of its non-profit mission to increase access to high-quality education for everyone, everywhere,” edX said then.

    Anant Agarwal stated in October 2019: “Adam’s dedication to the edX mission and his partnership have been invaluable to me in my role as Founder and CEO of edX and I look forward to further deepening our collaboration.”

  • Rutgers University Will Require All Students to Be Vaccinated for the Fall Semester

    Rutgers University Will Require All Students to Be Vaccinated for the Fall Semester

    IBL News | New York

    Rutgers University in New Jersey will be the first university requiring all students the COVID-19 vaccine before arriving physically on campus in the fall for the 2021 semester.

    Proof of vaccination will be demanded to all students planning to attend this fall. However, students may request an exemption for medical or religious reasons.

    “Broad immunization is critical to help stop the pandemic and to protect our community,” said the public institution in New Jersey in a statement.

    In addition, Rutgers University “encouraged faculty and staff to get immunized against COVID-19 at the earliest opportunity.”

    Officials said that the institution has been approved to offer clinics for on-campus administration of vaccines to faculty, staff, and students when vaccine supplies become available. Currently, Rutgers does not have vaccines.

    Other colleges and universities are also considering vaccination policies for students, although they might not make it mandatory.

    For example, Dickinson State University in North Dakota will issue a pin or a bracelet to students who have been fully vaccinated. This mark will exempt them from the campuswide mask mandate.

    Most of the universities said they don’t yet have clear plans for vaccination requirements.

     

  • edX Designs with RIT a New Credit Pathway to Complete Masters-Level Degrees in Science

    edX Designs with RIT a New Credit Pathway to Complete Masters-Level Degrees in Science

    IBL News | New York

    Students who successfully complete any of edX.org’s 63 MicroMasters programs and meet RIT admissions criteria will be eligible for up to 9 credits toward a Master of Science degree — fully online or on-campus — in Professional Studies at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). This new universal credit pathway comes after an agreement between edX and RIT.

    “This innovative model increases access to education by creating more choice and flexibility for learners when it comes to earning a master’s degree online, unlocking experiences they didn’t know were possible,” said edX in a statement.

    “With RIT, we are once again making it more accessible for learners to get a master’s degree that positions them for success in the job market,” explained Anant Agarwal, CEO at edX.

    “We are thrilled to provide this pathway to a high-value graduate degree more readily available for all who seek and need it,” said James C. Hall, Dean of University Studies Division, Executive Director, and Professor of the School of Individualized Study at RIT.

    “We work closely with edX to ensure learners have a smooth transition to RIT, and empower them with the opportunity to use their MITx MicroMasters program certificates toward a master’s degree in Professional Studies at RIT,” stated Professor Krishna Rajagopal, MIT’s Dean for Digital Learning.