CONAHEC News and Information

As an academic, I am constantly traveling to present at conferences, network and create change in communities.

The one question I am always asked is, “Where are you from?” My response is Salt Lake City, Utah. It is my home, and not the answer people expect to hear. I get one of two replies: First, are you Mormon? Second, I didn’t think people of color lived there.

Higher education leaders have often bemoaned university ranking systems as unfairly highlighting institutions that have empirically had a great deal of resources and large endowments, while positioning colleges that are working to enroll low-income, underserved students as being behind the pack. That was a major complaint behind the Obama-era College Scorecardinitiative, for which a number of community college leaders said devalued their institutions and made them look less appealing to potential enrollees' parents. 

At universities in Canada, as in many other countries, professors must have their research plan approved by the research ethics board or REB at their institution before they can launch their study. This process ensures that participants are not exposed to physical or psychological harm. 

Interviews, surveys, focus groups or medical interventions, all methods that involve human participants, must receive REB approval, and for good reason. We have distanced ourselves from the days of recruiting vulnerable members of society and testing new discoveries on them. 

The United States has been the leader in fundamental research for the past seven decades, remaining the single-largest contributor to worldwide research, but this is changing. In 2000 the US accounted for 40% of global research and development (R&D) output, reducing to 29.3% by 2013. A central reason for this reduction is China’s investment, which will likely surpass the US in total R&D funding by 2019. The US now faces a dilemma over the future of this national achievement and the supporting arrangements making it sustainable.