Student Union
Princeton Student Sentenced to Iranian Prison
A Princeton graduate student was sentenced to 10 years in Iranian prison on Sunday over charges of espionage.
According to a statement issued by Princeton University, Xiyue Wang was arrested nearly a year ago as he was about to leave Iran. He had been conducting scholarly research about the late Qajar dynasty.
“We were very distressed by the charges brought against him in connection with his scholarly activities, and by his subsequent conviction and sentence. His family and the university are distressed at his continued imprisonment and are hopeful that he will be released after his case is heard by the appellate authorities in Tehran,” the statement said.
“In the interim, the university will continue to do everything it can to be supportive of Mr. Wang and his family.”
The court decision comes at a tense time for U.S.-Iranian relations as they have just recently approved a waiver that would expand sanctions relief following the Iranian nuclear deal. Although the White House was expected to approve the waiver, recent tensions between the two countries had called its confirmation into question.
This is not the first time a U.S. citizen has been unexpectedly detained in Iran. The State Department released a statement in April calling for the release of two other U.S. citizens from Iranian captivity. Siamak Namazi and his father, Baquer Namazi, were detained months apart from one another and remain in Tehran’s Evin Prison.
“The United States is deeply concerned about reports of their declining health and well-being in detention. The United States urges Iran to immediately release Siamak and Baquer on humanitarian grounds,” the statement said.
The State Department has also said that an unspecified number of U.S. citizens and foreigners from other countries continue to be held by the Iranian government on “fabricated national-security related changes.”
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Greek Parliament Approves Branches of Foreign Universities
The Greek parliament voted to allow foreign universities to establish and operate branch campuses in the country.
According to U.S. News & World Report, the move was made to encourage Greek students to stay in the country for advanced studies, instead of going abroad for an education. (March 2024)
Virginia Bans Legacy Admissions
The state of Virginia has banned legacy admissions to public colleges and universities.
The New York Times reports the state has outlawed the practice of giving preferential admissions status to students based on connections to alumni and donors. (March 2024)
New Texas Law Prohibits Public Colleges, Universities From Having DEI Offices
A new Texas law prohibits public universities from having special programs supporting minority and LGBTQ students. Critics say these diversity, equity and inclusion programs are discriminatory and divisive. But many students say they are needed. Deana Mitchell has the story from the Texas capital.
Here’s What It Feels Like to Find Home Between Two Cultures
Cynthia Jia, a student at the University of Virginia, writes about how Chinese literature helped reconcile her to being part of two cultures. Read her story in The Cavalier Daily. (February 2024)
FAFSA Delays Prompt California to Extend Deadline for Financial Aid Applications
The California Legislature on Thursday voted to give prospective college students more time to apply for two of the state's largest financial aid programs after a glitch in the federal government's application system threatened to block up to 100,000 people from getting help.
California had already extended the deadline for its financial aid programs from March 2 to April 2. On Thursday, the state Senate gave final approval to a bill that would extend it again until May 2. The bill now heads to Governor Gavin Newsom.
"Clearly, our students need our help," Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes, a Democrat from Riverside who authored the bill, told lawmakers during a public hearing earlier this week.
California has multiple programs to help people pay for college. The biggest is the Cal Grant program, which gives money to people who meet certain income requirements. The state also has a Middle Class Scholarship for people with slightly higher incomes.
Students can apply for these state aid programs only if they first complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly known as FAFSA.
This year, a computer glitch prevented parents from filling out the form if they did not have a Social Security number. That meant many students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents but whose parents are not were blocked from completing the form and thus could not apply for California's aid programs.
California has a large population of adults who are living in the country without legal permission. The California Student Aid Commission, the state agency in charge of California's financial aid programs, estimates as many as 100,000 students could be affected by this glitch.
The U.S. Department of Education says it fixed the problem last week, but those families are now a step behind. Democrats in Congress raised alarms last month, noting that the delay could particularly hurt students in states where financial aid is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, including Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Oregon and Texas.
Advocates fear that the chaos of this year's process could deter students from going to college at all, especially those for whom finances are a key part of the decision.
The computer glitch is just one part of larger problems affecting FAFSA.
The notoriously time-consuming form was overhauled in 2020 through a bipartisan bill in Congress. It promised to simplify the form, going from 100 questions to fewer than 40, and it also changed the underlying formula for student aid, promising to expand it to more low-income students.
But the update has been marred by delays, leaving families across the country in limbo as they figure out how much college will cost.
The form is typically available to fill out in October, but the Education Department didn't have it ready until late December. Even then, the agency wasn't ready to begin processing the forms and sending them to states and colleges, which only started to happen this month.
The problems appear to have already reduced California's application numbers. Through March 8, the number of California students who had completed FAFSA was 43% lower than it was at the same time last year.
"The data most concerning me seems to suggest that these drops are more acute at the schools that serve low-income students or large populations of students of color," Jake Brymner, deputy chief of policy and public affairs for the California Student Aid Commission, told lawmakers in a public hearing earlier this week.
The issue has caused problems for colleges and universities, too. The University of California and California State University systems both delayed their admissions deadlines because so many prospective students were having trouble with FAFSA.