Innovation That Matters

Listen to the first episode of The Chronicle's new podcast, Open Questions. The Chronicle Review is where academe comes to argue with itself. On Open Questions, The Review‘s podcast, Evan Goldstein and Len Gutkin bring the argument to you by talking with leading scholars and thinkers about the debates that matter now. In This Episode: A Harvard dean recently suggested that "there should be acceptance, even encouragement" of AI writing in the college classroom. That sort of thing creeps Jill Lepore out. We talked to the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian about what AI is doing to higher education, what went wrong at Harvard, and why our new tech overlords want dominion not just over our pockets and our politics but also our souls. Related Reading: ⁠The Ivy League’s Surrender to AI is Insane⁠ (The Chronicle Review)  ⁠Has Administrative Bloat Reached a Breaking Point?⁠ (The Review)  ⁠Artificial Education⁠ (The Harvard Crimson)  Guest: ⁠Jill Lepore⁠, professor of history and law at Harvard University For more, visit chronicle.com/openquestions. We aim to make transcripts available within a day of an episode’s publication.

Everything happening in the world converges in one place: higher education.  College Matters from The Chronicle, coming September 10.

Online and adult learners don't always get "that camaraderie, that rah-rah feel that you typically expect," says Melvin Hines Jr., the founder of Upswing. We talk with him about how tutoring and coaching — on students' schedules — can keep them on track.

Just three interactions with a well-trained peer or alum can expand a student's comfort zone — and benefit the mentor, too. We talk with Jackson Boyar, the co-founder and CEO of Mentor Collective, about what makes for good mentoring.

Here's how a nonprofit teams up with colleges to support students underrepresented in tech and build their career prospects. We talk with Michael Ellison, the co-founder and CEO of CodePath, about how an extra layer inside an academic department can diversify a field.