New Ontario legislation will ban non-disclosure agreements so professors cannot hide a history of sexual misconduct when applying to other universities or colleges. It will give schools rights to fire staff when they are found to have abused a student – and stop them from being rehired.

In February, Columbia Mathematics Professor questioned the Ivy League school’s rise in rankings in the U.S. News & World Report from 18th place, on its debut in 1988, to 2nd place in 2021. In response, Columbia University will refrain from submitting data for consideration in the publication’s 2022, and it will start participating in the Common Data Set Initiative, a collaborative effort among data providers in the higher education community and publishers to provide accurate information to students seeking information on institutions of higher education.

University of Florida (UF) launched an investigation after an internal report detailed a culture of fear among faculty members claiming political influence on campus as well as instances of pressure to destroy and delay publication of COVID-19 research data. The report was the result of a three-week investigation into academic freedom at UF after three full-time professors were prevented from testifying as paid experts in a lawsuit brought against the state over voting rights.

The number of undergraduate data science programmes in the US increased from 13 in 2014 to at least 50 in 2020. According to a new study, the undergraduate training for data scientists does not sufficiently prepare students for the ethical use of data science, privacy, and systemic bias. Only 50% of the investigated degree programmes required an ethics course.

With many students forced to trade in-person lectures for online learning during the pandemic and the rising cases of academic misconduct, students, as well as professors, are concerned about the software being used to assess them. The vice-president of the University of Alberta Students’ Union (UMSU) says black students have had problems where the application doesn't recognize their faces. Other students with disabilities reported that they rely on specific screen-reader software that is incompatible with remote proctoring software. Although professors recognize that some courses may require e-proctored exams, they want them to be implemented correctly.