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ANALYSIS
The coming year already has a full plate of news for higher education.
Last year saw the murder of Charlie Kirk, sweeping education changes by the Trump administration, the advent of AI in everyday life, and growing pushback to ideological conformity.
The College Fix has its eye on these stories and more in 2026, as we and our student reporters continue to follow the pulse of higher education.
Charlie Kirk aftermath
It’s hard to think of anything that dominated higher education news more in recent months than the murder of Charlie Kirk.
His accused assassin, Tyler Robinson is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 16, Deseret News reports. He could face the death penalty if convicted of murdering the Turning Point USA founder.
Allegedly, the young man’s motivation was anger at Kirk’s conservative views, especially on sex. Robinson is gay and was in a relationship with a gender-confused male who identifies as female. In text messages, he reportedly expressed frustration at his father’s support for Donald Trump.
Along with the trial, The Fix will continue covering student TPUSA leaders as they contend with administrators for recognition and battle campus cancel culture.
Liberal bias in taxpayer-funded scholarship
Will Congress reform the Truman Scholarship? or end the award altogether?
The scholarship has become “a talent pipeline for the Democratic Party and liberal activist organizations,” Fix Editor-in-chief Jennifer Kabbany told lawmakers during a U.S. House hearing in December.
The prestigious award is given annually by Congress to students dedicated to public service. However, numerous Fix investigations have found the scholarship is overwhelmingly granted to politically left students, and, in some years, no recipients were openly on the right.
The Fix’s investigations have garnered national attention and recently prompted a Congressional hearing on the future of the scholarship. Watch for our continued reporting in 2026.
Will higher ed correct itself?
Something’s gone rotten in academia, and society knows it. Polls show growing distrust in Ivy League institutions, and many now wonder if a bachelor’s degree is really worth the cost.
Meanwhile, research by the Fix and others consistently finds that faculty are overwhelmingly left politically, and all too often classrooms are used as spaces for preaching activism and ideology, not teaching the pursuit of knowledge.
Then, there are the concerns about administrators turning a blind eye to antisemitism and questions about whether DEI offices are really gone. And grade inflation and plagiarism.
Some institutions have taken corrective steps through special initiatives on free speech and antisemitism, as well as the adoption of institutional neutrality positions. Others, such as the University of Michigan, are creating centers specifically to further academic freedom and civil discourse.
Still, there’s a lot of skepticism about whether such reforms will really make a difference. Only time will tell.
The Trump administration
In his first year back in office, President Donald Trump made a number of sweeping changes to the country’s education system. These include taking steps to end the Department of Education, cracking down on ideological demands by university accrediting groups, and putting a cap on graduate student loans.
There also is the question about whether more institutions will sign onto Trump’s Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education and the preferential funding that comes with it. New College of Florida did. Will others take up the offer?
Enrollment trends
A cap on foreign students. No more admissions or scholarships based on the applicant’s race or sex. Young adults opting for trade schools and apprenticeships instead of a traditional four-year degree. An impending population drop.
All these are linked to college enrollment trends. Dozens of colleges have shut down in recent years, and more are at risk of the same in 2026 due to declines in student enrollment.
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