Featured Stories
UNSW Expert Wins International Award for Pioneering Autoimmune Disease Research
SYDNEY, Australia, Sept. 19 -- The University of New South Wales posted the following news:
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17 September 2026
UNSW expert wins international award for pioneering autoimmune disease research
UNSW Sydney Professor Christopher Goodnow received the 2027 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize for discoveries that reshaped how we understand and treat autoimmune disease.
Professor Christopher Goodnow from the School of Biomedical Sciences and The Garvan Institute of Medical Research has been awarded the 2027 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize, Germany's most prestigious award for
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SYDNEY, Australia, Sept. 19 -- The University of New South Wales posted the following news:
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17 September 2026
UNSW expert wins international award for pioneering autoimmune disease research
UNSW Sydney Professor Christopher Goodnow received the 2027 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize for discoveries that reshaped how we understand and treat autoimmune disease.
Professor Christopher Goodnow from the School of Biomedical Sciences and The Garvan Institute of Medical Research has been awarded the 2027 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize, Germany's most prestigious award formedical research.
The honour, named after the scientist who discovered antibodies, recognises Prof. Goodnow's pioneering research revealing how the body normally avoids making "bad antibodies" against its own tissues, and how these safeguards fail in autoimmune disease.
Professor David Simar, Acting Dean of Medicine & Health at UNSW, said this prestigious award highlighted Professor Goodnow's career-long commitment to advancing vital medical knowledge.
"Professor Goodnow has made an extraordinary contribution to the field of biomedical science and our fundamental understanding of the immune system and autoimmune diseases and how these might be treated," Prof. Simar said.
Overturning a long-held dogma
Beginning with his doctoral research in the late 1980s, and continuing across his career, Professor Goodnow developed a body of evidence that overturned decades of prevailing immunology understanding.
He revealed that B cells - white blood cells responsible for producing antibodies - with antibodies against 'self' were routinely released into circulation, but were silenced against secreting these bad antibodies. He went on to establish how and why the immune system took this seemingly risky approach, and what happened when cells escape silencing.
"When I started my research, most leading immunologists thought I was wasting my time. They firmly believed B cells had no built-in safeguards to stop them making bad antibodies," Prof. Goodnow said.
"Finding that self-reactive B cells are released into the bloodstream in a dormant state changed how we understand the balance that needs to be struck between not making bad antibodies against self and making good antibodies against foreign invaders."
What a new technology revealed
Prof. Goodnow took advantage of emerging genome-engineering technologies to develop a novel experimental system that made it possible, for the first time, to track self-reactive B cells inside the body as they met their target self-proteins.
Through this technology, he quantified what their dormant state looks like: the cells stop secreting harmful antibodies and their activity is turned down twenty-fold. This functional silencing is now known as 'anergy'.
Professor Thomas Boehm, Chairman of the Scientific Council of the Paul Ehrlich Foundation, explained the significance of this shift in understanding.
"By demonstrating the existence of clonal anergy, the laureate fundamentally challenged the black-and-white thinking that had long dominated classical immunology," Prof. Boehm said.
"His work showed that the immune system must constantly balance the risk of autoimmunity with defensive readiness in order to function effectively. His discoveries on B-cell tolerance have profoundly advanced our understanding of how autoimmune diseases arise."
Parallels with cancer - and a path to new treatments
Prof. Goodnow's subsequent research has focused on the complex signalling pathways and immune checkpoints that regulate these cells.
"Only by understanding why most people do not develop autoimmune disease can we understand what goes wrong in those who do," he said.
His work has revealed striking parallels between autoimmune diseases and cancer: both develop over many years through the gradual failure of molecular control mechanisms, often driven by spontaneous genetic mutations that accumulate one on top of another.
Prof. Goodnow will travel to Germany to accept the prize at a ceremony in Frankfurt's Paulskirche on the birthday of Paul Ehrlich, 14 March 2027.
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Christopher Goodnow is The Bill and Patricia Ritchie Foundation Chair at the Garvan Institute and a Professor of the Cellular Genomics Futures Institute and School of Biomedical Sciences, UNSW Sydney.
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Original text here: https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2026/09/UNSW-expert-wins-international-award-for-pioneering-autoimmune-disease-research
Topping Out Ceremony Celebrates Progress of New Economics & Business Facility
HOLLAND, Michigan, Sept. 19 -- Hope College posted the following news:
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Topping Out Ceremony Celebrates Progress of New Economics & Business Facility
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Construction milestone marks placement of final structural steel beam for Hope College's largest academic building project.
Hope College and OAK Construction hosted a "Topping Out" ceremony to celebrate the construction crews and campus personnel behind the progress to date on Hope's new economics and business building taking shape in downtown Holland.
The Sept. 17 ceremony marked the placement of the final structural steel beam-adorned
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HOLLAND, Michigan, Sept. 19 -- Hope College posted the following news:
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Topping Out Ceremony Celebrates Progress of New Economics & Business Facility
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Construction milestone marks placement of final structural steel beam for Hope College's largest academic building project.
Hope College and OAK Construction hosted a "Topping Out" ceremony to celebrate the construction crews and campus personnel behind the progress to date on Hope's new economics and business building taking shape in downtown Holland.
The Sept. 17 ceremony marked the placement of the final structural steel beam-adornedwith the traditional "topping-out" evergreen tree-onto Hope's new three-story, 74,000-square-foot economics and business facility. Dozens of project donors, and Hope College faculty and staff signed the final beam with their signatures before it was lifted and placed on the highest point of the facility.
"Beyond our signatures on this beam, are our hopes and prayers, which will be physically embedded in this new structure," said Matt Scogin, Hope College president. "Our prayers are for this facility to facilitate a movement of God's work through the students here and throughout the world, where we'll send them as ambassadors of Hope."
As Hope College's largest academic building project to date, the new facility will also serve as a center for innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration and business community partnerships. Eleven months earlier, Hope College broke ground on the facility with college leadership, project donors and the community in attendance. Since site preparations and construction began last fall, OAK and Hope summarized some interesting construction facts to date:
* The building is supported by 264 concrete auger-cast piles -each 14 inches in diameter and extending 35 feet into the ground
* More than 1,020 cubic yards of concrete foundations are in place
* Approximately 720 tons of structural steel have been erected
* Strong safety record with no recordable incidents or "near misses"
* The facility will open in August 2028
Attending the ceremony and sharing remarks about the project were: Carol Van Andel '81 and Paul Boersma '82 -campaign cabinet co-chairs; Matt Scogin '02 -Hope College president; Nick Duthler '09 -Hope College director of operations; and Matt Hulswit -OAK lead project manager.
#About the New Facility
In addition to serving as the home for Hope's Department of Economics and Business, the three-story, 74,000 square-foot building will feature:
* Classrooms (8)
* Seminar rooms (7)
* Faculty offices for student advising and meetings (30)
* Auditorium (approx. 126 seats)
* Study rooms for student success and mentorship (8)
* Project spaces available to programs throughout the college for team collaboration and applied learning
* Atrium and community spaces for networking with area businesses, students and faculty
* The new economics and business building's stone exterior and design elements are intentionally designed to mirror those of Hope's Dimnent Chapel, which is also a legacy of former Hope president Edward Dimnent's leadership.
To date, capital campaign committee volunteers and Hope College staff have secured $57 million in philanthropic commitments for its economics and business project. Those commitments include support for the new $65 million facility -as well as the faculty, programs, and student experiences that will bring the new space to life. Fundraising will continue as the college invests in the future of its economics and business department.
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Original text here: https://hope.edu/news/2026/academics/topping-out-ceremony-celebrates-progress-of-new-economics-business-facility.html
SLSU Expands Engagement in Technical Consultancy and Expert Services
SOGOD, Philippines, Sept. 19 -- Southern Leyte State University issued the following news:
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18 Sep 2026
SLSU Expands Engagement in Technical Consultancy and Expert Services
Southern Leyte State University continues to strengthen its commitment to public service and institutional collaboration through the engagement of its faculty and staff in technical consultancy and expert services.
As a state university mandated to undertake research, development, extension, and community outreach, SLSU recognizes the importance of extending the expertise of its faculty and personnel beyond the classroom.
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SOGOD, Philippines, Sept. 19 -- Southern Leyte State University issued the following news:
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18 Sep 2026
SLSU Expands Engagement in Technical Consultancy and Expert Services
Southern Leyte State University continues to strengthen its commitment to public service and institutional collaboration through the engagement of its faculty and staff in technical consultancy and expert services.
As a state university mandated to undertake research, development, extension, and community outreach, SLSU recognizes the importance of extending the expertise of its faculty and personnel beyond the classroom.Through partnerships with government agencies, industries, local government units, organizations, and other institutions, the University seeks to contribute specialized knowledge, technical assistance, and professional expertise in addressing institutional, industry, and community needs.
A recent example of this engagement is the DTI-SLSU Joint Initiative for SSF Technical Assessment and Revitalization (STAR) in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry-Southern Leyte Provincial Office. Under the initiative, SLSU faculty members are being tapped as technical experts and consultants to assist in the assessment, diagnosis, and repair of machinery and equipment under the Shared Service Facilities Program.
The initiative draws expertise from various disciplines, including Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC), Electrical Technology, and Electronics Technology. SLSU has identified a multidisciplinary pool of faculty technical experts who may be engaged based on the specific technical requirements of partner agencies and institutions.
Through this undertaking, SLSU further opens opportunities for collaboration with external institutions that may require technical consultancy, assessment, advisory services, expert assistance, and other services aligned with the University's available areas of expertise.
Government agencies, local government units, industries, organizations, and other institutions interested in engaging the expertise of SLSU faculty and personnel are encouraged to explore possible partnerships with the University, subject to applicable policies, institutional procedures, availability of experts, and mutually agreed arrangements.
Through these engagements, SLSU continues to strengthen its role as a partner in knowledge sharing, innovation, technical development, and community and industry advancement, while providing meaningful opportunities for its faculty to apply their expertise in addressing real-world needs.
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Original text here: https://southernleytestateu.edu.ph/index.php/en/menu-page-home/4370-slsu-dti-southern-leyte-formalize-partnership-for-technical-consultancy-and-expert-services-2
Monash University: New National Plan Aims to Strengthen Endometriosis Care With Your GP
MELBOURNE, Australia, Sept. 19 -- Monash University issued the following news:
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New national plan aims to strengthen endometriosis care with your GP
17 September 2026
Australians living with endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain will have a new way to plan and manage their care with their GP, with the launch of Australia's first national Endometriosis Management Plan (EMP).
Launching today, the EMP brings the latest endometriosis guidelines into an online personalised care plan, helping patients and GPs make evidence-based decisions about treatment, symptom management, referrals and
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MELBOURNE, Australia, Sept. 19 -- Monash University issued the following news:
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New national plan aims to strengthen endometriosis care with your GP
17 September 2026
Australians living with endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain will have a new way to plan and manage their care with their GP, with the launch of Australia's first national Endometriosis Management Plan (EMP).
Launching today, the EMP brings the latest endometriosis guidelines into an online personalised care plan, helping patients and GPs make evidence-based decisions about treatment, symptom management, referrals andongoing care to achieve better health outcomes.
Endometriosis affects up to one in seven Australian girls, women and individuals assigned female at birth by age 50. It has no known cure, making effective long-term management of symptoms and their impact on everyday life critical.
While it takes an average of eight years from the onset of symptoms to diagnosis, eligible patients with suspected endometriosis or chronic pelvic pain can now use this EMP to begin managing their symptoms with their GP in the meantime.
Project lead Professor Danielle Mazza AM, Head of Monash University's Department of General Practice, said the EMP was designed to ensure patients with persistent symptoms were not left waiting for the next step in their care.
"Someone may have suspected endometriosis and be referred for further investigation or specialist care, but that doesn't mean nothing can happen in the meantime," Professor Mazza said.
"Symptoms can be complex, non-specific and vary from person to person.
"We want patients to understand their condition, know what their options are and have a clear management plan they can return to and review with their GP, rather than feeling there is nowhere to turn.
"Ultimately, we hope the EMP will help raise the standard of care for endometriosis and pelvic pain in general practice."
The web-based EMP guides the consultation around the symptoms that matter most to each patient and their individual goals. It covers issues such as pain, heavy menstrual bleeding, fertility and mental health, and provides guidance on treatment options, referrals, self-management and multidisciplinary care.
At the end of the consultation, patients receive a personalised digital or printed plan, that can be reviewed and updated with their GP. The EMP also provides access to relevant information and support, and helps clinicians consider multidisciplinary care, including allied health services such as physiotherapy for chronic pelvic pain.
The EMP was developed by Monash University's SPHERE Centre of Research Excellence in partnership with the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), with funding from the Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing.
It was co-designed with people living with endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain, GPs, other clinicians and key stakeholders to ensure it reflected both patients' needs and the realities of delivering care in general practice.
Twenty five-year-old Florrie, who has lived with endometriosis pain for nearly ten years, said finding a GP who listens can make all the difference.
"I think if just one medical professional had said, 'Look, I hear you, I understand this is really hard for you and I want to help you,' that would have made such a difference," Florrie said.
"I think it would be amazing if you could go into the doctor and come out with an answer.
"It would have stopped a lot of visits and a lot of time going back and forth. It would have also stopped a lot of pain and a lot of feeling misunderstood. Just being believed and feeling heard would have changed so much."
Previous Monash-led research found the proportion of women attending Australian general practices with a documented endometriosis diagnosis almost doubled between 2011 and 2021, highlighting the growing role of GPs in endometriosis care.
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) President Dr Michael Wright said the EMP had the potential to change people's lives.
"Too many Australians living with endometriosis spend years seeking answers, often while managing significant pain and disruption to their daily lives," Dr Wright said.
"General practice is the cornerstone of endometriosis care.
"By supporting earlier management, shared decision-making and coordinated multidisciplinary care, this initiative has the potential to improve health outcomes and quality of life for people living with endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain."
The EMP is freely available online (https://www.monash.edu/medicine/emp) for clinicians and patients.
For further details on the Endometriosis Management Plan, read the FAQs here (https://www.spherecre.org/research/current-trials/endometriosis-management-plan).
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Original text here: https://www.monash.edu/news/articles/new-national-plan-aims-to-strengthen-endometriosis-care-with-your-gp
Kansas State University: Testing the Way We've Always Done It
MANHATTAN, Kansas, Sept. 19 -- Kansas State University issued the following news:
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Testing the way we've always done it
K-State's TAPS program helps producers test new approaches to water and farm management
By Kelsey Stremel, College of Agriculture
Sept. 18, 2026
Kent Higerd is running an irrigation experiment on his farm that grew out of what he learned through Testing Ag Performance Solutions, better known as TAPS.
This season, Higerd divided a center-pivot irrigated field into different water treatments to see how much irrigation he could reduce without sacrificing the crop. The
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MANHATTAN, Kansas, Sept. 19 -- Kansas State University issued the following news:
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Testing the way we've always done it
K-State's TAPS program helps producers test new approaches to water and farm management
By Kelsey Stremel, College of Agriculture
Sept. 18, 2026
Kent Higerd is running an irrigation experiment on his farm that grew out of what he learned through Testing Ag Performance Solutions, better known as TAPS.
This season, Higerd divided a center-pivot irrigated field into different water treatments to see how much irrigation he could reduce without sacrificing the crop. Thecombine will provide the final comparison, but late in the growing season, he said his agronomist was already having difficulty seeing much difference in the corn.
In western Kansas, irrigation decisions are a constant balance between farm economics and groundwater conservation, making the results of that test especially meaningful.
For Higerd, that balance is also about the future of the farm -- including whether the next generation, like his son Aaron, will have the water resources to keep farming.
"As far as saving groundwater, the TAPS program is to be commended," Higerd said. "When I first started, I was thinking, 'Are you crazy?' You're going to make us water less?' We didn't know any different. The seven most expensive words on a farm are, 'Because we've always done it that way.'
"The TAPS program has taught us we can do as much with less," he continued. "We're going to find out: Can we actually do more with less -- or the same amount, at least? But that's part of what comes from TAPS for me."
That cycle of decisions, measurement, comparison and learning sits at the center of TAPS, with what is learned put back to work in the next decision. It was visible in northwest Kansas in September, when Kansas State University's TAPS team hosted producers, researchers, students, agricultural businesses and university teams from across the network for the National Fly-In and Field Experience in Colby.
One field, different realities
The TAPS network spans production regions from humid and subtropical systems to the semi-arid High Plains, bringing very different experiences with water, risk and management into the same conversation.
"Bringing the network to western Kansas gives participants a chance to see what managing a limited water resource looks like in practice," said Daran Rudnick, K-State director of sustainable irrigation and co-founder of TAPS. "But it also gives us the opportunity to learn from producers coming from very different production environments. That exchange is really important to what TAPS is trying to accomplish."
In 2026, competitors are managing corn in the same field at K-State's Northwest Research-Extension Center in Colby. Teams make their own decisions about crop insurance, technology, hybrid, seeding rate, irrigation, nitrogen and grain marketing under the same Kansas seasonal 10-inch irrigation limit tied to the Q-Stable groundwater management concept. Awards recognize economic profitability and input-use efficiency, putting production, cost and resource use into the same calculation.
The common field makes those differences visible. A producer accustomed to more rainfall still has to manage a limited irrigation allocation in Colby, while a High Plains producer may recognize the water constraint but encounter a different approach to technology, risk or marketing.
Putting those decisions side by side gives participants a chance to ask why others made different choices -- and what they might learn from them.
The Fly-In carried that exchange beyond the competition field. Participants visited McCarty Family Farms and SurePoint Ag Systems, returned to Colby for the TAPS Twilight Tour and compared management approaches through conversations, student research, technology demonstrations and the interactive TAPS Farm Duel.
The TAPS Farm Duel made those differences interactive, asking participants to work through farm-management scenarios and defend their responses. Different production goals, regional experience, and tolerance for risk quickly became part of the discussion and learning.
When information changes management
The TAPS Fly-In closed with a panel discussion on water management in western Kansas, moderated by Kansas Water Office assistant director Matt Unruh and featuring producer Pat Janssen, irrigation engineer Lee Wheeler, Northwest Kansas Groundwater Management District No. 4, or GMD4, manager Shannon Kenyon and irrigation specialist Jack Polifka. For TAPS partners from across the country, the discussion offered a closer look at the challenges facing the Ogallala/High Plains Aquifer and the producers, communities and agricultural systems that depend on it.
Unruh framed the challenge plainly: "How do we balance protecting water resources with protecting agricultural productivity, the rural economy and the rural way of life?"
Janssen has spent years working with irrigation system evaluations and water-management technology, but he said equipment accounts for only part of what determines whether producers actually conserve water.
"Water efficiency in terms of irrigation is about 40% mechanical or technical and about 60% cultural," Janssen said. "You can hang things on a pivot and stick them in the field until you can see it from outer space. But if you don't have that producer engagement, you're not going to move the needle at all."
Agriculture now has access to increasingly detailed information from soil moisture sensors, satellite imagery, weather data, irrigation controllers and other tools. The challenge is turning that information into something producers trust enough to act on.
"If we can build datasets that give producers guidance -- or at least a reference point when they're thinking about trying something new -- the cost and risk of entry become a lot lower. Useful data helps steer decisions," said Janssen.
That engagement often begins with understanding what is happening in the field. Irrigation engineer Lee Wheeler urged producers to view the well, pumping plant, sprinkler package and management decisions as one connected system, while GMD 4 irrigation specialist Jack Polifka distilled the idea even further: "You can't manage what you can't measure."
For GMD 4 manager Shannon Kenyon, those measurements and services are part of making conservation workable. Asking producers to pump less water, she said, also means helping them understand how to adapt while maintaining productive farms.
"In order to make that regulation successful, we also have to become a service agency," Kenyon said.
When the conversation turned toward universities, the message stayed close to the farm: provide useful regional data, keep research applied and listen to the questions producers are trying to answer.
That exchange reflects the TAPS cycle itself -- producer experience shapes the questions, research helps interpret what happens, and the lessons move back to the farm.
Back to the farm
Higerd's irrigation test is one example of that movement back to the farm.
The combine may show little difference among the treatments, or it may reveal a production response that was difficult to see during the growing season. Either result will give Higerd information he can use when making the next irrigation decision, with both the economics of the farm and the future of its groundwater in mind.
"The seven most expensive words on a farm are, 'Because we've always done it that way,'" he said.
TAPS will eventually name winners based on profitability and input-use efficiency, and researchers will continue analyzing the season's decisions. The larger effect will be spread across individual farms: a different irrigation schedule, a technology tested, a nitrogen rate adjusted, a sensor questioned or a producer deciding to test the way they've always done it.
Then the cycle starts again -- with a better question.
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Original text here: https://www.k-state.edu/news/articles/2026/09/testing-ag-performance-solutions-irrigation-farm-competition.html
Columbia University Releases Findings From Student Belonging, Inclusion, and Expression Survey
NEW YORK, Sept. 19 -- Columbia University issued the following news:
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University Releases Findings From Student Belonging, Inclusion, and Expression Survey
The results provide insight into how students felt about their connection to the Columbia community during the 2024-25 academic year.
September 18, 2026
Columbia University has released findings from the 2025 Harmful Exclusion Alleviation Longitudinal Study (HEALS) survey, which measures students' sense of belonging, inclusion, expression, and discrimination, as well as their comfort reporting hate-based incidents.
The survey was
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NEW YORK, Sept. 19 -- Columbia University issued the following news:
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University Releases Findings From Student Belonging, Inclusion, and Expression Survey
The results provide insight into how students felt about their connection to the Columbia community during the 2024-25 academic year.
September 18, 2026
Columbia University has released findings from the 2025 Harmful Exclusion Alleviation Longitudinal Study (HEALS) survey, which measures students' sense of belonging, inclusion, expression, and discrimination, as well as their comfort reporting hate-based incidents.
The survey wasinitially developed in spring 2024 by the National Opinion Research Center (NORC), in collaboration with Columbia University's Antisemitism Task Force, to assess student experiences amid heightened tensions during the 2023-2024 academic year. The first HEALS survey established a baseline, particularly around student belonging, religious identity, and comfort expressing views on campus. Findings from the first survey are available in Report #3 from the Task Force on Antisemitism, released in 2025.
Columbia's Office of Planning and Institutional Research (OPIR) assumed administration of the second HEALS survey in 2025 to measure change over time. OPIR retained the survey's core items and methodology to preserve comparability, while consolidating the questionnaire so that students were more likely to complete it.
The 2025 survey invited all enrolled students to participate. There were 4,934 completed surveys, representing a 14 percent response rate. Respondents were broadly representative of Columbia's student population by school, degree level, gender, and race/ethnicity.
The findings point to measurable improvement in some areas. Across the entire student body, the share of respondents who agreed that they felt a sense of belonging at Columbia rose from 50 percent in 2024, to 57 percent in 2025. Students also reported somewhat greater comfort expressing their views on several measures, including a decline in the share who said they had to alter their language to avoid controversy.
The 2025 survey also revealed that belonging is strongly shaped by students' direct relationships and engagement on campus. Respondents most frequently identified friends, professors, and classmates as sources of belonging. Campus involvement in activities was also a significant predictor of belonging, with students involved in campus organizations more likely to report feeling connected to Columbia.
Jewish and Muslim students, who reported among the lowest levels of belonging and highest levels of concern in 2024, showed improvement on several measures in 2025. The share of Jewish students who agreed that they felt a sense of belonging rose 13 percentage points, while perceived discrimination tied to religion among Jewish students declined 13 percentage points. Muslim students also reported gains in belonging, rising nine percentage points, and a six-percentage-point decline in perceived religious discrimination.
At the same time, important disparities for Jewish and Muslim students persist. Both groups continued to report lower levels of religious acceptance than many other students, and Muslim students remained among the least comfortable reporting hate-based incidents. These findings point to progress from the 2024 baseline, but also to the need for continued attention to belonging, acceptance, and trust.
The results also point to other areas requiring attention. Overall agreement that students felt accepted for their race or ethnicity decreased from 71 percent in 2024, to 65 percent in 2025, with declines observed across multiple racial and ethnic groups. Perceived discrimination based on national origin and political beliefs or affiliation increased, while the level of comfort in reporting hate-based incidents declined by five percentage points.
"These findings underscore the importance of listening carefully, measuring regularly, and using evidence to guide our work," said Provost Angela V. Olinto, who is also the Rutherfurd Professor of Astronomy and Professor of Physics. "While we are seeing encouraging movement in students' sense of belonging, other results tell us where we need to do better. This data will help inform how our schools approach developing additional programming and resources for our students, as we work together to further strengthen trust, belonging, and inclusion across our student community."
Together, the results suggest gradual improvement in some measures of student belonging and expression, alongside uneven experiences across student groups. They also underscore the importance of continued monitoring, targeted follow-up, and efforts that strengthen connection, inclusion, and trust across the University.
More recent measures of student experiences were collected through the Lived Experiences and Needs of Students (LENS) survey, which ran for the second time in spring 2026. Reporting from that survey is currently underway and will provide additional insight into students' experiences and needs.
The full HEALS 2024-25 summary and related materials can be found by visiting the "2025 Harmful Exclusion Alleviation Longitudinal Study (HEALS) Survey Findings" on the OPIR website. Here are additional resources:
* Community Citizenship Initiative: This initiative helps students develop the skills and awareness to contribute to a respectful, inclusive, and accountable University community.
* Faith Communities: Connects students with religious and spiritual communities across campus, supported by the Office of Religious Life.
* Listening Tables: These efforts are designed to generate connection and understanding as well as a reservoir of feedback and new ideas in these most difficult areas.
* Office of Institutional Equity FAQ: This page answers common questions about the University's anti-discrimination and discriminatory harassment policies, including how reports are reviewed and what support is available.
* Student Conduct Navigators: A peer-support initiative that brings together students from across Columbia to help fellow students understand and navigate the Dean's Discipline process.
* Columbia Health: Supporting students on the Morningside and Manhattanville campuses, Columbia Health offers an extensive collection of programs, resources, and services to support student well-being.
* Student Health on Haven: Offers students at Columbia University Irving Medical Center a wide range of programs, resources, and services to support their well-being.
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Original text here: https://news.columbia.edu/news/university-releases-findings-student-belonging-inclusion-and-expression-survey
Anti-transgender Legislation Causes Psychological Distress Even in States With Trans-friendly Laws, According to VCU Research
RICHMOND, Virginia, Sept. 19 -- Virginia Commonwealth University issued the following news:
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Sept. 18, 2026
Anti-transgender legislation causes psychological distress even in states with trans-friendly laws, according to VCU research
Transgender study participants viewed the more than 2,000 laws proposed in the U.S. since 2020 'as an existential threat' to their lives and the lives of other transgender people
By Madeline Reinsel
Legislation that impacts or discriminates against transgender and gender-diverse individuals can cause more psychological distress than personal experiences
... Show Full Article
RICHMOND, Virginia, Sept. 19 -- Virginia Commonwealth University issued the following news:
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Sept. 18, 2026
Anti-transgender legislation causes psychological distress even in states with trans-friendly laws, according to VCU research
Transgender study participants viewed the more than 2,000 laws proposed in the U.S. since 2020 'as an existential threat' to their lives and the lives of other transgender people
By Madeline Reinsel
Legislation that impacts or discriminates against transgender and gender-diverse individuals can cause more psychological distress than personal experiencesof discrimination, according to new Virginia Commonwealth University research published in the journal APA PsycNet. The study also found that individuals with those identities experienced psychological distress from anti-transgender laws even if they lived in a state with legislation that is friendly toward transgender and gender-diverse individuals.
"We found that above and beyond everything else in the model, including active experiences of discrimination, that anti-trans legislation anxiety was driving psychological distress," said Catherine Wall, Ph.D., an assistant professor of psychology in the College of Humanities and Sciences and the study's lead author.
Over 2,000 laws that directly or indirectly discriminate against transgender and gender-diverse individuals have been proposed at both the state and federal level since 2020, many of which limit access to healthcare, public facilities and sports leagues. The researchers used survey data from 346 transgender and gender diverse adults in the United States, collected in early 2024, to assess participants' anxiety levels around anti-transgender legislation, their experiences with discrimination based on their identities, their level of support and community connection, and other related statistics.
Through quantitative data analysis, the researchers found a strong relationship between psychological distress and anti-transgender legislation anxiety, and a moderate relationship between news anxiety and news exposure. The researchers also found that those with less community connectedness and familial support experienced greater psychological distress.
Notably, the study found that familial support and community support had equally strong relationships to an individual's level of psychological distress, suggesting that non-familial friendships and connections can be just as strong as familial bonds in supporting a transgender person's mental wellness.
"It's not just enough to look at trans people within the light of deficit," Wall said. "We also need to look at strength and resiliency factors as well."
Anti-transgender legislation creates an environment of fear
The researchers also performed a qualitative analysis of the participants' survey responses in order to better understand the sources of participants' psychological distress. They found that many participants had experienced or feared that they would experience difficulty accessing gender-affirming care, or difficulty living openly as a transgender person. Many also noted increasing discrimination and violence associated with the rise in anti-transgender legislation, and an increase in fear for their safety and well-being, regardless of whether they lived in a state with anti-transgender legislation.
"You would think that if an individual lived in a state that had laws that were preventing discrimination, that they might have lower levels of psychological distress," Wall said. However, she said, participants' perception of a national-level threat likely influenced their feelings of distress.
Many participants also reported that they had left or intended to leave their home state for states with transgender-friendly laws, while others wrote that they feared visiting relatives in states with anti-transgender laws. Still others expressed worry that their state could pass anti-transgender laws at any time, or reported that they felt privileged to either live in transgender-friendly states or to be able to present as cisgender in public. The participants generally noted profound psychological distress and anxiety around being discriminated against for being transgender or being targeted in a violent act.
"In a lot of ways, our participants who were talking about fear and expressing fear were viewing a lot of the anti-trans legislation as an existential threat," Wall said. "So, a threat to their very existence, threats to their very lives and threats to the lives of all trans people around them."
Individual support can help, but societal support is needed
Overall, Wall said, the analysis found that individual support systems were deeply important for the participants' psychological well-being.
"Understanding the potential beneficial role of social support on resilience is something that is incredibly important," she said. "The role that social support plays can be really beneficial as trans people are navigating this overarching sociopolitical environment."
But, she added, such overwhelming psychological distress needs societal solutions, especially as anti-transgender legislation spreads: "It's not going to be enough in the long term to just focus on that individual-level resiliency factor."
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Original text here: https://news.vcu.edu/article/anti-transgender-legislation-causes-psychological-distress-according-to-vcu-research
