Dana Rosengard, Ph.D.

09/21/2026

Well, THAT was exciting! FOX "College Kickoff Now" invited us to be part of its Saturday morning show over the weekend. Junior news media major Bentley Culbreth did a super job telling the Tuscaloosa story to a network audience of more than 100,000 viewers (see graphic, lower left corner). Junior news media major Kerrigan Brown was a super second field producer (to me). I shuttled in a fraternity president (TKE) and a UA alumna (class of '04) to help round out the game day story for the FOX viewers waiting for kickoffs around the nation. We're hoping to get invited back for another chance to challenge and highlight our talented WVUA 23 news team. And in case you missed it, Alabama is now 3-and-oh! Roll Tide!

07/26/2026

My long-held and dear friend Brooke Baldwin is in a bit of a battle with the truth and its effect on reputation right now. Since our days together at UNC/Chapel Hill, I have only known Brooke to be honest, hard working, and great fun. In her self-defense post (I believe from early today/Sunday), this line: "But this is not just about Megyn Kelly or the growing number of people who borrow the authority of journalism without honoring its most basic obligations." Long after Brooke is successful in shutting down this incorrect, malicious, and ignorant report by Ms. Kelly, THIS line will be important. It is on YOU, viewers and readers, to know or come to know the source of information you consume and it is YOU, viewers and readers, who will be held accountable for the belief you put in those sources. Just because someone is on the air or has a show or even is published in print does not make what they say or write true. There can be a big difference between what's on TV ---CNN, MS NOW, FOX, all of 'em--- and what is journalism. Often, journalists take off their "basic obligations" hat and share opinion, speculation even. It's unfortunate and maybe even unavoidable. But KNOW the difference between what and when they are REPORTING and when and where they are just filling time waiting for real news to be REPORTED. (...steps off soapbox...)

07/14/2026

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/13/opinion/college-grade-inflation.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

Likely behind a paywall for many, most, or all, but grade inflation is out of control on many, most, or all college and university campuses. 'C' is average. 'B' is good (above average). 'A' is excellent. Do with the plus and minus options as you see fit, but the statistics being released or publicly available show the joke that most college grading has become. If Oprah was a college professor: "You get an 'A'! YOU get an 'A'! EVERYONE gets an 'A'! As suggested in this NYT opinion piece, the origin of the problem is two fold: students being treated as customers (who as the saying goes, are always "right"); and, the over use of anonymous student evaluations in tenure decisions. The pressure to be easy (and generous and ultimately, dishonest) is intense. Did you know that some schools have added 4.33/A+ to the 4.0 grading scale? Yup.

Easy A’s are an easy out.

04/16/2026

Behind a paywall, but if you can access this New York Times article about higher education, it's worth a read. For sure, some things could be reconsidered --- and changed. I know I am always trying to balance the concepts and demands between DO and THINK with my students. One without the other is not the way to go, IMHO, but can be really hard in my field and position as I am sure it can be in others.

A 10-member committee offered a brutal assessment of academia’s role in creating the forces challenging American colleges and universities.