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Boston Globe
3 days ago
- General
- Boston Globe
Why boys are behind in school from the start
But over the last two decades, as those gaps have narrowed, the gender gaps have become more consequential. Kindergarten has become significantly more academic because of a national law passed in 2001, with children expected to spend more time sitting still and learning math and reading — and many boys do not enter with the skills to meet those expectations. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Adding to that, childhood has changed in recent years in ways that could have set back boys further. The isolation of the pandemic delayed young children's development, parents are increasingly stressed, and children are spending more time on screens. These factors affect all children, but they may have been particularly hard on boys, who scientists have shown are more vulnerable to hardship. Related : Advertisement Taken together, these changes set boys on a disadvantaged path throughout school. Jayanti Owens, who studies inequality in schools at the Yale School of Management, has found that boys' behavior at ages 4 and 5 predicted the amount of schooling they finished by their mid-20s. Advertisement Skills build on themselves, so children who don't master kindergarten phonics or counting could remain behind in future grades. And children who struggle with academics or behavior risk developing negative perceptions of themselves as learners. 'That instigates a cycle where a boy doesn't think, 'I'm smart,' doesn't think, 'I'm good at school,' and if you're told enough times that you're not good at what the teacher is expecting of you, you start to manifest that,' Owens said. Two first grade students work on a computer exercise in a dual language classroom at Alfred J. Gomes Elementary School in New Bedford, Mass., on May 9. Erin Clark/Globe Staff Kindergarten readiness data show that many children enter unprepared. But consistently, fewer boys are ready than girls, by about 10 percentage points. The newest national data come from the federal government's National Survey of Children's Health, which since 2016 has included a survey of parents of children ages 3 to 5. It asks such questions as how many letters children can identify, how long they can focus on a task and how often they lose their temper. In 2022 and 2023 combined, 58 percent of boys and 71 percent of girls were considered on track. Some states test children at the beginning of kindergarten and generally find that fewer than half of students are ready for kindergarten, and often only about a third of boys. Test scores from Ohio show how big a role race and family income also play in kindergarten readiness. White girls were most likely to be ready, and Hispanic boys least likely. Just over half of children from economically stable families were prepared, but only a quarter from low-income families. Advertisement Perhaps the most comprehensive study, the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, gathers information from children, parents, and teachers, and follows children over time. It has found that when children start school, cognitive gaps are small — slightly favoring girls in reading and boys in math — but that gaps in skills like studiousness, persistence, and self-control are bigger. (Data about the latest cohort of children in the study, which is conducted by the Education Department, have not been released, and a contract for the study was canceled by the Trump administration.) Related : Researchers at the University of Virginia compared kindergarten in 2010 and 1998. They found that in just over a decade, teachers had allocated much more time to academic subjects and desk work, and less time to art, music, and activities like blocks or dramatic play. The share who said students should learn to read in kindergarten increased to 80 percent from 31 percent. Amanda Nehring, a kindergarten teacher in Crystal Lake, Ill., said the expectations for kindergartners had become more like what had been asked of first or second graders. Third grade students work on a problem at the Brooke Roslindale Charter School, in August 2023. David L. Ryan/Globe Staff She's had to give up playtime for math and literacy because that's what students are tested on. But some students, often boys, now struggle so much that support staffers pull them out of class for 'movement breaks.' In report cards in May, she had to record whether students could write the alphabet with a pencil. Nearly all the girls could, but just a quarter of the boys. Yet they knew their letters, she said, and could build them with Play-Doh or write them with a crayon. 'It's not that they don't get it,' Nehring said. 'Boys are just as capable, but we don't provide them with the means to show this.' Advertisement Faced with these pressures, some teachers seem to have less tolerance for boys' behaviors, researchers said. They rate boys below girls -- even when they perform similarly on tests or exhibit the same behaviors, and especially if they are Black or Hispanic. And since the pandemic, children are entering kindergarten with fewer skills than before. Young boys' development seems to have been particularly affected. A big change is increased time spent on screens. While it affects all young children, kindergarten teachers said that boys are having more trouble than ever paying attention. Nehring has always rewarded her class with pajama and movie days — but in recent years, she said, kindergartners had lost the ability to sit through a movie. 'They only want quick little YouTube shorts or TikTok,' she said. 'You get 10 minutes max. We had to show 'Encanto' in three parts. It's boys and girls, but much more often my boys are the first to go.' Researchers say there are ways to support young boys. Starting them in kindergarten a year later could help close gender gaps in maturity. Male kindergarten teachers could be role models who know what it's like to be a boy in school. A powerful way to help boys — and girls too — is to bring back more play into the early years of school, because it's how young children learn best, researchers and teachers said. Movement, music, time outside, games with peers and activities like puzzles all help children build skills like self-regulation and executive function. Play-based preschool has been shown to shrink gender gaps. Advertisement Pat Shaw, the director of a bilingual preschool in Davidson, North Carolina, said she gets pressure from local kindergartens to teach academic topics. Instead, her students make butter when they learn about cows, cover the floor with an art project when they learn about the solar system, and dig for bones in the sandbox when they learn about dinosaurs. 'Everything is very hands-on, and boys like that,' she said. 'Which isn't to say girls don't — girls do too — but girls come with those kinds of traits that teachers like. Boys need more time to play. So I just love to keep them engaged.' This article originally appeared in .
Mint
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Mint
THIS actress quit high-paying job, faced flop debut, married son of Asia's richest banker and left Bollywood
Mumbai, the city of dreams, draws thousands each year, hoping to turn their acting aspirations into reality. Bollywood has welcomed all, bid farewell to many, and held on to a few. One of them is the actress who was once Miss India. She left a high-paying corporate job and joined showbiz, but unfortunately gained only a little success in Bollywood. We are talking about actor Aditi Arya Kotak. Aditi presented India at Miss World 2015, after she was crowned Femina Miss India World 2015. Hailing from Chandigarh, Aditi Arya Kotak completed her studies at Amity International School before receiving her degree in Business Administration from Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies. She also holds an MBA degree from Yale School of Management. For joining the industry, she gave up on her high-paying job at one of the big four accounting firms, Ernst & Young. Just like many actresses in the film industry, Aditi made her acting debut in 2016 with filmmaker Puri Jagannadh's film Ism, entering Tollywood opposite Nandamuri Kalyan Ram. The film was a success which further paved her way towards her Kannada debut. She starred in her first Kannada film, Kurukshetra, and later in her first Hindi web series, Tantra by Vikram Bhatt. Unfortunately, her Bollywood didn't turn out the way she had hoped. She was scheduled to make her big Bollywood debut with filmmaker Kabir Khan's much-hyped 83, starring Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone. In the film, Aditi Arya Kotak essayed the role of Saqib Saleem's on-screen wife, Inderjit Bhardwaj. The promising film failed to live up to the expectations of critics and viewers; it was a big flop at the box office. The Livemint review of 83 mentioned '83 puts a hat on a hat on a hat, then wraps them in Ranveer Singh's fur coat. Every scene comes with four layers of good cheer. Even when India is losing, someone's always on hand with a wisecrack or a malapropism or encouragement for the future. If all else fails, there's Pritam's music to hit you over the head with. This much we knew: Kabir Khan was never going to make a restrained film on India's first World Cup win. 83 recalls his Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015) not only in its sweetness and maximality but also its maddening simplicity.' In November 2023, Aditi tied the knot to Jai Kotak, the son of Asia's richest banker Uday Kotak. Their lavish wedding took place at Taj Fateh Prakash Palace Udaipur and Jio World Convention Centre Mumbai. Uday is the founder and former Managing Director of Kotak Mahindra Bank. According to Forbes, Uday Kotak has a net worth of $15.1 billion ( ₹ 1,25,000 crore), making him the 18th richest man in India. Aditi was last seen in the Punjabi film, Teriyan Meriyan Hera Pheriyan which was released last year. She is yet to announce her Bollywood comeback.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The housing gender gap: Why women still face roadblocks in buying homes and building home equity
Though they buy homes in greater numbers, single women lag behind men when it comes to building home equity and wealth. Women wait longer to purchase, pay more for homes when they buy — taking out larger, pricier mortgages — and get less when they sell. Both economic constraints (wage disparities) and psychological mindsets hold women back from homeownership. Resources are available to help women overcome these challenges, including federal and non-profit programs that provide homeownership education and down payment/closing cost assistance. The biggest asset most Americans own is their home: It's the bedrock of their wealth and financial worth. But unfortunately, that rock is less substantial for one sex than for another. For single women, wealth accumulation achieved through home equity lags behind that of single men, according to a Yale School of Management study, 'The Gender Gap in Housing Returns.' Women pay more to buy a home, and reap less when they sell it. They can afford a smaller chunk of the homes on the market and the homes they do purchase tend to be worth less, making their ownership stake less valuable, other studies show. Various reasons exist for this state of affairs, including the continuing wage disparity between the sexes, which has narrowed slightly over the past two decades but continues to exist. The result is women earn about 1.5 percent less in annualized returns from their homes than men — and that 'overall, gender differences in housing explain up to 30 percent of the gender gap in wealth accumulation,' the Yale study says. Current gender data The median weekly earnings of women in the first quarter of 2025 was nearly 84% of men's weekly income Among U.S. states, California, Vermont and New York have the smallest gender pay gaps among full-time year round employees; Utah, Louisiana and Alabama, the largest Among U.S. homebuyers: 20% are single women 8% are single men 62% are married couples Women pay more for their mortgages than men in 49 states — as much as $7,000 more in interest over a loan's term Being denied a loan or financial product made 24% of women feel more stressed about the state of their finances, vs. 19% of men, according to Bankrate's Credit Denials Survey Women today have the same rights as men when it comes to acquiring and owning property. But it was not always so. While they could inherit real estate — and, by 1900, hold title to it in their own names — purchasing it was often difficult. In fact, well into the 20th century, American women typically couldn't take out a mortgage without having a man co-sign the application. It was technically legal for banks to refuse loans and credit to unmarried women, or require a husband's permission for a married female applicant. Things began to change with the passage of the Fair Housing Act in 1968 and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act in 1974. 'The Fair Housing Act made it illegal for women to be discriminated against when buying a home and securing a mortgage,' says Miloney Thakrar, founder and principal at Mind the Gender Gap, Inc., a consulting firm focused on gender equity. 'Enactment of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act in 1974 made it illegal for creditors — such as a lender or broker — to discriminate on the basis sex, including sexual orientation and gender identity or marital status. In other words, women were finally able to secure a mortgage independently without needing a male cosigner. ' These two pieces of federal legislation — along with women's increasing earning power and presence in the workplace — substantially smoothed the female path to homeownership. In 1981, 73 percent of home buyers were married couples, while just 11 percent were single women and 10 percent were single men, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Fast forward to 2024: 62 percent of homebuyers are married, while 20 percent are single women and 8 percent are single men. In fact, single women have bought more homes than single men every year since at least 1981. The single best year to date for single women in the real estate market was 2006, when they accounted for 22 percent of home buyers. But that doesn't mean it's easy for women. Particularly amid current market conditions, says Jessica Lautz, the NAR's deputy chief economist and vice president of research. 'Single women are facing an increasingly unaffordable housing market and are purchasing on the lowest household incomes,' says Lautz. Still, she adds that 'single women are such a force in the market, there may be recognition from experts, such as mortgage brokers and Realtors, that these women have done their homework and any hurdle in their way, they will surmount.' Despite all of the progress, achieving homeownership and substantial home equity is still challenging for many women. Much of that has to do with the fact that they make smaller down payments and take out bigger mortgages, meaning they start out with less of an ownership stake than single men do. When it comes to buying, the difficulty is often due to economic problems. According to Bankrate's Down Payment Survey, coming up with the cash can be challenging for women: over half (54 percent) of the female respondents saw expenses from down payments and closing costs as a very significant obstacle. Moreover, when asked, 'How long, if at all, do you anticipate it will take you to save up for a down payment on a home?,' 22 percent of women who would like to own a home someday responded they'd never be able to save enough — compared to just 17 percent of men who felt that way. 'There is a significant difference between the household income of single men and women who purchase homes. The household income will influence the number of homes in their price range and make the search more difficult in some areas,' Lautz observes: Among first-time homebuyers, $88,300 (for him) compared to $72,500 (for her), according to NAR data. 'Women who are trying to get on the first rung of the homeownership ladder are starting from behind,' agrees Orphe Divounguy, senior economist for Zillow, the real estate platform. 'This is partly because single mothers experience a significant pay gap. In addition to the disparities in the labor market, research shows that women tend to have worse credit market experiences than men.' A 2022 Zillow study found that women have access to 18 percent less of the real estate market than men because of the wage gap: In other words, they could buy nearly one-fifth more of the available homes (and presumably, higher-priced homes) if they made as much money as their male counterparts. This in turn, contributes to a 'home value gap': the fact that the homes owned by women tend to be worth less overall than those owned by male-headed households — specifically, worth 92 percent of male-owned homes, according to Zillow data. In addition to all of the challenges already mentioned, the Yale study indicates women pay more for the homes they do buy — and not because they're purchasing pricier places. Rather, they 'negotiate worse discounts relative to the list price' of a home, the Yale study says. To put it bluntly, they don't bargain as well as male home buyers. 'Unfortunately women are known not to be as good at negotiation as men; chalk it up to practice or different levels of comfort with one-on-one negotiations,' says Laura Adams, a personal finance author and speaker. 'That may leave them buying a home at a higher price than a male counterpart would.' And with mortgages, every little bit negotiated off the price counts. Even paying $5,000 or $10,000 more for the purchase price of a home can really add up over time and make it harder to develop as much equity, says Adams. Being negotiation-challenged handicaps women on the selling side, too: Despite buying at higher prices, female homeowners tend to list their properties for lower prices and recoup lower proceeds from the sale, according to the Yale study. Yet another factor impacting the amount of home equity wealth women accumulate is waiting longer to purchase a home. The median age of single female first-time homebuyers is 40 years old, vs. 34 for their male counterparts, according to NAR data. That could largely be due to financial reasons — it taking women longer to amass the money. (In Bankrate's Down Payment Survey, when asked, how long do you anticipate it will take you to save up for a down payment, 74 percent of aspiring female homeowners anticipated it would take at least one year, vs. 79 percent of aspiring male homeowners.) But it could also reflect a less secure mindset. In many cases, 'women [still] feel like they need to have a partner to buy a house with,' says Austin, Texas-based real estate agent Stephanie Douglass, who with business partner Kristina Modares co-founded the brokerage Open House Austin specifically to educate and encourage single female house-hunters. 'Maybe they feel like they're not handy or it's something they feel is too risky to do on their own, but in that time they're waiting, they're losing out on so much equity.' The current interest rate environment is another reason single women are increasingly holding off on buying, adds Douglass. 'They still understand the benefits of home ownership, but the interest rates are making it very hard for one person to afford a mortgage here in Austin and across the nation,' says Douglass. 'Single women are the ones who are going to have to wait more often just because of interest rates.' The good news is: Up-and-coming generations are not holding off on homeownership. Close to half (42 percent) of millennials (ages 28-43) have purchased a home alone, compared to 34 percent of Gen Xers (ages 44-59) and 22 percent of baby boomers (ages 60-78), according to Bankrate's Homebuying Trends Survey. Bankrate insights Women (22 percent) are more likely to agree than men (17 percent) that 'I will never be able to save enough for a down payment on a home' according to Bankrate's Down Payment Survey. The application and review process for obtaining a home equity loan today is no different for singles than it is for married couples, nor is it different for different genders. In general, lenders consider the same types of criteria — credit score, debt-to-income ratio (DTI), income and the amount of equity in the home. Additionally, by law a lender may not deny a loan applicant based on marital status, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), nor can they deny a married individual credit in their own name. Lenders are also prohibited from evaluating applicants on the basis of their sex, including sexual orientation and gender identity, and a sex-related condition (such as pregnancy). 'The process doesn't differ significantly between married couples and single people,' says Thakrar. 'However, when taking into consideration all of the qualifications…the process may take longer for married couples, because it may take longer to collect and analyze all the necessary information to make a determination.' While the process of getting a home equity loan or a home equity line of credit (HELOC) does not differ, single women may have less available home equity to tap, compared to single men or married couples. As the Zillow report indicates, homes owned by women are generally worth less overall. And of course, due to disparities in pay, single female applicants may have less income, fewer assets and greater debts, which could lessen their chances of approval or of getting the best loan terms. Housing and mortgage discrimination is an issue that has impacted the homebuying landscape in America for more than a century. In particular, the practice of redlining, which dates back to the 1930s, involved lenders outlining in red areas on maps where Blacks (and other non-white groups) lived and categorizing them as highly risky investments. This systematic segregation included denial of financing and other housing-related services and opportunities based on race. Women historically have been impacted by mortgage discrimination in other ways. A higher percentage of female-only borrowers are denied mortgages than their male-only counterparts; they have a higher denial rate than couples as well. They also have been unduly victimized by 'pinklining,' a term introduced in a 2016 survey funded by several nonprofit organizations. It refers to the practice of systemically targeting and subjecting women to exploitative and predatory lending techniques and products. Women of color in particular have been 'steered toward subprime loans even when they could have qualified for prime loans,' the 'Pinklining' report charges. The higher interest rates, fees and penalties of these loans make it more likely for female homeowners to fall into ever-tightening debt traps and foreclosure, it further notes. And, not surprisingly, homeownership progress hasn't been equal for all women. A report from the Urban Institute shows that while 70 percent of white female-headed households were homeowners in 2019, just 59 percent of Asian, 45 percent of Black and 40 percent of Hispanic female-headed households owned their home. Yet, despite all this — and their weaker credit/income qualifications — women default less on their mortgages than their male counterparts, an Urban Institute study found. This fact holds true across all ethnic groups. The Fair Housing Act, a subsection of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, outlawed the practice of redlining and discrimination in the real estate industry. Its protections were extended by the Equal Credit Opportunity Act of 1974, which prohibited discrimination specifically against credit or loan applicants on the basis of sex or marital status, and in a 1976 amendment, on the basis of race, color or religion. The subsequent Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) has sought to address mortgage discrimination in a proactive way. Adopted in 1977, the CRA 'requires the Federal Reserve and other federal banking regulators to encourage financial institutions to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which they do business, including low- and moderate income neighborhoods,' according to the Federal Reserve. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) enforces these acts. It also operates the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, whose mission is ensuring that there are equal housing opportunities for everyone, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, disability, national origin or family status. Though it seems there may still be more work to be done addressing discrimination based on gender and race as well. 'Discrimination based on sex and familial status are among the most common fair housing complaints filed with federal agencies, along with discrimination based on disability and race,' notes a National League of Cities report. If you're a single woman seeking a mortgage or home equity loan or HELOC , there are resources available to educate you about these products. Bankrate insights According to Bankrate's latest Credit Denials Survey, among U.S. adults who applied for a loan or financial product since December 2023, men and women were denied a mortgage in roughly equal numbers (5% and 4%, respectively). However, when it came to home equity loans or credit lines, double the number of women's applications were denied compared to men's (6% vs. 3%). Some of the available resources include: Federal Trade Commission consumer advice site The FTC provides a series of descriptive articles regarding the risks of a home equity loan and a home equity line of credit (HELOC), explaining the basics of how they work, and how to shop for them. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau federal mortgage rules guide This educational guide outlines exactly what you can expect under government regulations (and protections) when shopping for a mortgage. It covers what type of information lenders legally can and will request from you, financial qualifications for a mortgage, and ways to spot lending discrimination. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development housing counselors HUD offers housing counseling and education services for home buyers. It has counseling service locations throughout the country and counselors can also be reached by phone. In practical terms, there are resources that can help women become homeowners, including help with the significant hurdle of a down payment and of closing costs. These resources include: Home Ready Fannie Mae offers this mortgage product. Requiring as little as 3 percent down, it is designed to help low-income borrowers and is open to both first-time and repeat homebuyers. Home Ready can be used to purchase or refinance a home. Home Possible Sponsored by Freddie Mac, Home Possible is another program that requires only a minimal down payment of 3 percent. In addition, this program allows mortgages to include co-borrowers who do not live in the same home, which can be helpful for low-income women who need assistance from relatives to secure a mortgage. Closing cost assistance programs The National Council of State Housing agencies maintains a directory of closing cost assistance programs around the country. Some programs cover up to 100 percent of closing costs. National Homebuyers Fund NHF, a non-profit corporation, offers down payment assistance programs. Over the past two decades it has awarded more than $538.4 million in funds. The housing gender gap is not a problem that will be solved overnight, and many of its underlying causes — pay inequity, financing difficulties — are beyond any one individual's control. But there are ways women can address their home-buying behavior. First of all, understand the local real estate scene. 'It's important to know whether it's a buyers or sellers market and whether there are a lot of homes on the market when you are negotiating,' Douglass says. Being armed with that information is crucial to your bargaining position. When it comes to negotiating, 'Know what cards you can lay on the table and be willing to walk away,' Douglass adds. 'There's often a very emotional tie with women thinking 'I love this house,' and 'This is where I want to be.' Disconnecting the emotional tie' is important: You also have to consider the purchase rationally, as an investment and wealth-building asset. Doing so can help women make sounder homebuying — and home-equity building — decisions. What is home equity? Home equity is the portion of your home that you own outright. Basically, it is the difference between what your home is worth and how much you still owe on your mortgage — current home value minus outstanding loan balance(s). The amount of home equity you have is the basis for determining how much you can borrow via a home equity loan or home equity line of credit (HELOC). What can home equity be used for? Your home equity can be borrowed against to pay for many of life's significant expenses. It can be used to settle or consolidate outstanding debts or loans, pay your kids' educational costs, or finance home repairs or renovations. Tapping it for home-related expenditures is especially popular, as the loan interest can then be tax-deductible, up to a certain amount. What are the criteria for qualifying for a home equity loan? In general, lenders look for a good credit score (above 700 to get the best rates), a low debt-to-income ratio, a minimum percentage of equity in your home (usually at least 20 percent) and sufficient income for repayments. Not that different from mortgage criteria, actually.
CNBC
16-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Pres. Trump & U.S. business: How American CEOs cultivate ties with the White House
Jeff Sonnenfeld, Yale School of Management professor and Yale chief executive leadership institute founder, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss President Trump's relationship with American businesses, Trump's public pressuring of Apple, and more.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Judge Denies Injunction in Yale Student's AI Suspension
Yale School of Management A federal judge has denied a Yale Executive MBA student's request to return to campus and graduate with his cohort, siding with Yale School of Management after it suspended the student for allegedly using generative AI to complete a final exam. Thierry Rignol, a French national and entrepreneur based in Texas, also lost the right to sue anonymously and has since been named publicly. Rignol filed a federal lawsuit in February accusing Yale of discrimination, due process violations, and other complaints after the alleged cheating incident in spring 2024. He sought an injunction that would allow him to graduate with his EMBA classmates in 2025 despite a one-year suspension and a failing grade in the course. A FAILURE TO MAKE HIS CASE District Judge Sarah Russell denied his motion on Monday (May 5), finding that Rignol failed to make his case. 'Rignol has not carried his burden of establishing that a break in studies until the start of the next academic year (in fall 2025) and continuing to have an F on his transcript will cause him irreparable harm,' the judge wrote. Rignol, who founded a hospitality and real estate firm in Mexico, enrolled in SOM's 22-month executive MBA program in July 2023 and was expecting to graduate this May. However, in May 2024, he submitted a 30-page final exam for the 'Sourcing and Managing Funds' course, one of the longest submissions in the class. Most were closer to 20 pages. A teaching assistant flagged it as potentially AI-generated. The course was set for open book but closed internet, so no use of AI tools, according to the course syllabus. YALE: STUDENT IGNORED REQUESTS TO PROVIDE ORIGINAL DOCS Faculty initially used ChatGPTZero to assess the work and found similarities between Rignol's answers and responses generated by ChatGPT. They referred the case to the school's Honor Committee. Things spiraled from there. Rignol claims that he was pressured by Yale administrators to falsely confess to AI use, with one dean allegedly suggesting he could face deportation. He also alleges that the Honor Committee proceeded with hearings without giving him access to key evidence, among other charges. His lawsuit claims that Yale's own policies prohibit using tools like GPTZero due to their high false-positive rates, particularly for non-native English speakers. Yales contends that Rignol ignored requests to submit the original Word or Pages document used to produce the exam PDF. He later said he had used Apple Pages but allegedly did not submit the original file until the day of his Honor Committee hearing in November, months after repeated requests. He also declined a follow-up meeting in which the committee asked him to bring his laptop for later that day. The committee did not initially rule on whether Rignol used AI. Instead, it sanctioned him for not being forthcoming, suspending him for one year. A COMMITTEE RULING AGAINST Rignol appealed his suspension to Deputy Dean Anjani Jain who subsequently asked the committee to reconvene and consider the AI violation itself. The committee concluded that Rignol did, in fact, violate exam rules by using AI, citing strong similarities between his answers and ChatGPT responses. It issued a mandatory F in the course. In his filings, Rignol argued that facing a full-year suspension incentivizes false confessions from accused students, and that he was denied the ability to fully defend himself. He also argued that the school's reliance on AI detection tools was flawed and that the punishment – a standalone suspension for not being forthcoming – was unprecedented at SOM. The court disagreed. 'Continuing to serve the suspension does not prevent Rignol from listing merely his year of graduation rather than the number of years he took to earn a degree,' Judge Russell wrote, adding that any lost earnings 'can be quantified and remedied with money damages' if his lawsuit is ultimately successful. She noted that Rignol, unlike undergraduate plaintiffs in similar cases, was a 'financially successful professional' who failed to identify a single concrete opportunity he would forfeit due to the suspension. POTENTIAL FOR EMBARRASSMENT NOT ENOUGH TO JUSTIFY ANONYMITY, JUDGE SAYS In a separate ruling on March 31, Russell also denied Rignol's request to proceed under the pseudonym 'John Doe,' finding that he failed to meet the legal standard to justify anonymity. She emphasized that the potential for embarrassment or reputational harm – such as being publicly associated with an academic misconduct case – does not, by itself, override the public's interest in open court proceedings. 'I take seriously Doe's contention that he would be humiliated if he were to disclose that he was accused of academic misconduct,' she wrote. 'But the potential for embarrassment or public humiliation does not, without more, justify a request for anonymity.' Rignol's lawsuit against Yale is ongoing and includes claims of breach of contract, discrimination, and emotional distress. You can read Judge Russell's ruling on anonymity here and her injunction denial here. DON'T MISS: DENYING ALLEGED AI USE, STUDENT SUES YALE SOM OVER YEAR-LONG SUSPENSION and ACCEPTANCE RATES & YIELD AT THE TOP 100 U.S. MBA PROGRAMS The post Judge Denies Injunction in Yale Student's AI Suspension appeared first on Poets&Quants.
