J.K. Rowling's wizarding world didn't begin with Harry Potter.

Rowling is the author of the "Harry Potter" series, a mystical tale of boy wizard Harry Potter, his friends, and their magical world.

In Rowling's long-awaited latest film, we come to understand that the wizarding world isn't limited to Hogwarts, the school where Harry and his friends learned magic. "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" will be set in New York in 1926.

It will be the first in a series of five movies.



The movie will follow Magizoologist Newt Scamander (played by Eddie Redmayne). In an interview with EW, Redmayne said Scamander is man with a passion for animals, but who has a hard time connecting with other humans.

Scamander will attempt to recover some of his missing beasts, accidentally released by No-Maj Jacob Kowalski. (The American word for "muggle," meaning a human being who possesses no magical powers).

What makes this situation worse for Scamander is that the beasts were released into a hostile environment. According to EW, the "American wizarding community is fearfully hiding from muggles and the threat of public exposure is an even graver concern than in the UK."

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Scamander will be joined by Kowalski (Dan Folger), a former auror Tina (Katherine Waterston) and her sister Queenie (Alison Sudol), in an adventure to get the beasts back before they are hurt, all whilst branded as fugitives. Aurors are highly trained wizards who fight the dark arts, or evil wizards.

The Fantastic Beasts site says the stakes are high, "As their mission puts them on a collision course with dark forces that could push the wizarding world and No-Maj worlds to the brink of war."

The movie is based off of a 2001 Hogwarts textbook of magical creatures that Rowling published as Scamander. According to the Fantastic Beasts website, this will be J.K. Rowling's screenwriting debut.

"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" arrives in American theaters on November 18. Worldwide release dates can be found on the official website.

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In The Student Life, the student newspaper for the Claremont Colleges, a consortium of five liberal art colleges and two graduate schools in Claremont, California, student Rochelle Lu writes about readjusting to her Shanghai home after spending a semester in the United States.

Read the full story here.

Cedarville University in the U.S. state of Ohio says it’s got more than 140 international students representing 44 countries.

Here, the school interviews Jonathan Sutton, director of international student services. He talks about his job and the opportunities for international students on campus.

Read the full article here.

Morehouse College, a private, historically Black liberal arts college in the U.S. state of Georgia, offers a guide for international students interested in attending the school.

Among the tips to apply and thrive at Morehouse:

• Take advantage of the school’s orientation program
• Turn to the school’s Center for Academic Success for tutoring, support and more
• Immerse yourself in campus life via clubs and societies

Read the full article here.

WASHINGTON — 

The administration of President Donald Trump said on Monday it will review Columbia University's federal contracts and grants over allegations of antisemitism, which it says the educational institution has shown inaction in tackling.

Rights advocates note rising antisemitism, Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias since U.S. ally Israel's devastating military assault on Gaza began after Palestinian Hamas militants' deadly October 2023 attack.

The Justice Department said a month ago it formed a task force to fight antisemitism. The U.S. Departments of Health and Education and the General Services Administration jointly made the review announcement on Monday.

"The Federal Government's Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is considering Stop Work Orders for $51.4 million in contracts between Columbia University and the Federal Government," the joint statement said.

The agencies said no contracting actions had been taken yet.

"The task force will also conduct a comprehensive review of the more than $5 billion in federal grant commitments to Columbia University."

The agencies did not respond to requests for comment on whether there were similar reviews over allegations of Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias.

Columbia had no immediate comment. It previously said it made efforts to tackle antisemitism.

College protests

Trump has signed an executive order to combat antisemitism and pledged to deport non-citizen college students and others who took part in pro-Palestinian protests.

Columbia was at the center of college protests in which demonstrators demanded an end to U.S. support for Israel due to the humanitarian crisis caused by Israel's assault on Gaza. There were allegations of antisemitism and Islamophobia in protests and counter-protests.

During last summer's demonstrations around the country, classes were canceled, some university administrators resigned and student protesters were suspended and arrested.

While the intensity of protests has decreased in recent months, there were some demonstrations last week in New York after the expulsion of two students at Columbia University-affiliated Barnard College and after New York Governor Kathy Hochul ordered the removal of a Palestinian studies job listing at Hunter College.

A third student at Barnard College has since been expelled, this one related to the occupation of the Hamilton Hall building at Columbia last year.