I’m Goldie Blumenstyk, a senior writer at The Chronicle covering innovation in and around academe. Here’s what I’m thinking about this week. These new grants could seed the ground for more partnerships. A new $2.5-million grant program — financed by three foundations and being announced today — will provide money to help colleges explore a host of “transformational partnerships,” including mergers, aimed at improving academic outcomes for students. OK, that’s the news. But there’s a lot more here that’s interesting and — if executed well (yeah, that “if” is no sure thing) — useful to a broader swath of higher ed, beyond the grantees themselves.