University System News
2014 GENERAL ASSEMBLY SESSION NEWS:
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/georgia-senate-wants-to-narrow-gun-legislation/nd9tm/
Georgia Senate wants to narrow gun legislation
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The state Senate has drafted a new version of House Bill 875 that would limit where the legislation expands access to guns in Georgia, including giving more leeway to churches over whether they have to allow weapons in their sanctuaries. A draft, which has not yet been formally introduced, would give local authorities more control over provisions in the bill that allow guns into “nonsecure” portions of government buildings. It drops a provision in HB 875 that would make it no longer a crime for permit holders to carry weapons onto college campuses. Instead, it would let governing authorities such as the Georgia Board of Regents decide on the matter — essentially keeping the status quo since the regents and leaders of the powerful University System of Georgia have opposed allowing guns on campus.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/senate-panel-approves-narrower-gun-bill/nfBwJ/
Senate panel approves narrower gun bill
BY JANEL DAVIS AND KRISTINA TORRES – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
One of two versions of a major gun bill in the Georgia Legislature won approval Wednesday from a state Senate committee, setting up negotiations with the House with only three days left in this year’s legislative session. With lawmaker set to meet Thursday, Tuesday and March 20 before gaveling the session to a close, the Senate’s version of House Bill 875 would give more authority to churches, bar owners and municipalities to decide whether to allow weapons in their sanctuaries, businesses and government buildings. The decision to move the bill came after the House on Tuesday amended a minor bill, House Bill 60, and inserted language from HB 875 that would allow guns in more places than the Senate wants.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/no-campus-carry-but-competing-versions-of-gun-bill/nd98B/?icmp=ajc_internallink_invitationbox_apr2013_ajcstub1
No campus carry, but competing versions of gun bill before Georgia lawmakers
BY AARON GOULD SHEININ AND KRISTINA TORRES – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
State lawmakers backed off proposals Tuesday to ease where guns could be carried in Georgia, all but conceding efforts to allow guns on college campuses. The move came as the Georgia House and Senate began to spar in earnest over provisions involving schools, churches and government buildings. The back-and-forth sets the stage for negotiations that could go down to the wire, as two competing bills emerged in what are the final days of this year’s legislative session. Neither side seems far apart.
www.wsbradio.com
http://www.wsbradio.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/campus-carry-stripped-gun-bill/nfBDM/
Campus carry stripped from gun bill
By Sandra Parrish
With time running out this legislative session, the state House has stripped campus carry from a controversial gun bill in an effort to ensure its passage. As it originally passed the House, HB 875 would have decriminalized bringing guns onto college campuses by carry permit holders. Everyone else would have still been subject to a misdemeanor. Rep. Alan Powell (R-Hartwell), who proposed the changes, felt taking out campus carry altogether was the only way the Senate would go along with the bill.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/house-education-committee-rejects-anti-common-core/nfBwG/?icmp=ajc_internallink_invitationbox_apr2013_ajcstub1
House Education Committee rejects anti-Common Core bill
BY WAYNE WASHINGTON – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
The House Education Committee rejected anti-Common Core legislation Wednesday, likely dealing a death blow to its chances of becoming law during this session. Senate Bill 167, sponsored by Sen. William Ligon, R-Brunswick, would have blocked Georgia from testing students on material tied to any set of national academic standards, including Common Core. Some or all of the legislation could be attached to a bill that has already passed one chamber of the Legislature, but after the committee voted 13-5 against it, Ligon said he would not try to move forward with it.
www.members.jacksonville.com
http://members.jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2014-03-12/story/common-core-not-dead-georgia-after-all
Common Core not dead in Georgia, after all
By Walter C. Jones
ATLANTA | One of the most controversial bills of the two-year legislative term suddenly hit a brick wall Wednesday when the House Education Committee voted down legislation designed to pull Georgia out of the Common Core school standards. The legislation would have ended Georgia’s three-year use of the multistate education standards. When the committee, which includes several former teachers and administrators, voted on Senate Bill 167, five hands were raised in support, but 13 went up against it, effectively killing it. The sponsor, Sen. William Ligon, R-Brunswick, expressed disappointment and said there was no way to attach such a complex bill onto other legislation to keep it alive. “We’ll just have to continue working,” he told reporters after the vote. He said it took him two years to get the Senate to pass it Feb. 25, but that only allowed two weeks for discussions in the House of Representatives.
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/ligon-pulls-support-for-amended-version-of-his-ant/nfBYt/
Ligon pulls support for amended version of his anti-Common Core bill
By Wayne Washington
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
State Sen. William Ligon, R-Brunswick, withdrew support from an amended version of his own anti-Common Core legislation Wednesday, a sharp reversal for a bill that seemed on a swift path to approval only two weeks ago. Ligon’s opposition now makes it unclear what will happen with Senate Bill 167, which would have prohibited Georgia from testing students on material tied to any set of national standards like Common Core.
Related article:
www.mdjonline.com
http://mdjonline.com/view/full_story/24724195/article-Senator-no-longer-backs-own-bill-to-pull-state-out-of-Common-Core?instance=home_top_bullets
Senator no longer backs own bill to pull state out of Common Core
www.times-georgian.com
http://www.times-georgian.com/news/local/article_96bf1646-a928-11e3-b289-0017a43b2370.html
Anti-Common Core bill up for vote
By Colton Campbell/Times-Georgian
A decision on a controversial Senate bill that may be held Wednesday could put a local school system in a curriculum “purgatory,” its superintendent said Monday. Last month, the state Senate passed legislation calling for a review of the Common Core, a set of national education standards that has been implemented in Carroll County for two years now.
Senate Bill 167, commonly referred to as the anti-Common Core bill, will be before the House of Representatives regular education meeting for a tentative vote Wednesday. The bill passed in the Senate last month by a vote of 34-16.
USG NEWS:
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local-education/uga-seeks-approval-for-red-barn-preservation/nfBW4/
UGA seeks approval for Red Barn preservation
By Janel Davis
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A Zaxby’s executive is proposing preserving and moving the University of Georgia’s iconic Red Barn to a family farm in Oconee County. If approved by the state Board of Regents, Tony Townley would move the building to land he purchased from UGA this year. The barn, built around 1915, was first used by UGA in 1928 to house horses and mules.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local/georgia-tech-brings-operations-center-online/nd97Q/
Georgia Tech brings operations center online
BY JANEL DAVIS – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
Georgia Tech is upgrading security efforts with a new operations center designed to provide round-the-clock monitoring of the campus and better protection for its more than 21,000 students. The center, in the police department’s headquarters, has a monitoring system featuring live video feeds from 16 cameras monitored by six students working part-time. The cameras are at campus entry and access points, high pedestrian areas and places that crime data show warrant extra monitoring.
www.wsbtv.com
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/georgia-tech-combating-crime-new-camera-system/nfBFr/
Georgia Tech combating crime with new camera system
By Rachel Stockman
ATLANTA — The Georgia Tech Police Department is cracking down on crime on campus with a brand-new video integration system. The center integrates the campus’ more than 700 cameras and utilizes new cameras with 360-degree viewing capabilities. The department installed 26 cameras on the major roads leading into campus, according Walter Warner, Operations manager for Georgia Tech Police. In deciding where to place the cameras, Georgia Tech analyzed crime statistics. “Other colleges have cameras. We are the first to operationally use the cameras as we are doing now,” Warner told Channel 2’s Rachel Stockman.
GOOD NEWS:
www.onlineathens.com
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2014-03-12/ung-biz-school-ranked-20th-best-veterans
UNG biz school ranked 20th best for veterans
By LEE SHEARER
The University of North Georgia’s Mike Cottrell College of Business has been named one of the country’s best schools for veterans. Military Times magazine featured the school in its recent rankings, which placed the school 20th out of 64 schools on its list. No other Georgia schools made the rankings.
www.bizjournals.com
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/morning_call/2014/03/two-georgia-schools-among-top-25-to-study-video.html
Two Georgia schools among Top 25 to study video game design
Carla Caldwell, Morning Edition Editor
The Princeton Review on Tuesday issued its fifth annual report naming the undergraduate and graduate schools it says are the best programs for students who want to study video game design. Georgia Tech and Savannah College of Art and Design are on the list.
www.onlineathens.com
http://onlineathens.com/breaking-news/2014-03-12/uga-bee-scientist-inducted-british-chivalric-order
UGA bee scientist inducted into British chivalric order
By LEE SHEARER
Long past are the days in which British royalty knighted nobles for their services in battles. Recently, though, a British ambassador inducted a University of Georgia professor into a chivalric order for his struggle to halt the demise of bees. UGA researcher Keith Delaplane for years has studied bees and the reasons the possible reasons behind their population decline. The entomology professor conducts that research so well it recently earned him induction into the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.
www.onlineathens.com
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2014-03-11/century-old-uga-lampposts-getting-restoration
Century-old UGA lampposts getting restoration
By ALLIE JACKSON
By restoring fixtures from the past, University of Georgia officials hope to better light the paths of students in the future. The process of restoring historic lampposts on UGA’s North Campus started this week. On Monday, workers began removing the 10 lampposts in front of the Holmes-Hunter Academic Building on North Campus and soon plan to start the renovation process with hopes of putting them back in time for summer graduation. The century-old posts are being replaced with temporary lighting and signage. The original cast iron lampposts were installed in June 1914 by the Athens Rail and Light Company. They were the first row of electric lights at UGA and the first significant outdoor electric lights in Athens.
RESEARCH:
www.sciencecodex.com
http://www.sciencecodex.com/uga_researchers_identify_decisionmaking_center_of_brain-129435
UGA researchers identify decision-making center of brain
Athens, Ga. – Although choosing to do something because the perceived benefit outweighs the financial cost is something people do daily, little is known about what happens in the brain when a person makes these kinds of decisions. Studying how these cost-benefit decisions are made when choosing to consume alcohol, University of Georgia associate professor of psychology James MacKillop identified distinct profiles of brain activity that are present when making these decisions.
www.mashable.com
http://mashable.com/2014/03/10/three-arm-drum-prosthetic/
3-Armed Drummer Makes Becoming a Cyborg Look Pretty Cool
By Adario Strange
Envisioning a world in which humans become robotics-equipped cyborgs doesn’t mean that all the enhancements will be Borg-like weaponry — there’s room for some artistically-focused augmentations too … Developed by professor Gil Weinberg, the director of the Georgia Tech Center for Music Technology, the prosthetic device has two parts.
www.spacedaily.com
http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/First_step_towards_programmable_materials_999.html
First step towards programmable materials
by Staff Writers
Researchers from Empa and ETH Zurich have succeeded in producing a prototype of a vibration-damping material that could change the world of mechanics forever. The material of the future is not only able to damp vibrations completely; it can also specifically conduct certain frequencies further … During the Phononic Crystal with Adaptive Connectivity research project, Empa-researcher Bergamini collaborated with Paolo Ermanni’s group at ETH Zurich and Massimo Ruzzene from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Editorials/Columns/Opinions
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/get-schooled/2014/mar/12/state-school-chief-anti-common-core-bill-stop-poli/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
State school chief on anti-Common Core bill: “Stop politicizing education.”
Here is a letter that State School Superintendent John Barge sent to the House Education Committee on the anti-national standards bill. The House Ed Committee is scheduled to vote on the bill today at 3:30. The bill has undergone a strong dilution, which led its sponsor, Sen. William Ligon, R-Brunswick, to denounce it. The bill has been the focus of intense politicking this morning so we shall see what the results are at the House meeting. Here is the Barge letter:
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/get-schooled/2014/mar/12/sponsor-anti-common-core-bill-big-business-and-edu/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Sponsor of anti-Common Core bill: Big business and education lobby trying to gut his legislation
Sen. William Ligon, R-Brunswick, issued this statement following his noon press conference on the proposed House changes to his bill that seeks to outlaw national standards.
He has also submitted a substitute bill to replace the substitute bill crafted by the House Education Committee in response to the overwhelming opposition to the legislation expressed at last week’s jammed hearing. You can read the Ligon sub here.House members will get the sub today at their 3:30 meeting. (Yes, you do need a scorecard to keep track of all the activity today around this legislation.)
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/get-schooled/2014/mar/12/sponsor-anti-common-core-bill-stands-his-ground-ge/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Sponsor of anti-Common Core bill stands his ground: Georgia needs to get out of national standards movement
UPDATE at 11:26 a.m. Wednesday: The House Ed Committee is now meeting at 3:30 today, not 3.
The House Education Committee will take up its amended bill today on Common Core State Standards at 3 p.m. You can read the rewritten bill here and get more details in this blog entry. While the House contends the changes make the bill more acceptable, the sponsor disagrees. At a hearing last week, Sen. William Ligon, R-Brunswick, told the House Ed Committee and an overflow crowd that the purpose of his bill was to ensure transparency in how we adopt standards. However, his statement below makes it clear that he’s now standing by the original goal of Senate Bill 167 — getting Georgia out of Common Core and preventing the adoption of any other national standards or tests.
www.ajc.com
http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/get-schooled/2014/mar/13/are-students-avoiding-stem-courses-because-grading/
Get Schooled with Maureen Downey
Are students avoiding STEM courses because the grading is tougher than English or history classes?
Writing recently on the Real Clear Policy blog, Thomas K. Lindsay, director of the Center for Higher Education at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and former deputy chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities under George W. Bush, notes everyone from President Barack Obama to GOP Florida Gov. Rick Scott wants more students in the STEM disciplines, science, technology, engineering and math. States are creating policies to encourage more kids to go into STEM fields because that’s where the jobs are today. But students are not crowding into calculus or advanced physics classes. Lindsay offers a reason: Grade inflation.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/opinion/improve-atlantas-clean-tech-economy/nd43b/?icmp=ajc_internallink_invitationbox_apr2013_ajcstub1
Improve Atlanta’s clean tech economy
BY BILL STRANG
Bill Strang, president of operations, Americas, for TOTO USA , is chairman of the Metro Atlanta Chamber’s Clean Tech Leadership Council.
Clean technology is a strength to this city and an opportunity to catalyze job growth. In 2011, a Brookings Institution study found Atlanta is home not only to the most diverse clean metropolitan economy, but is also positioned to become a global leader in the technology. We cannot have prosperity without sustainability efforts that preserve our environment. The Metro Atlanta Chamber’s Clean Tech Council works with regional partners and business leaders to cultivate a clean-tech economy and attract and grow jobs by promoting best practices among businesses. The council comprises Atlanta’s top clean-tech executives and public policy and higher education leaders.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/much-college-aid-goes-affluent
Much college aid goes to the affluent
Dallas News
If you have a child looking for financial aid for college, our special series Sunday on the Cost of Higher Education by Dallas Morning News reporter Holly Hacker and special contributor Jon Marcus is a must-read. There’s money available, but who gets the dollars and how might surprise you.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/will-online-learning-replace-classroom
Will online learning replace the classroom?
The Huffington Post
In a time when most American toddlers are as comfortable with a touchscreen as with a crayon, one would be remiss to think that the current classroom-based model of education will survive as is. Change is most evident in higher education, where massive open online courses (MOOCs) account for a growing share of academic content, but exactly how much disruption can we expect from online learning?
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/when-students-succeed-state-succeeds
When students succeed, the state succeeds
Deseret News
In 2013, a record 8,007 students celebrated their graduation from the University of Utah. Brooks Conway, a freshman from Pleasant Grove, Utah, and the first in her family to go to college, hopes to be among another class of graduates in 2017. Delivering an affordable, high-quality education is central to the U.’s mission. But we want to do more.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/college-mentor-returns-roseland-give-out-hope
College mentor returns to Roseland ‘to give out hope’
Chicago Tribune
Growing up in the poverty stricken South Side community of Roseland in a neighborhood plagued by violence, Corey Hardiman had few uplifting role models to pattern his life after, he said. Still, despite the obstacles, Hardiman managed to secure a prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship to Morehouse College in Atlanta. Throughout his childhood, he found inspiration and motivation wherever he could to keep pushing ahead and reaching for his goals, he said.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/broward-college-adjunct-professors-make-maximum-16000-year
Broward College adjunct professors make maximum $16,000 a year
Broward/Palm Beach News Times
Broward College administration must be brought to account for paying starvation wages to its faculty. I have taught American government and American history, primarily at Broward College, as an adjunct professor since 2004. Due to unannounced circumstances this semester, and as has been done many times to me in the past, my income was cut in half this term due to arbitrary scheduling of professors at the various campuses.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/university-florida-can-be-leader-cannabis-innovation
University of Florida can be leader in cannabis innovation
SunSentinel
Florida has a unique opportunity to lead the way in cannabis research at our land-grant university, the University of Florida. With so much attention being given to the proposed constitutional amendment allowing licensed Florida physicians to recommend the medical use of marijuana by qualified patients, we believe that our land-grant university must respond with adequate research to ensure the safety and efficacy of cannabis in safe, effective forms like oils, pills and creams.
Education News
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/61153/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=0a659f9b726249d0b349730d58676be2&elqCampaignId=173
Common Core Panel Says Limit Time Teaching to Test
by Michael Hill, Associated Press
ALBANY, N.Y.—A panel created by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to look into New York’s rollout of the Common Core curriculum recommended Monday banning standardized tests for the youngest students and capping the amount of instructional time that can be used for test prep. Cuomo created the panel last month amid widespread complaints by parents and teachers that New York rushed the rollout of the tougher standards. Teachers argue they will be unfairly punished if students do poorly under the new assessments and others question whether the standards will really elevate student achievement.
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local-education/georgia-technical-colleges-have-12-billion-spendin/nd9Qm/
Georgia technical colleges have $1.2 billion spending impact
BY JANEL DAVIS – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
The 24 colleges in the Technical College System of Georgia have a $1.2 billion spending impact in Georgia according to a report by the Selig Center for Economic Growth.
The colleges’ spending resulted in 15,000 public and private sector jobs. One in every 264 nonfarm jobs in Georgia is a result of spending associated with a TCSG college.
www.wnegradio.com
http://wnegradio.com/study-discusses-ngtc-economic-impact-on-area/
Study Discusses NGTC Economic Impact on Area
By Charlie Bauder
A recent study states that the economic impact of North Georgia Technical College on the area it serves adds up to $35.2 million. The study was recently conducted by a University of Georgia economist and commissioned by the Technical College System of Georgia.
www.macon.com
http://www.macon.com/2014/03/11/2983989/warner-robins-donates-land-for.html
Warner Robins signs over land for military training center
BY MIKE STUCKA
WARNER ROBINS — The city formally transferred to the state on Tuesday a 40-acre site that will be turned into a $10 million Gateway Center to train veterans. Warner Robins Mayor Randy Toms said the center will be a great thing for the community, particularly in how it will help veterans. “This educational center will give them an opportunity to earn another skill” that could keep veterans in the community,” Toms said after signing the deed. The 50,000-square-foot facility is intended to help veterans and current military members find jobs, transfer academic credits and enroll in colleges and technical schools.
www.huffingtonpost.com
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/10/federal-college-aid-policies_n_4934506.html?utm_hp_ref=college
Federal College Aid Policies Spend Billions Helping Wealthy Families Pay For Tuition
by Jon Marcus
It’s not just colleges and universities that are shifting their financial aid from lower-income to higher-income students. Tuition tax credits and other tax breaks to offset the cost of higher education—nearly invisible federal government subsidies for families that send their kids to college—also disproportionally benefit more affluent Americans. So do tax-deductible savings plans and the federal work-study program, which gives taxpayer dollars to students who take campus jobs to help pay for their expenses.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/university-utah-approves-59-percent-tuition-hike
University of Utah approves 5.9 percent tuition hike
The Salt Lake Tribune
The extra tuition money will pay for faculty and staff salary and benefit increases, more academic advisers and campus maintenance, said Cathy Anderson, associate vice president for budget and planning. Junior Alexis Santoyo said the bump — up to $7,895 a year for 15 credit hours, from $7,457 this year — will make finishing college more difficult.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/oregon-gov-signs-two-bills-help-students-pay-higher-education
Oregon gov. signs two bills to help students pay for higher education
OPB
Gov. John Kitzhaber signed two bills Tuesday designed to help more low-income students achieve a higher education credential. Lawmakers passed both bills in the recent legislative session. One bill asks state officials to study the feasibility of providing free community college classes to Oregon high school graduates.
www.customwire.ap.org
http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FL_XGR_IMMIGRATION_FLOL-?SITE=FLPET&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-03-12-18-03-24
Scott to back in-state tuition for some immigrants
By GARY FINEOUT
Associated Press
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who urged a crackdown on immigration four years ago, is throwing his support behind a bill that would allow qualified Florida students to pay in-state college tuition rates even if they are in the country illegally. But Scott is supporting the idea as long as it is combined with his own proposal to place limits on how much state universities can raise tuition each year.
www.pewstates.org
http://www.pewstates.org/projects/stateline/headlines/states-explore-free-community-college-85899541930
States Explore Free Community College
By Adrienne Lu, Staff Writer
Several states are considering offering free tuition at community colleges, as the cost of a college education continues to climb and as high school diplomas no longer guarantee a living wage. “Higher education for kids should not break families down” and result in a lifetime burden of debt, said Oregon state Sen. Mark Hass, a Democrat who sponsored legislation to study the viability of making tuition and fees at community colleges free to Oregon high school graduates.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/colleges-clarify-applications-financial-aid
Colleges clarify applications for financial aid
The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore lawmaker and top-ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform had launched an investigation last month into whether 111 schools were requiring applicants to submit a financial aid form other than the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or had failed to make clear that only the FAFSA was necessary.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/indiana’s-college-financial-aid-deadline-too-early
Indiana’s college financial aid deadline too early?
Indy Star
The Commission for Higher Education is studying whether Indiana should push back the deadline to allow students to apply for financial aid — a move it says could potentially double the number of college students receiving state financial aid. The state’s traditional March 10 deadline, which is one of the earliest in the nation, is Monday.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/colleges-illinois-lawmakers-look-ways-cut-higher-education-costs
Colleges, Illinois lawmakers look for ways to cut higher education costs
Rockford Register Star
The bill requires the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, ISAC, to study the feasibility of “Pay it Forward” programs. Such programs give loans to eligible students and only require the loan to be repaid in proportion to the income of the student borrowers, generally after they find work.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/61173/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=52b1e29789e54e23b3dcadf5e5ebc24a&elqCampaignId=173
Diverse Conversations: Reforming College Debt
by Matthew Lynch
If the P-12 education system is all about preparing its students for success in adulthood, then college preparation obviously is a must. In the fall of 2012, 66 percent of high school graduates from that year were enrolled in college, and that number does not include students who waited longer to enroll or nontraditional adult students. It seems that P-12 classrooms are getting more students ready for the academic demands of a college education, but what about the financial commitment? Let’s first look at the inherent problems with the college payment and lending system, both private and public, as it stands today.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/states-federal-government-cracking-down-profit-colleges
States, federal government cracking down on for-profit colleges
KETK
When Hannah Benbow ran into problems with her for-profit college, she turned to the federal government for help – but nothing happened. On top of the $120,000 she had already borrowed, the Art Institute of Washington, in Arlington, Va., had told her she would need yet another student loan to cover $7,000 in fees that Benbow said were not disclosed to her before.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/61167/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=52b1e29789e54e23b3dcadf5e5ebc24a&elqCampaignId=173
Peers Providing Support to Vulnerable First-generation Students
by Geri Coleman Tucker
First-generation college students are getting help to succeed on campus from an unlikely source: one another. A growing number of colleges and universities are accelerating efforts to identify, recruit, retain, graduate and track the professional success of students who are the first in their families to attend college. The Institute for Higher Education Policy noted research that shows that greater involvement from the faculty and continuous one-on-one faculty mentoring relationships with first-generation students are critical to their college success.
www.orlandosentinel.com
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/blogs/political-pulse/os-legislature-passed-florida-gi-bill-20140311,0,69645.post
Legislature passes Florida GI Bill
By Aaron Deslatte
Tallahassee Bureau Chief
TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Legislature passed a “Welcome Home” Tuesday aimed at reducing education costs for military veterans and efforts to help them find jobs. Among its provisions, HB 7015, which passed the House by a 116-0 vote last week, waives out-of-state fees for honorably discharged veterans.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/sc-legislators-state-universities-assign-gay-material-see-your-money-cut
SC legislators to state universities: Assign gay material, see your money cut
CNN
Some state legislators in South Carolina want to teach a lesson – to two of the state’s public universities. The legislators want to reduce funding for the College of Charleston and the University of South Carolina Upstate because the schools assigned materials to students that dealt with homosexual themes.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/oracle-revamp-schools-erp-software-eye-workday
Oracle to revamp schools ERP software, with an eye on Workday
PCWorld
Oracle is planning to make significant investments in its ERP software for higher education institutions, with an eye on keeping the installed base happy and fending off challenges from the likes of Workday. A new Oracle Student Cloud service will be configurable to manage “a variety of traditional and non-traditional educational offerings,” Oracle said.
www.providencejournal.com
http://www.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/content/20140311-taveras-job-plan-would-partner-community-colleges-corporations.ece
Taveras’ job plan would partner community colleges, corporations
BY MICHAEL P. MCKINNEY
CUMBERLAND, R.I. – Angel Taveras, a Democratic candidate for governor, outlined a plan Tuesday to match up employers with Rhode Island’s community colleges in a push to improve the skills taught, lifting graduates’ chances of getting jobs and pulling the state out of its unemployment quagmire. During a campaign stop at Hope Global’s corporate offices in Cumberland, Taveras asserted that many Rhode Island employers want to hire but are not able to find people with the needed skills, while other companies bypass the state to locate elsewhere.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/61150/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=0a659f9b726249d0b349730d58676be2&elqCampaignId=173
Pa. Universities Will be Permitted to Leave State System Under New Proposal
by Mark Scolforo, Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa.—Some Pennsylvania state lawmakers want state-owned universities to be able to leave the 14-member State System of Higher Education and on Tuesday outlined the details of a proposal to allow it. Sen. Tommy Tomlinson, R-Bucks, a sponsor of the bill, said the schools need more flexibility to cope with enrollment trends and financial pressures. He would permit them to become “state-related” universities, a group that now includes only Penn State, Pitt, Lincoln and Temple.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/state-system-exit-plan-outlined-senators
State System exit plan outlined by senators
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Universities meeting size and financial qualifications could opt to buy their land and buildings over 30 years, state Sen. Robert Tomlinson, R-Bucks and a trustee of West Chester University, and Sen. Andy Dinniman, D-Chester and a former professor at the university, said at a Capitol news conference. Of the 14 universities in the State System, only West Chester and Bloomsburg have not lost enrollment since 2010. Mr. Tomlinson and Mr. Dinniman – who were joined by Sens. Richard Alloway, R-Adams, Lloyd Smucker, R-Lancaster, and Pat Vance, R-Cumberland – said their proposal would allow greater flexibility for qualified universities while directing money back into the system to help those schools that remain.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/61144/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=0a659f9b726249d0b349730d58676be2&elqCampaignId=173
White House ‘HBCU All-Stars’ Program Recognizes High-achieving Students
by Ronald Roach
At a time when higher education leaders worry that the general public knows far too little about the contributions historically Black colleges and universities (HBCU) and their graduates are making to U.S. society, the federal government office charged with HBCU advocacy has launched a program aimed at recognizing high-achieving HBCU students. Early last month, the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (WHIHBCU) announced the inaugural class of the HBCU All-Stars.
www.cherokeetribune.com
http://cherokeetribune.com/view/full_story/24730223/article-Low-paying-jobs-unexpectedly-become-a-way-of–life-for-many?instance=lead_story_left_column
Low-paying jobs unexpectedly become a way of life for many
by Josh Boak, AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON — For years, many Americans followed a simple career path: Land an entry-level job. Accept a modest wage. Gain skills. Leave eventually for a better-paying job.
The workers benefited, and so did lower-wage retailers such as Wal-Mart: When its staffers left for better-paying jobs, they could spend more at its stores. And the U.S. economy gained, too, because more consumer spending fueled growth. Not so much anymore. Since the Great Recession began in late 2007, that path has narrowed because many of the next-tier jobs no longer exist. That means more lower-wage workers have to stay put. The resulting bottleneck is helping widen a gap between the richest Americans and everyone else.
www.nytimes.com
Universities Try a Cultural Bridge to Lure Foreign Students
By RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA
CORVALLIS, Oregon — As the anthropology instructor engaged her class, a fault line quickly developed. American students answered and asked questions, even offered opinions, but the foreigners — half the class, most from China — sat in silence. …Colleges want, and increasingly need, more foreign students, not only for high-minded reasons, but also because foreigners generally pay full price. Recruitment from overseas is a rare and increasingly important financial bright spot at a time when state support for higher education has dropped to historic lows, research grants are declining, consumers are objecting to tuition increases, and the supply of college-age Americans is stagnant.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/dartmouth-proposes-sexual-assault-crackdown-amid-federal-probe
Dartmouth proposes sexual assault crackdown amid federal probe
Bloomberg Businessweek
President Philip Hanlon has proposed mandatory expulsion for those who incapacitate students with drugs or alcohol in order to have penetrating sex with them, or use force or threats to do so, Dartmouth in Hanover, New Hampshire, said in a statement on its website. The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights began an investigation of Dartmouth’s prevention and response measures for sexual harassment in May.
www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/61189/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=52b1e29789e54e23b3dcadf5e5ebc24a&elqCampaignId=173
UConn, State Police Investigating Alleged Hazing by Sorority, Fraternity
by Pat Eaton-Robb, Associated Press
HARTFORD, Conn. ― State police and the University of Connecticut have launched separate investigations into alleged hazing by a sorority and a fraternity. UConn officials on Monday temporarily suspended the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity from all activities on campus pending the outcome of their investigation.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/wa-state-employees-students-could-take-religious-holidays-under-bill
Wa. state employees, students could take off religious holidays under bill
The Olympian
House Bill 5173 unanimously passed the Senate Tuesday after members agreed to accept several amendments made by the House. The House previously approved the legislation on a 64-32 vote. The measure as approved by the full Legislature would require state agencies and agency subdivisions to give employees two unpaid days off per year for reasons of faith, conscience, or for religious events.
www.universitybusiness.com
http://www.universitybusiness.com/news/maintaining-quality-and-reauthorizing-higher-education-act
Maintaining quality and reauthorizing the Higher Education Act
Roll Call
The Council for Higher Education Accreditation, the largest higher-education institutional membership organization in the country and dedicated to advocacy and improvement of accreditation, believes that this is in the best interests of students and society, as well as helping accreditation to better meet the evolving expectations of Congress. The stakes for accreditation are high.