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Interview With Lawrence Goldstone, Author Of The Anatomy of Deception
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The Fruit Hunters: A Story of Nature, Obsession, Commerce, and Adventure
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Interview With Joseph Boyden, Author of Through Black Spruce
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Interview with Nino Ricci, Governor-General Award-Winning Author
Finals are over so now’s the time to enjoy the night life of your campus.
Here are the top ten college towns according to CampusCorner.com
Columbus, OH. This unassuming college town is home to the revelers of The Ohio State University, which enjoys its ranking among the nation’s top schools. The university’s football stadium holds over 100,000, making game time a true event.
Tempe, AZ. When the average February temperature is 72 degrees, why not celebrate? Arizona State students can be found partying on Mill Street while other college towns are suffering during those lean winter months.
Norman, OK. A thriving Greek population is a feature of The University of Oklahoma. Athletics are important in this college town, and the OU Sooners cheer on their football team at the Big Red Rally.
New York, NY. It seems like a no-brainer to include this metropolis on the list. Nightlife in New York powers through until the bars close at 4 a.m. Students attending one of the city’s many colleges and universities can spend their entire academic careers exploring new hotspots.
State College, PA. In a city named after the college, you know student life is going to be a top priority. State College is no exception, as the students of Penn State University dominate the nightlife. Students can even unwind on weeknights at Otto’s Pub & Brewery.
Austin, TX. This live music capital draws students and non-students alike, though the centrally located University of Texas campus is a hub of nighttime activity. On nights when the Longhorns win, Sixth Street is a popular destination.
Gainesville, FL. Students looking to take a break from their studies can enjoy day trips to Daytona Beach or stick around town, where the 2 a.m. bar closing time and warm average temperatures keep the party going all night.
Los Angeles, CA. Another big city with lots to offer, students at USC, UCLA, CSULA, and other acronym-boasting local schools are always ready for a night on the town in this entertainment capital.
Tuscaloosa, AL. Fraternities and sororities have a strong presence at the University of Alabama: nearly a fifth of the campus has pledged. Alabama students cheer on their Crimson Tide football team at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Honolulu, HI. Where do you go for spring break when you already live in paradise? Students of Honolulu’s public and private schools ask themselves this difficult question every year.
“I wanted to be unique,” Captain Fantastic said of his name choice. “I decided upon a theme of superheroes,” said the originally named George Garratt.
Unique he is with his officially new name, “Captain Fantastic Faster Than Superman Spiderman Batman Wolverine Hulk And The Flash Combined.”
According to TechRepublic:
Career coaches or head hunters may have told you that creating an effective résumé means punching it up with jazzy verbs and adjectives. Not so, say IT hiring managers. In fact, if you’re using glitzy modifiers, you could be doing your résumé more harm than good. Here’s a look at some recruiters’ “favorite-hate” résumé verbiage.
- Assist, assisted
- Experiment
- Skillfully, effectively, carefully, quickly, expert, mastered
- Cutting-edge, detail-oriented; coordinate, facilitate, transform; proven ability, synergy, and liaison
- Responsible for…
Families are borrowing more heavily to fund the rising cost of higher education, but an increase in default rates is forcing private lenders to abandon the market.
Has the U.S. created an “education bubble” fueled by easy money and over-borrowing by families desperate to pay rising tuition costs?
Expect a hastily sputtered “no way” from economists, university officials and student-lending specialists. They attach a high monetary value to academic degrees, no matter how fast tuition rises. As proof, they cite the big and growing income gap between college graduates and people with just high-school diplomas. Read more…
PHOENIX, AZ–(Marketwire - February 7, 2008) - Minority students are taking advantage of affordable education options in increasing numbers, with minority college enrollment up overall and especially at schools with the smallest tuition increases, according to a recent report by the Government Accountability Office. With student debt levels mounting for college students in general, enrollment in these less costly two-year public schools, where tuition hikes have been the smallest, could help minimize the need for student loans.
As a college education has become increasingly imperative in the job market, with 90% of the fastest growing jobs in the U.S. requiring some level of postsecondary education, more students are flocking to colleges across the country.
College enrollment numbers are up across the board, with the largest enrollment increases seen in minority populations. Between the 2000-01 and 2006-07 academic years, enrollment of college-bound White students grew by a little less than three percent, while enrollment of Black and Asian/Pacific Islander students grew by 15 percent and enrollment of Hispanic students shot up by 25 percent.
Enrollment for some minority groups has also shifted toward two-year schools. Hispanic and Black enrollment in two-year schools has increased, while enrollment in four-year public colleges has gone down. Nearly 60 percent of all Hispanic students are enrolled in two-year schools, as are 50 percent of Black and Asian/Pacific Islander students, compared to 43 percent of non-Hispanic White students.
The G.A.O. reports that over the past decade, two-year colleges have seen the smallest tuition increases, both in absolute dollars and percentage-wise. With enrollment at two-year colleges on the rise, three out of every five students in 2006-07 attended institutions where the average in-state tuition and fees were less than $5,000 a year. In fact, only three percent of students attended institutions where average annual tuition and fees exceeded $25,000.
These college enrollment trends, combined with a surge of financial aid reform at colleges and universities, may gradually make it possible for students to begin borrowing less money in federal and private student loans or for them to stop having to rely on college loans at all.
Ivy League heavyweights Harvard and Yale recently announced that they’ll be allocating more of their endowment funds to financial aid awards for middle-class students in order to reduce the amount of parent and student loans families may need. And last year, both Amherst College and Davidson College joined Princeton University in eliminating student loans from their financial aid packages altogether.
Those students who still find themselves in need of financial aid or whose financial aid packages still include student loans should look first at their options for federal financial aid. Federal college loans typically offer more attractive terms than private student loans, so students and families should always take advantage of any available federal financial aid first.
If federal funding doesn’t cover all their education-related expenses, students may be able to get the additional financial assistance they need from private student loans.
About NextStudent
NextStudent, Federal Lender Code 834051, is dedicated to helping students and their families find affordable ways to pay for college. NextStudent offers one-on-one education finance counseling and has a portfolio of highly competitive education finance products and services, including a free online scholarship search engine, federally guaranteed parent and student loans, private student loans, both federal and private student loan consolidation programs, and college savings plans.
For more information about NextStudent and its student loan programs, please visit our website at www.nextstudent.com.
DEERFIELD, Ill., May 1 /PRNewswire/ — One hundred colleges and universities out of some 3,800 U.S. schools have been ranked as the top values by Consumers Digest Magazine. The rankings are based on attributes that validate or define the institutions’ academic prowess factored against annual cost of tuition and room-and-board. Among 50 public institutions cited, Midwestern State University, Wichita Falls, Texas, ranked No. 1. Among 25 private institutions, Brigham Young-Hawaii took top honors. Among 25 private liberal arts schools, Centre College, Danville, Ky., held the first slot.
The rankings, published in CD’s June issue, were derived from a formula that blended the academic excellence of first-time freshman at a school (standardized test scores, high-school rank, grade-point average) with the institution’s educational quality (4- and 6-year graduation rate, student-to-faculty ratio, percentage of faculty holding a PhD). That “value-index” score was factored with the cost of attending each school to determine which schools offered the most academic value per dollar. The rankings were based on information from 2005-06, the latest school year for which data were available.
“Expert opinions and solid recommendations are two of our strengths,” says Randy Weber, publisher, Consumers Digest. “We applied those strengths to this examination of our country’s higher-learning institutions. It’s designed to help parents and students find schools that will meet families’ performance and financial requirements.”
Consumers Digest first whittled down the list of schools based on a minimum level of academic performance by students institutions accepted. For public schools, the magazine only considered nonresident tuition figures. Military institutions and extremely specialized colleges were excluded. Financial aid was not factored in.
Twenty-seven public institutions are new to CD’s Top-50 list versus 2004’s evaluation. Among private colleges/universities and liberal arts schools, only 12 of the schools from 2004’s report remained this year. The average Consumers Digest value-index score among private colleges/universities is 95.3, more than a point higher than before, indicating improved academic performance; yet the new average value-index score for public institutions is 94.2, nearly a point lower than in 2004. The average annual cost of attendance at CD’s top schools was up: to $28,979 at private colleges/universities, from $24,842; and to $16,684 at public colleges/universities, from $15,865.
“Our analysis helps families make an informed decision that puts their hard-earned money to the best use,” says Weber.
CD’s Top 100 College Values accompanied an article titled “2007 College Road Map — Making the Right Choices,” which examines how schools are making admissions decisions today. For example, many institutions are attempting to balance their male/female enrollment numbers, meaning young men have a bit of an advantage overall. Two other articles, “Financial Aid: Know Your Options” and “Report Card: Grading Online Education,” round out CD’s eight-page section.
Editor Rich Dzierwa points to a remark made by a professor of education that supports independent research. J.E. Stone of East Tennessee State University said, “Ninety-five percent of what the country knows about the education industry comes from the industry itself … You have to wonder about the accuracy of the information.” Says Dzierwa, “No matter the category, we never stop wondering about ‘the accuracy of the information.’”
Top 5 Best Values in Public Colleges and Universities
1) Midwestern State (Wichita Falls, Texas)
2) State University of New York-Stony Brook (Stony Brook, N.Y.)
3) City University of New York (New York, N.Y.)
4) Indiana University of Pennsylvania (Indiana, Pa.)
5) Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania (Slippery Rock, Pa.)
Top 5 Best Values in Private Colleges and Universities
1) Brigham Young-Hawaii (Laie, Hawaii)
2) Trinity College of Florida (Trinity, Fla.)
3) Claflin University (Orangeburg, S.C.)
4) Lincoln Memorial University (Harrogate, Tenn.)
5) St. Leo University (St. Leo, Fla.)
Top 5 Best Values in Private Liberal Arts Schools
1) Centre College (Danville, Ky.)
2) Grinnell College (Grinnell, Iowa)
3) Rhodes College (Memphis, Tenn.)
4) DePauw University (Greencastle, Ind.)
5) Furman University (Greenville, S.C.)
Consumers Digest, launched in 1959, is designed to inform and educate readers so they can buy with confidence. The magazine is committed to providing practical advice, factual evaluations and specific recommendations that lead consumers to exceptional values in today’s complex marketplace.
NEW YORK, April 30 /PRNewswire/ — The Tea Council of the USA, Inc. announced today the launch of the Calm-A-Sutra of Tea(TM), a nationwide scholarship competition awarding one creative student $20,000 towards their education plus an all-expense paid trip to New York City, in an effort to further educate America’s young people on the health-related benefits of drinking tea.
| Source: The Tea Council of the USA, Inc. | ||||
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The Calm-A-Sutra of Tea is a nationwide search for the most unique and creative way to drink tea, specifically black, green, white and oolong tea, all from the Camellia sinensis plant, explained in a one-to-two minute homemade Internet video that incorporates some aspect of tea’s many health- related benefits.As the world’s most widely consumed beverage (next to water), tea is great tasting and calorie-free. It contains flavonoids that are believed to be health-protective antioxidants, which ultimately makes drinking tea part of a satisfying, healthy lifestyle.
“While educating the public on the emerging sciences supporting the health-related benefits of drinking tea is one of the Tea Council’s main objectives, we also strongly support America’s young people seeking a higher education,” said Joe Simrany, President of the Tea Council of the USA. “The Calm-A-Sutra of Tea scholarship competition is the perfect vehicle for this Internet generation to take advantage of in their search for scholarships and financial aide for the upcoming 2007-2008 school year.”
The Tea Council of the USA, Inc. has also partnered with recording artist and American Idol runner-up Justin Guarini as the official Calm-A-Sutra of Tea spokesperson. An avid tea drinker, Guarini supports the Tea Council’s platform on educating young Americans about the health benefits of drinking tea through the immensely popular and ever-growing trend of using online video as the newest form of mass communication.
“As a singer, drinking hot tea has served as an essential part of my daily vocal warm-up routine,” said Justin Guarini. “In addition to the fact that tea is an overall healthy beverage, I’m really proud to be working with the Tea Council in support of education in America.”
The participant who submits the most creative and unique video, which emphasizes the health-related benefits of drinking black, green, white or oolong tea, will be selected by a panel of Tea Council representatives to receive a scholarship of $20,000 and an all-expense paid trip to New York City for themselves and a guest in the first week of June when the winner is announced.
All entries must be original Internet videos created by the entrant and must contain at least one valid message regarding Tea’s health-related benefits, specifically black, green, white and oolong tea. Open to legal residents of the United States and Puerto Rico, who are at least 16 years of age, all entries must be received electronically at http://www.teausa.org/calmasutra no later than May 28, 2007.
The winner will receive a check in the amount of $20,000 paid directly to the school or educational institution on the winner’s behalf and an all-expense paid trip to New York City, which includes round-trip airfare and two-night hotel accommodations.
Final judging will be conducted by a panel of representatives of the Tea Council of the USA, Inc. based on the following criteria: HEALTH-RELATED MESSAGE (50%; Entry must contain at least one valid message regarding Tea’s health-related benefits, specifically black, green, white and oolong tea), CREATIVITY (20%), INDIVIDUALITY (20%) and POPULARITY (10%). Entries that contain any nudity, sexual content, inappropriate language, unsuitable behavior or adult material will be automatically discarded and not considered for submission.
For more information, please visit http://www.teausa.org/calmasutra.
UPPER MARLBORO, Md., April 27 /PRNewswire/ — Author Lenora Peters Gant, Ph.D., offers a practical “roadmap” for career success in the latest revision of her book, “Workplace Success: Ten Steps to Career Advancement” (now available through AuthorHouse).
This complete guide is particularly helpful in aiding new or returning workers as they attempt to further their careers. Gant’s 10 steps provide practical advice that will help workers plan and develop strategies for workplace success, avoid behaviors that could hinder success, transition from the academic setting to the “real” work world, track assignments and accomplishments for performance reviews, and plan and develop long-term career goals, she says. The book is also handy for managers in coaching and training new recruits and seasoned workers.
Through discussing various interactions in the workplace, Gant outlines the key characteristics of successful employees with clarity and realism. This prescription for workplace success also includes a list of optional actions, techniques and strategies that readers can immediately put into action after reading each step. The “Workplace Dirty Dozen Behaviors” at the end of the book provide a handy guide for detrimental behaviors.
The interactive nature of this book allows readers to be proactive about their career goals. Workplace Success includes various tools that will aid readers in assessing skills and competence as well as tracking and identifying personal action steps to help them prepare for performance reviews.
“This book will provide you with insights that can give you a sense of balance, smooth transition from college to work, help you navigate relationships and lessen the stress of dealing with those nuisances and unwritten rules prevalent in most workplace environments,” Gant says.
Gant is an independent consultant who specializes in organizational development, human capital strategies and other topics related to workforce development. Her clients include successful businesses and organizations in both the public and private sector including the Department of Defense. As senior executive special assistant to the director of central intelligence, Gant maintained oversight for 16 national-level agencies. She holds bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees from Florida A & M University, George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute, respectively. During her 20 years of experience with the Department of Defense and the intelligence community she has performed assignments throughout the world, including Japan, the Philippines, Germany, England, Belgium and Italy. Her articles on human resources and management have been published in various trade journals. She is married to a retired U.S. Air Force officer, and they have two daughters.
AuthorHouse is the premier publishing house for emerging authors and new voices in literature. For more information, please visit http://www.authorhouse.com..
PRINCETON, NJ — (MARKET WIRE) — April 26, 2007 — ETS’s Criterion(SM) Online Writing Evaluation won the highest honor — the Platinum Level Award — at the IMS Global Learning Consortium conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, last week. The Criterion service is a web-based instructional tool that helps students plan, write and revise essays, and provides instant scoring and annotated diagnostic feedback.IMS’s Global Learning Impact Award program honors high-impact use of technology in learning, and the coveted Platinum Level Award is awarded to the finalist that shows superior measurable impact on faculty/teacher adoption, student achievement, and ease of implementation.
“The Global Learning Impact Award is unique in that it recognizes the use of innovative technology within the context of a school or educational program,” says John Oswald, ETS’s Senior Vice President for Elementary and Secondary Education. “These aren’t products that sit on shelves. They are actually in use in the classroom, increasing student achievement and improving school performance. ETS is proud that our Criterion Online Writing Evaluation has been recognized for its demonstrated impact.”
ETS staff, some of whom have been contributing members of the Global Learning Consortium, presented the Criterion tool and its capabilities alongside product users from Knox County Public Schools in Tennessee. Writing instructor Aleeta Johnson showed that the Criterion service has truly impacted the writing proficiency trend at Farragut High School and within the district as a whole.
“We showed marked improvement since 2002, when just 69 percent of our students in the district passed the state writing assessment,” says Johnson. “In 2006, 86% of the students in the district passed, and 96 percent of the students at Farragut High School passed! I credit our score increases, in large part, to use of the Criterion service, which focused our writing instruction and enabled students to practice their writing and receive instant feedback on their essays.”
The Criterion service has helped hundreds of thousands of elementary, middle, high school and college students across the United States and around the world practice their writing skills, and educators are reporting positive impacts.
“Many of our students come from economically disadvantaged families and arrive at the middle school finding it difficult to construct an essay that meets state standards,” says Beth Madison, Principal of George Middle School in Portland, Oregon. “This year, our state writing scores went way up, and we had some special education students pass the test for the first time in our school’s history. Perhaps the most outstanding data about this year’s test scores was that in the number of students who scored low or very low decreased 21 percent in the past year. We credit the Criterion service for being the most effective way to get our students to revise their draft essays, and it shows in our scores. The kids can hardly wait to enter their essays to see their improvement.”
For more information about the Criterion service and a free online tour, visit www.ets.org/criterion.
NEW HAVEN, Conn., April 25 /PRNewswire/ — After months of planning, the Women’s Law School Coalition (WLSC) announced its launch as the first inter- law school women’s advocacy organization today. The coalition’s mission is to represent a common voice for women’s law school organizations that will empower these formerly unconnected groups to raise awareness about issues affecting women in the legal profession at the national level.
Menaka Kalaskar, a WLSC founder and Stanford Law School student remarked, “We created the WLSC with the recognition that issues affecting women in our law school communities and within the wider profession are increasingly of national import and can be addressed more effectively when women’s leaders from across the country come together and map a clear way forward.” Founding WLSC law schools include: Boalt Hall (Berkeley), the University of Chicago, Columbia, Harvard, Northwestern, Stanford, the University of Virginia, and Yale.
The initial motivation for the WLSC was prompted by a March 7, 2007 Washington Post article, “Harsh Words Die Hard on the Web,” which reported on defamatory attacks wielded against female law students over an anonymous internet message board. These attacks were met with widespread condemnation by students and administrations alike and motivated letters of concern from the deans of the Harvard, Penn, and Yale law schools.
The WLSC’s first initiative is to address the rising concern over public, malicious and frightening attacks on both male and female students over online message boards. Jennifer Broxmeyer, a WLSC founder and chair of Yale Law Women, explained, “The digital world has arrived and it is here to stay as an everyday part of both our personal and professional lives. This requires us to apply long respected standards of decency in the professional school context to this new medium. For this reason, WLSC representatives are now working with law school administrations to tackle the negative effect of cyber-harassment on our communities.”
The WLSC is advocating for updates to law school and university-wide codes of conduct that will condemn this new form of harassment and provide for appropriate responses. Sarah Hoffman, a WLSC founder and a student at the Northwestern University School of Law noted, “It is important to recognize that cyber-harassment and defamation afflict countless people everyday who lack the organizational cohesiveness of the Women’s Law School Coalition. It is the WLSC’s intent that our endeavors will have a long-term and national impact on this issue — an impact that will reverberate far beyond our direct work in this matter.”
The Women’s Law School Coalition is actively looking for law schools to join the organization and for individuals to fill leadership positions. To learn more about the WLSC, please contact Jennifer Broxmeyer at jennifer.broxmeyer@yale.edu.
