Monday, September 27, 2010

Blog U.: Affirmative action in higher education in Brazil - The World View - Inside Higher Ed

BlogU

Affirmative action in higher education in Brazil
By Simon Schwartzman September 27, 2010 11:30 am

As reported by the newspaper Folha de São Paulo[1] a recent study from the State University of Rio de Janeiro found that 70% of public higher education institutions in Brazil have adopted some kind of affirmative action program. Legislation is being discussed in Congress to make these programs mandatory, but the institutions are doing it voluntarily, or according to state legislation.
Public higher education is Brazil is tuition free, and admission can be very competitive for fields like medicine, engineering or law in prestigious universities, but very easy in less demanded fields such as education, geography or social work. Most affirmative action programs give quotas to students coming from public schools, while others give advantages to students considered black. Many combine these two criteria. There are more programs based on school origin than on race. In some institutions, instead of quotas, students

CUNY-IBM to open unique school in NYC - Boston.com

CUNY-IBM to open unique school in NYC

September 27, 2010

Text size – +

NEW YORK—The City University of New York and IBM will open a unique high school that allows students to earn an associate's degree.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Monday on MSNBC that those students will be "first in line for a job at IBM."

Bloomberg also said the city will move to a rating system to ensure teacher tenure is linked to classroom performance.

He said the city will use a $36 million federal grant to enlist highly-skilled

U.S. Department of Education Awards More Than $9.2 Million to Institutions of Higher Education for Emergency Management Planning | U.S. Department of Education

U.S. Department of Education Awards More Than $9.2 Million to Institutions of Higher Education for Emergency Management Planning

SEPTEMBER 27, 2010

Contact:

Jo Ann Webb , (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov

Elaine Quesinberry, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov

Institutions of higher education in 17 new sites will be able to develop or review and improve, and fully integrate their emergency management planning efforts as a result of more than $9.2 million in Emergency Management for Higher Education (EMHE) grants awarded by the U.S. Department of Education. The EMHE grant program supports institutions of higher education projects that address all four phases of emergency management: Prevention-Mitigation, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery.

Among the typical activities included in grantee programs are reviewing and revising existing emergency management plans; conducting vulnerability assessments of campus facilities and grounds; providing training to campus staff, faculty and students; organizing tabletop exercises or large-scale drills; improving on-

U.S. Department of Education Awards More Than $4 Million to State Education Agencies to Prevent Youth Substance Abuse and Violence

SEPTEMBER 27, 2010

Contact:

Jo Ann Webb , (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov

Elaine Quesinberry, (202) 401-1576, press@ed.gov

The U.S. Department of Education has awarded more than $4 million to 28 states in support of a new grant initiative, Building State Capacity for Preventing Youth Substance Use and Violence. States can use these resources to help schools and communities build or expand existing prevention coalitions, seek other sources of support and enhance local education agencies' (LEAs) prevention strategies to ensure a positive school environment. Funds made available under this grant program also will be used to build or strengthen existing partnerships across the range of state agencies that are involved in preventing drug use and violence among children and youth.

"Schools should be safe havens, free of drugs and violence, where young people can learn and prosper, and anything less than that is unacceptable," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said.

The grants are housed within the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, which supports efforts to create safe schools, respond to crises, prevent drug and alcohol abuse, ensure the health and well being of students, and teach students good citizenship and character. The office also coordinates the Department's efforts in these areas with other federal agencies, such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security. For additional information on the Building State Capacity grant program, visit http://www2.ed.gov/programs/buildstatecap/index.html.

A complete list of the 28 grant awards follows:

Some Constructive Advice for Superman's Fans :: Frederick M. Hess

Some Constructive Advice for Superman's Fans

by Frederick M. Hess • Sep 27, 2010 at 11:09 am
Cross-posted from Education Week

Send

RSS

ShareThis

Last week, as was much remarked, I had some fun expressing my concerns about the cult of Waiting for Superman. A couple folks asked if I might have anything constructive to say about how the attention the movie is generating might be put to good use. Heaven knows I'm skeptical about claims that Waiting for Superman is going to have an outsized impact on school reform. And I'm borderline nauseous from constant urgings to praise and promote the flick. All that aside, though, I think it's a fine movie, a useful contribution, and could do some good--if the short-term bump in energy and enthusiasm are channeled well. The key is to use its energy in a constructive way before education is once again relegated to back-burner status by Oprah, Geraldo, Katie Couric, and Entertainment Weekly in three to six months.

Seizing that window requires being smart about leveraging this kind of media spectacle. Unfortunately for those eagerly helping Paramount get viewers to the multiplex, those two hours getting outraged in a darkened theater won't do much for anything except Paramount's bottom line. Why not? Because that anger quickly dissipates,

Eduflack: What Are We "Waiting" For?

What Are We "Waiting" For?

by Eduflack

This is one of those weeks that will just be abuzz with talk of education and school improvement. The much-anticipated documentary, Waiting for Superman, is finally out in theaters, drawing good reviews and real attention from a wide range of stakeholders. And yesterday, NBC kicked off its Education Nation effort, as it tries to leverage all of its television properties and sponsorships to provide a week of education-apalooza.

Both of these are interesting events, but they raise even more interesting questions. Will Waiting for Superman play in Middle America? Will Superman's buzz continue after the reviews are done with? Will NBC continue to focus on education issues after the week-long fest is completed? And most importantly, what comes next?

Don't get me wrong, both Superman and Education Nation play important roles in raising public awareness of

The Educated Reporter: A teacher is found dead; report carefully.

A teacher is found dead; report carefully.

by Linda Perlstein

I learned through Alexander Russo that a Los Angeles teacher concerned that his value-added rating was “less effective” was found dead, a suspected suicide. I urge journalists to consider this principle from a World Health Organization guide to covering suicide: “Suicide is never the result of a single factor or event.” I am not saying an incident like this isn’t worth looking into, but journalists reporting on newsworthy deaths should refrain from DIY

Facts about Children in your Community are a Click Away �

Facts about Children in your Community are a Click Away

September 27, 2010 by Irene Sege

In Governor Patrick’s hometown of Milton, 61% of preschool-age children are enrolled in a formal early education and care program and, according to 2010 MCAS results released earlier this month, 29% of third graders read below grade level. The source of these demographic tidbits? Fast Facts.

Compiled and updated regularly by Strategies for Children, Inc., for each community in Massachusetts, Fast Facts lists key educational benchmarks, characteristics of both early education and care and the public schools, and basic demographic information about children, from birth to age 18.

Lt. Gov. Tim Murray’s hometown of Worcester has 23 public pre-kindergarten

Maureen Downey: A Dream come true �| ajc.com

Maureen Downey: A Dream come true

By Maureen Downey

The best way to judge a country is to examine how it treats its children, even those whose parents arrive on the nation’s shores by boat or border crossing. Our country is diminished by immigration policies that deny educational opportunities to children to punish their parents. Every educated American is a boon to our nation’s economy, health and future.

More opinion »

Columns and blogs

My own grandparents were immigrants from Italy who eked out a living. Yet, all their grandchildren are college-educated, taxpaying citizens. And that advancement is owed to one thing: higher education.

Yet, Georgia is considering barring illegal immigrants from attending Georgia Tech, the University of Georgia and any other public college that doesn’t have space to admit all qualified applicants.

On a national level, the federal Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act, which broadens access to higher education for immigrant children and puts them on a path to citizenship, is in limbo.

While the Supreme Court ruled in 1982 that illegal immigrants are entitled to a public school education, nothing in the ruling addresses their college status. Now, states retain the power to determine whether or not to admit illegal

Latest News and Comment from Education