Diverse: Issues In Higher Education Headlines

Higher Education Headlines:

SUNO Reaches 94 Percent of Pre-Katrina Enrollment

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SUNO president Victor Ukpolo said he credits aggressive recruitment efforts and good relations with local high schools for the school's continued growth. in News

Emerging Scholars: Visionary Thinker – Osagie Obasogie

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The tenth profile in a 12-part series on prominent young scholars is that of Dr. Osagie Obasogie, who is an associate professor of law at the University of California, Hastings. in News

Pepperdine Students Petition for Campus Recognition of LGBT Group

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Pepperdine University gay and lesbian students are petitioning the administration to reconsider its refusal to recognize their group as an official campus organization. in News

Leaders, Scholars Urged Not to Neglect Higher Education’s Social Goals

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Academic leaders must remember that their primary purpose is to produce thinkers, be of service to society and facilitate research that advances human understanding, says a keynote speaker at the AAC&U national meeting. in News

Mississippi Universities Say Financial Aid Fund Running Short

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Recipients of state scholarships could see their aid packages trimmed unless the Mississippi Legislature puts more money into financial aid. in News

U.S. Ed Department Symposium Sheds Light on New Obama College Plan

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A U.S. Department of Education-led symposium on Monday sought to explore ways to scale up practices that have been shown to increase college completion. in News

Official: White House Path on College Affordability Not Fully Mapped Out

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Obama administration wants input from higher education community on college affordability policies, White House official tells members of independent college association. in News

ACLU Questions FAMU's Ban on Student Groups

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State ACLU executive director Howard Simon says the move violates students’ First Amendment rights. in News

Seeking College Success: The Harlem Educational Activities Fund

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HEAF serves high-potential, under-resourced public school students in New York City, particularly Harlem, Washington Heights and the Bronx. in News

Conference: Troubled Youth Need New Intervention Strategies

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Issues facing troubled youth have become so severe that new and bold paradigms are needed to address them, presenters at Jackson State University’s Mississippi Child Welfare Institute conference told social work practitioners last week. in News

Conference: Higher Education Urged to Maintain Role in Molding Good Citizens

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At the Association of American Colleges and Universities meeting, college and university leaders were urged to reclaim their civic mission by making sure their institutions are places where students are prepared for engaged citizenship. in News

Obama Administration Focuses on How to Keep the Cost of College Education Affordable

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The plan would include r eforms that would steer federal funds away from colleges that fail to keep net tuition down and toward those colleges and universities that do their fair share to keep tuition affordable, provide good value, and serve... in News

Report: ‘Intrusive Advising’ Among Best Practices for Community College Student Success

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It would start with a letter and an e-mail message asking the students to come in for a meeting, and if students failed to respond, advisers would show up in class and ask the students to meet in person. in News

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn Names Members of Dream Fund Commission

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The commission will create a not-for-profit entity to raise money for immigrant students, in addition to choosing recipients and publicizing the program. in News

Emerging Scholars: Regenerative Medicine – Franklin West

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The seventh profile in a 12-part examination of prominent young scholars is that of Dr. Franklin West, who is an assistant professor of animal and dairy science at the University of Georgia. in News

Black Students Seeking Action on Racial Climate at Duke

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A group of Black students at Duke University are continuing their push to force college administrators to improve the racial climate on campus. in News

Virginia State University, USAID Pitch In To Help South Sudan Grow

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Virginia State University and Virginia Tech have partnered to help the University of Juba and the Catholic University of Sudan develop a curriculum to teach South Sudanese farmers through community outreach. in News

Ga. Governor Nathan Deal Launches Need-based College Scholarship

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Georgia Democrats criticized the scholarship program, saying Deal should be focused on fixing the HOPE scholarship rather than starting a new program. in News

Second Black Graduate of University of Mississippi Dies

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Along with James Meredith and another student, Cleveland Donald Jr. entered Ole Miss under a federal protection order. in News

Emerging Scholars: Sparking Interest in STEM – Frances Williams

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The eighth profile in a 12-part series on prominent young scholars is that of Dr. Frances Williams, who is an associate professor in the Engineering and Center for Materials Research Department at Norfolk State University . in News

Scottsboro Alabama Schools Trample the 1st Amendment With Bible Man

The Freedom From Religion Foundation has complained to the Jackson County Alabama School Board that elementary school students are attending school assemblies to hear Bible Man tell stories from the Bible and he reportedly passes out free Bibles. He has done this for 30 years.

According to a parent of students who attended the Jackson County schools, she states: In all the years that my children have attended Jackson County schools, the schools have never notified me about "Bible Man" visits. At no point have I been offered the choice to allow my children to attend or not attend when he visits the school.

A clear violation of the 1st Amendment. Nonetheless, there is an abundance of Alabama inbred idiots who think this is just fine, including the School Superintendent and a State Senator.

What I had found amusing is that Scottsboro Alabama has a shameful chapter in their history of acting immoral. Yet you will find the usual comments from people it's the atheists causing immorality, this country is a Christian nation ect.

Links:

http://www.al.com/living/index.ssf/2012/02/bible_man_okd_by_jackson_count/356...

http://www.waaytv.com/news/local/story/Jackson-County-School-Board-Sides-with...

A Conversation on Personalizing Education Tutorpedia Foundation Fundraiser: For The Love of Education - San Francisco

Tutorpedia Foundation Fundraiser: For The Love of Education - Eventbrite:

A Conversation on Personalizing Education

Our Wednesday, February 15th fundraising event at 111 Minna Gallery from 6-9pm in downtown San Francisco will feature a panel conversation focusing on the most effective ways to personalize education for our students.

Our list of speakers includes:

• Alan Lowenthal, State Senator and Chair of Senate Education Committee

• Linda Darling-Hammond, Charles E. Ducommun Professor, Stanford University School of Education, Author of "The Flat World and Education: How America's Commitment to Equity Will Determine Our Future"

• Ninive Calegari, Co-Founder and Executive Director, 826 Valencia, Author of"Teachers Have It Easy: The Big Sacrifices and Small Salaries of America's Teachers"

• Kyle Beckham, Teacher, Downtown High School, SFUSD

The event will provide delicious hors d'oeuvres, desserts, no-host bar, silent auction, and raffle. Prizes include weekends in Napa and Mendocino, sports luxury suites, and dinners at the Bay Area's best restaurants. All money raised at the event will go to providing free tutoring for low-income students in the Bay Area. Visit www.tutorpediafoundation.org for more info, or call (415) 948-1585.

Check out Ashanti, one of our scholarship students, and her tutor Sarah:

The Teachers Union and Quality Teaching « InterACT

The Teachers Union and Quality Teaching « InterACT:

The Teachers Union and Quality Teaching

by David B. Cohen

Shannan Brown (SJTA President) and Eric Heins (CTA Vice-President) are union leaders who promote quality teaching. (Photo: Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education; 1/20/12)

Some people would say that “the union” and “quality teaching” don’t belong in the same sentence, or blog post title.

My bet is that those people don’t know about the two Quality Teaching Conferences run by the California Teachers Association (CTA) each year. The Northern California conference took place in San Jose last weekend, and the Southern California conference is coming up next month.

I don’t mean to suggest that because CTA has conferences about quality teaching that they are therefore immune to criticism – but I would expect any fair-minded critic to consider whether or not their image of the

Critical Thinking attacked in Iowa HS | Dailycensored.com

Critical Thinking attacked in Iowa HS | Dailycensored.com:

Critical Thinking attacked in Iowa HS

Written by Danny WeilEducationFeb 8, 2012

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A high school in Iowa is at the center of a communism versus capitalism dispute after a teacher handed out a worksheet on the Cold War in a social studies class. Or that is what the media would like the public to think. The real controversy is about denying students opportunities to think critically by extending to them the necessity of entering into multiple points of view when reasoning. Critical thinking, which requires students to develop intellectual empathy and reason from premises they might not agree with to conclusions so they may develop their own independent thinking is simply not heralded in today’s capitalist schooling. Unfortunately, it is rarely mentioned in debates over ‘standards’ either. This is unfortunate for it is precisely reasoning that we want our students to engage in so they can develop their own critical judgment.

Roosevelt High School inDes Moines,Iowahas been has been taken to task recently for a social studies lesson which opponents say ‘promoted communism.’ At issue was a worksheet handed out to

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: An important part of movement building

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: An important part of movement building:

An important part of movement building

by Mike Klonsky

As usual this time of year, there's a debate about the value of taking the struggle to save our schools into the electoral arena. Some see it as a diversion. I see it as walking on two legs. Why is it important for educators and ed activists to support progressive candidates? Here's one reason why.

State Rep. Cynthia Soto (D-Chicago), chair of the task force, has proposed HB 4487, which would bring all closings, consolidations and phase-outs on facilities to a screeching halt through the

Advanced Placement Exam Gains - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education)

Advanced Placement Exam Gains - Year 2012 (CA Dept of Education):

State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Applauds California's
Significant Gains in Number and Success of Students Taking AP Exams

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson said Wednesday he is exceptionally proud of the greater number and success of California students in the class of 2011 who took rigorous Advanced Placement (AP) courses, followed by demanding AP exams.

"Substantially greater numbers of California's public high school students were among the graduating class of 2011 who took challenging AP courses and then did remarkably well on the exams," Torlakson said.

"I also was encouraged to see more minority and low-income students enrolling in AP courses as a precursor to a college career," he said. "We still have a way to go to close the achievement gap among California's students, but these results show that we're moving in the right direction."

The College Board on Wednesday released the 8th Annual AP^® Report to the Nation that showed California is among the top five states providing historically underserved public high school students increased access to the courses and exams.

In addition, the College Board's Report highlighted the "tremendous progress and success of California students and educators." It revealed that the number of the state's public high school graduates participating in AP has nearly doubled in the last decade, and more than 90,000 students of the graduating class scored a 3 (denoting "qualified") or higher on at least one AP exam – nearly double the number in 2001.

The College Board also released its Western Region's AP Honor Roll. On the Honor Roll for medium-sized districts were 18 California school districts, including Val Verde Unified School District that was judged a "National Leader" in the medium-sized district category.

Districts with three years of improved AP qualifying scores received the Honor Roll designation for increasing both exam participation and performance especially among under-represented student population.

They are:

• Carmel Unified
• Coachella Valley*
• Diocese of San Jose*
• Dublin Unified
• El Segundo Unified
• Fremont Unified
• Fremont Union High
• Laguna Beach Unified
• Los Alamitos Unified*
• New Haven Unified
• Palo Alto Unified*
• Pleasanton Unified*
• Plumas Unified
• Roseville Joint Union High*
• San Ramon Valley*
• Stockton Unified
• Val Verde Unified – National Leader
• Woodlake Union

* District has achieved honor roll status for years 2011 and 2012. (This is the College Board's second annual Honor Roll.)

For more information, please visit the College Board AP Web site at AP Pressroom (Outside Source).

# # # #

Tom Torlakson — State Superintendent of Public Instruction

Communications Division, Room 5206, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100

School districts’ response to pension cost shift: “No way.” « Fred Klonsky

School districts’ response to pension cost shift: “No way.” « Fred Klonsky:

School districts’ response to pension cost shift: “No way.”

by Fred Klonsky

Governor Quinn wants teachers to pay twice.

The Cullerton-Quinn plan to shift the state’s constitutionally mandated pension obligation to local school districts is not going over too well.

The plan would have the effect of having teachers pay their current contribution of 9.4% and then give up salary and benefits so that their local school boards could afford to pay into the Teacher Retirement System.

Daily Herald:

“It’s either going to affect school districts who don’t have the money to absorb

VIDEO: Students Stand Up & Walk OUT for NYC Schools « EdVox

VIDEO: Students Stand Up & Walk OUT for NYC Schools « EdVox:

VIDEO: Students Stand Up & Walk OUT for NYC Schools

by edvoxny

Video by Justin Watson, student at Legacy HS

Dear Teachers and Principals of NYC,

On February 1st, 2012, students across New York City walked out at 2 P.M to protest school closures and other failed education policies. We, the students, called for this walk out because of many aspects. We pleaded for change and basically have been told no by the DOE. All summed up, we were tired of having to follow the DOE’s unfair policies. It was a completely student-run action fueled by the neglect that we have felt by the Department of Education. While many activist groups in NYC supported our actions and stood in solidarity with us, we were acting as a separate entity and trying to create a space for high school students. We rallied at Union Square and spoke out about our education and the policies that affect us. We feel that these policies are not helping and DOE data doesn’t display progress. Students, teachers, and administrators across New York City are affected by these policies and it’s time for a change. We want to stop many policies including closures of struggling

Missouri Education Watchdog: Imagine

Missouri Education Watchdog: Imagine:

Imagine

by Anngie

John Lennon asked us, through music, to Imagine. As long as we're looking to reform education, let's follow his suggestion and imagine what could be in public education.

Imagine how much less school would cost if we didn't have to subscribe to, practice for and administer standardized assessments.

Imagine how much could be saved if teachers were given a not-to-exceed classroom budget that they could spend any way they chose, without having to buy a specific set of materials from a specific supplier and, were also given a bonus for not spending the full amount. One teacher noted that the reading system she wanted was $600 from the school's approved vendor, but could be purchased on e-bay for $260. Another noted that they were required to purchase 10-book bundles from a text publisher when they only needed one book, but found (through