Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency Called Into Question by Audit
Posted on August 20, 2008
Filed Under Financial Aid, Sports | Leave a Comment
Tuition rates are rising and a grant or loan can make a huge difference in a student’s ability to attend college. Today’s news release from the Pennsylvania Department of the Auditor General provided disturbing news regarding the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA).
The release reveals that PHEAA misused their funding for the 2004 - 2007 audited period and calls for replacing 8 out of the 20 board members with financial and academic experts. According to Auditor General Jack Wagner PHEAA “failed its mission by not using all of its available resources to benefit Pennsylvania students.”
In the release Wagner chastises the agency for putting itself first as tuition rates rose faster than overall inflation rates. One of the largest problems with PHEAA’s numbers included a bonus system that largely benefited of upper management. It was found that least twelve PHEAA executives had salary and bonus combinations higher than the annual salary of the Pennsylvania governor. Over three years PHEAA awarded $6.4 million in bonuses which Wagner claims could have provided 1,702 Pennsylvania students a maximum education grant or provided 2,563 borrowers with $2,500 loan forgiveness each.
PHEAA’s expenditures during the audit also included $80,000 for an employee appreciation day at Hershey Park and $30 million in advertising and promotional expenses such as PHEAA rally towels at Penn State football games.
But as every good Nittany Lion fan knows, Penn State football is about way more than rally towels.
For more information about getting the most out of your financial aid see Last-Minute Options to Help Pay for College and Ensure Student Loan Value By Getting Smart.
The Well Read Meet the Undead
Posted on August 20, 2008
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Next year Harvard students might have something to fear other than being buried under schoolwork. Those bleary eyed shuffling people on campus might be something more than the hordes of tired late night studiers. The Harvard Crimson reports that a zombie movie set at Harvard will begin filming early next year.
“The Harvard Zombie Massacre” will be produced by Warren Zide, producer of the American Pie and Final Destination series. While Executive Producer Ryan Lewis hopes to film on campus, it might not be possible. The Harvard Crimson states that “on-campus shoots are the exception rather than the rule.” A recent Harvard horror movie, “Barackula“—in which Barack Obama fights of vampires during his time at Harvard—was also filmed off location.
Below a student talks about those famous Harvard brains that will hopefully serve to beat the zombies rather than be served as dinner for them:
For another side of Harvard life, check out this video of the nightlife scene:
University of Oregon Takes Law in New Directions
Posted on August 20, 2008
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The Oregon Daily Emerald, the University of Oregon’s independent student paper, recently brought attention to three UO’s School of Law student groups. All of these groups give great insight into the current law school environment and showcase unique attributes of the University.
Technology is a growing part of every student’s life and UO students are using it to bring new insight into the world of law. For prospective law students there is the Life at Law blog which follows the lives and studies of seven Law students. The first post was from Kami in October 2006 where she explains how Life at Law bloggers will get “the opportunity to share with you what our lives in law school are really like.” True to the first post, the blog is a great resource for those who want to check out what it might be like to study law. For a chance to see UO academics in action there is TheLegality.com, an online legal journal started by another group of Law students. The website has a leg up on traditional legal journals as it updates every Monday and Wednesday. “We created The Legality as a way to explain the legal matters behind popular events,” Alexander Theoharis, founder and editor inn chief, told the Daily Emerald. Traditional legal journals take long periods of time to publish and therefore aren’t able to give insight as quickly as The Legality.
UO students are also looking into new directions with law. Outlaws, another student group focuses on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) legal issues. The group provides a way to provide a voice to what they feel to be underrepresented part of their law education. In addition to raising LGBT issues on campus, Outlaws gives group members a way to get hands on legal experience. This fall they plan to hold diversity-based moot court competitions and plan to attend the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association’s annual conference and career. “Moot court competitions are a good way for students to practice being an attorney,” Emily Farrell, leader of the group last year, told the Daily Emerald, “and it also looks good on a resumé.”
The three groups highlight both the technology friendly and liberal atmosphere of UO. Below a student talks about UO as a liberal campus:
Read the Daily Emerald articles here and here.
Amethyst Initiative Seeks to Change Drinking Age
Posted on August 20, 2008
Filed Under Media & Press, Partying | 1 Comment
It is a well known but seldom mentioned fact that drinking occurs regularly among the under 21 set in college. Alcohol is as much a part of college culture as studying for the final exam or going to see the big game.
No one knows this better than the college presidents themselves. News spread quickly yesterday of the Amethyst Initiative, a growing list of college presidents calling for the drinking age to be lowered from 21 to 18. They claim that their experience has shown them that current law causes destructive behavior in college students by encouraging binge drinking and compromising ethics with the need to buy fake IDs. The longtime student rallying call of “I’m old enough to die for my country as a soldier, but not old enough to drink a beer?” has also been adopted as one of the Initiative’s arguments.
Controversy regarding the Initiative placed the spotlight back on the legal drinking age for the first time since President Regan signed the National Minimum Drinking Age Act in 1984, raising the drinking age to 21. The Act was originated from a list of 39 suggestions to reduce drunk driving incidents. Amethyst Initiative founder John McCardell, President Emeritus (former President) of Middlebury College, suggests that some of the other suggestions are a more valuable approach to the problem. He is also the founder of Choose Responsibility, an organization that proposes early age alcohol education to prevent negative drinking habits as a supplement to lowering the drinking age.
The Initiative is quickly gaining support throughout the collegiate world. The list of signatories on the Initiative’s website has increased by 14 since yesterday.
For more information about the current college climate, check out the following information on CollegeClickTV:
Top 5 Big Time Drinking Schools
Top 5 Wild Party Schools
Videos of Nightlife on Real College Campuses
UC Berkeley’s Technology of the Future
Posted on August 14, 2008
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Who would have thought that scientists would have ever been able to play around with the idea of invisibility? Yet researchers at UC Berkeley are working with light-bending science to create cloaking devices that would render covered objects invisible to the human eye.
UC Berkeley researcher Thomas Zentgraf explains that, “An observer would not recognize that there is an object between them and the source where the light comes from, making the object optically invisible.”
While this research is merely primitive, Berkeley researchers have just begun what is sure to be a fascinating journey.
For the full story, click HERE
Below, a Berkeley student tells us what she loves about Game Day at Berkeley.
Victoria’s Secret Heads To School
Posted on August 13, 2008
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The PINK Collegiate Collection is out in full force, and making an appearance on campuses all across America! Victoria’s Secret has teamed with dozens of schools to bring “a fully articulated lifestyle collection for young women” to college. The collection includes “9 different items, including fleece pants, hoodies, panties, tees, and totes… available in approximately 375 stores, many of which are in close proximity to the universities in the program.” Some schools, like the University of Miami, have even begun to put their logos on PINK merchandise!
Recently, Team PINK was launched, which features student representatives from colleges nationwide, including:
Check out interviews with students at some of the participating schools:
Wish You Weren’t a Muggle So You Could Play Quidditch Too?
Posted on August 12, 2008
Filed Under Media & Press, Off-Campus Events, Sports | Leave a Comment
Well, problem solved. The Intercollegiate Quidditch Association on facebook offers the closest thing. In the Muggle rendition of Quidditch, athletes run around a field “riding” broomsticks while using balls as quaffles, and tennis rackets as beaters. Is your school one of the 130 schools across the country to take part in the Harry Potter influenced phenomenon?
Check out the facebook group “Intercollegiate Quidditch Association” to find out more about the sport that is sweeping (literally) college campuses across the nation.
Below, a video of Brown volleyball athletes.
The University of Michigan’s Solar Car Team Takes Home the Gold
Posted on August 12, 2008
Filed Under Media & Press, Off-Campus Events | Leave a Comment
In a close race, the University of Michigan Solar Car Team returned home happy, winning their fourth national championship after an eleven day race that began in Austin, Texas and culminated in Calgary, Canada. U of M’s photovoltaic-powered car traveled 2,500 miles to finally beat the University of Minnesota’s team by a mere twelve minutes. Next up is the World Solar Challenge in Australia this coming September. Good luck!
To find out more about the Michigan Solar Car Team’s victory, click HERE
Below a Michigan wolverine talks more about the Solar Car Team.
The University of Texas is Making Headway in their HIV Vaccination Research
Posted on August 12, 2008
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Be proud to be a University of Texas student as researchers at the Health Science Center at Houston help to contribute to the development of an effective future vaccine for HIV. Researchers at the University of Texas came across an oddity in the HIV virus that will, with fingers crossed, assist in the creation of an HIV vaccine in the next 10 years.
To learn more about their discovery, click HERE
Below a U of Texas student proves there is more to Texas than just scientific research…say football?
The Badgers Womens Track and Field Program Is All About Hard Work, Both On and Off the Field
Posted on August 12, 2008
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Thirteen members of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Womens Track and Field Program have been awarded with spots on the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coach’s Association All-Academic Team. The talented athletes all have a cumulative GPA of at least a 3.25 and have met the NCAA Division I indoor or outdoor qualifying standards in track and field. Their induction into the All-Academic Team evidences their commitment to academics and sport as well as their success in the two ventures. Congrats Badgers!
To read more about the athletes accomplishments, click HERE
In the video below a Wisconsin student proves that you can study hard but have fun too.