News: How Competition Is Killing Higher Education

Mark C. Taylor of Bloomberg Views gives his opinions on how competition is detrimental to higher education. Here is a snippet of his article:

But in higher education, competition often discourages risk taking, leads to overly cautious short-term decisions, produces a mediocre product for the price, and promotes excessive spending on physical plants and bureaucracies. 

The construction arms race on campus is the most visible example of competition run amok. To become more attractive to potential consumers, many colleges and universities undertake overly ambitious expansions. In some cases, new facilities contribute to educational programs, but too often they are tangential and trap institutions in a costly cycle: The new athletic center, dorm or student center starts to look faded when competing schools open theirs, and it never ends.

You can read the rest of Taylor's writing here:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-17/competition-is-killing-higher-education-part-1-.html

MIT Names Its Provost, Who Led Online-Education Efforts, as New President

Jack Stripling of The Chronicle for Higher Learning wrote this article about the promotion of a new president at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) who happens to be an innovator of online learning. You can read more at the link below:

http://chronicle.com/article/article-content/131896/

Are universities scared of the online learning movement?

Peter G. Klein of The Christian Science Monitor wrote this article about online learning and how traditional universities are reacting to it. You can read a preview of it here:

As Morgan Brown wrote earlier this year, universities are guilds, and it’s this organizational structure, not bad leadership or the wrong ideology, that underlies the universities’ hostility to markets. If there is fundamental reform, it will surely come from outside the guild system, not within it. It’s great that Harvard and MIT and other elite universities are offering some classes online. But look instead to bolder experiments like the Mises Academy — not a duplicate of the standard degree program, but a modular, flexible, focused approach to teaching Austrian economics and related subjects. Call it guerrilla teaching. Let’s see where this new movement can go!

News: Creating a Genuinely Sustainable Higher Education System

This article from The Guardian by Matt Grist discusses the future of higher education in the United Kingdom and some possibilities for improvement. Follow the link below to read more about some of the opportunities that are being proposed for students and future students at universities in the United Kingdom.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/higher-education-network/blog/2012/may/16/financial-sustainability-universties

Education News: Education Protests in Chile

This article by the Associated Press discusses the Chilean education crisis and the protests in response to it. Here is a brief preview:

The march, organized by the Confederation of University Students of Chile, was the second of its kind this year.

Thousands of protests were held last year by high school and college students demanding an end to for-profit education and the implementation of free higher education.

The Santiago Times said President Sebastian Pinera has proposed ending reliance on student loans from private banks, which made an estimated $500 million last year off of government-backed student aid.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2012/05/17/Chile-Students-protest-education-system/UPI-43161337270383/#ixzz1v9QlyGJU

News: ESL college students could get tuition break

This article from the Richmond Review discusses a new opportunity for college students who are English as a second language learners. Here is an excerpt:

Some applicants to Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s English as a Second Language programs may be eligible to receive their ESL instruction tuition-free.


A joint initiative between the Canadian federal government, the ministries of Advanced Education and Jobs, Tourism and Innovation are making funding available to cover the costs of ESL tuition for some ESL students at Kwantlen.

"SAT and ACT to Change Tests' Rules After Cheating Scandal"

This article by Jennie Anderson of the New York Times discusses the changes for the ACT and SAT, American university entrance tests, after recent cheating scandals. Here is an excerpt:

The SAT and ACT college entrance exams will now require students to provide a photograph when they sign up for the exams, and officials will check those images against the identification the students present when they take the test.

The new rules were part of a broad set of changes announced on Tuesday in the aftermath of the cheating cases, in which high-scoring students used fake IDs to take the SAT or ACT for other students. The revelations had proved embarrassing for the testing services, on which virtually every American college relies in making admissions decisions.

Bay Area Graduate Studies School, Lincoln University, Celebrates Staff, Faculty and Students

This article is from the San Francisco Chronicle

Bay Area Graduate Studies School, Lincoln University, a private, nonprofit, nonsectarian university, recently held an appreciation event on Feb. 22 to celebrate staff, faculty and students.

"We've never had this kind of event before, but we decided it was necessary to do something new to show appreciation to all our staff, faculty and students," Annique Dalley of Lincoln University said.

The event gave staff, faculty and students access to great deals across many industries. For example, everyone had access to discounted tickets for restaurants, movies, wellness centers, etc. The event and idea was a success.

Florida Tech Launches Master's Degree in Supply Chain Management 100% Online

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal

 Florida Tech University Online today announced the addition of a master's degree in Supply Chain Management to its highly regarded offering of graduate and undergraduate degree programs. Since the degree is delivered 100% online, working professionals are able to earn this prestigious distinction without having to put their career on hold.

With a reputation of academic excellence since 1958, Florida Tech is ranked a Tier 1 Best National University and recognized within the Top Online Education honor roll by U.S. News & World Report. An established leader in the field of supply chain management, Florida Tech has been offering the degree on campus and military bases for decades. This is the first time the quality curriculum will be available online for students across the globe.

U.S. News-Ranked Jacksonville University to Support Nurses With Complimentary Continuing Education at Nurse.com

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal

 Jacksonville University, a leader in nursing education online, is proud to announce that it will once again be sponsoring a free nurse CEU (continuing education unit) course through Nurse.com. For 60 days beginning April 1, 2012, registered nurses will be able to complete Resumes: The Recruiter's Perspective - a $10 value - at no cost on Nurse.com.

Resumes: The Recruiter's Perspective helps RNs build the skills to craft resumes and cover letters that will make prospective employers take notice. The course can be taken conveniently online, and enables nurses to meet part of their recurring state continuing education requirements.

Cisco and University of Phoenix Team Up to Deliver New Network Programs for Students

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal

 University of Phoenix today announced an agreement with Cisco that will create new programs dedicated to providing the body of knowledge needed to attain the Cisco CCNA(R) certification. Cisco is an industry leader in network support, and the associate-level CCNA certification is vital to those seeking to enter or advance in the high-growth field of system networking and support.

Job growth for network administrators, network support specialists and computer network architects is projected to grow by more than 20 percent by 2018 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. With this opportunity comes a need for highly trained workers familiar with the latest networking technology and systems.

ESL Students Adopt Mobile Education in High Numbers To Learn Writing

This article is from pr Mac
Niles Technology Group, creators of the #1 writing apps for the iPad and iPhone, has seen its share of ESL students steadily rise. ESL students have recognized the importance of writing skills in their academic success and are using mobile technology to improve writing and critical thinking skills. Complete with a live writing assistant and editing services, Niles Technology's ESL apps deliver more writing instructional content and services than any other product in the App Store. 

ESL students face several issues when studying at English-speaking high schools and universities, with one of the toughest being writing. Most students learn to speak English long before before they gain writing proficiency. This often leads to struggles in humanities courses and on standardized writing tests. Niles Technology's ESL apps are all-in-one products that teach students how to think, organize and write essays in English. And to ensure students get it right, a live writing assistant and editing services are available to further improve their work.

Health care lawyer Clement as high court regular

This article is from Boston.com
Paul Clement used to argue for the federal government's power until he started arguing against it.

But he's no flip-flopping political candidate; he's a lawyer. Changes like this are part of his job.

Clement is playing a key role in three politically charged Supreme Court cases in which Republican-led states object to Obama administration policies or federal laws on health care, immigration and redrawing political boundaries.

In the biggest of those, the 45-year-old law school acquaintance of President Barack Obama will be trying to sink Obama's health care overhaul.

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi Chooses In4Grants™ to Support Strategic Research Imperative

This article is from The San Francisco Chronicle

Texas A&M University Corpus Christi (TAMUCC) has chosen In4Grants™ from InfoReady Corporation to support the university's strategic goal to significantly increase and support research, scholarship and creative activity.

With specific strategic performance targets to increase research expenditures by more than 50 percent ($30 million by 2015), increase proposals submitted by 10 percent, encourage and support interdisciplinary and collaborative research and submissions of interdisciplinary proposals, TAMUCC needed effective tools to support faculty and staff to meet these goals. By selecting In4Grants software from InfoReady Corporation, TAMUCC has given access to 250 users, including faculty, researchers and collaborators from partnering institutions. Using In4Grants, these users can quickly find grant funding opportunities, research commercialization awards and federal contracts from multiple federal agencies, foundations and other sources in one Web-based software tool. The users can then set up In4Grants information collaboration workspaces for internal and interdisciplinary proposal development and research using familiar social media tools.

Syracuse University to Host Debate on Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act at National Press Club March 29

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal

Panelists will debate constitutionality of the PPACA and whether it's good public policy

Syracuse University is set to host a thought-provoking debate on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) at the National Press Club on March 29. A panel of experts will be assembled by SU from the Cato Institute, the National Senior Citizens Law Center and Princeton University along with a moderator who has over three decades of experience on Capitol Hill, to debate the constitutionality of the PPACA and whether it is good public policy. The debate will serve as the inaugural event for the Syracuse University Greenberg Speaker Series and comes a day after the Supreme Court of the United States will have heard an unprecedented six hours of arguments on this very issue. This event will take place in the Main Ballroom of the NPC at 7 p.m.

Holy Family University helps introduce phones, handhelds to Tanzania village

This article is from philly.com

Getting to the school in a remote Tanzanian village meant 22 hours of travel, including three plane rides and an exceedingly bumpy, four-hour Jeep trek.

But Sister Francesca Onley, the 79-year-old president of Holy Family University, is glad she made the trip.

With money from a United Nations organization, Holy Family teamed with a Stanford University professor to give handheld learning computers and phones to teenagers who live in impoverished conditions who had little previous experience with technology.

"It was good for the soul," Onley said of her journey to the village of Newala in the east African country. "If everybody would do that once in their lifetime, they would realize that no matter how poor they are, they're not as poor as these people.

University General Health System Announces Agreement With NeWeigh for Expansion of Bariatric Services

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal 
University General Health System, Inc. (otcqb:UGHS) (pinksheets:UGHS) ("the Company"), a diversified, integrated multi-specialty health delivery system, today announced that its flagship Houston-based University General Hospital has finalized a three-year agreement with Vital Weight Control, Inc. (d/b/a NeWeigh), a pioneer in surgical weight loss. NeWeigh, a patient advocacy group, was founded in 1991. Its mission was to provide a multi-disciplinary program to assist people who desired treatment for morbid obesity. NeWeigh's services include motivational support; access to psychological and dietary counseling; non-medical, medical and surgical treatment options; and pre- and post-operative support groups. Additionally, NeWeigh offers assistance to those who are seeking insurance approval for treatment of this condition.

Columbia University Medical Center's Program in Narrative Medicine Partners with VA to Improve Veteran Care

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal

Health care professionals require specific training if they are to successfully treat veterans who have experienced the unique physical and psychological traumas of war. In an effort to increase the satisfaction of veterans and their families with the care they receive at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals and clinics, Columbia University Medical Center's (CUMC) Program in Narrative Medicine is hosting a first-of-its-kind three-day workshop, "Challenges in VA Health Care: A Narrative Response," from March 9-11, 2012.

The workshop aims to equip VA doctors, nurses, social workers and therapists with the narrative techniques to form therapeutic alliances with veterans and their families and improve communication and respect among members of the VA health care team. Participants will learn narrative approaches to clinical interviewing, ways to develop enriched therapeutic relationships, and reading and writing interventions that will enable them to better hear and understand patient experiences.

University of Calgary: Calgarian invests $10 million in mental health

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal

The University of Calgary's Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI) has united with local businessman Ronald P. Mathison to create a centre dedicated to finding innovative treatments and providing early intervention for mental illness.

Located at the University of Calgary's Foothills Campus, The Mathison Centre for Mental Health Research & Education offers support and new hope to families in Calgary, throughout Alberta, and around the world. The centre was made possible by a $10 million investment from Mathison, president and CEO of Matco Investments Ltd.

Webster University Announces Inaugural "2012 Global Leaders In Residence" Program

This article is from Market Watch The Wall Street Journal

Webster University and the Office of Corporate Partnerships are pleased to announce the inaugural Global Leaders in Residence program. The announcement was made by Dr. Elizabeth Stroble, President of Webster University.

The Global Leaders in Residence program extends the University's long-standing commitment to partnerships around the world. Beginning in 2012, Webster University will host distinguished individuals who are considered thought leaders in their fields from across a wide spectrum of disciplines. These invited leaders will be tapped from the University's global community, including St. Louis and throughout the U.S., as well as Geneva, Leiden, Vienna, London, Thailand, and China.