A computer break-in at Harvard University highlights the growing challenges the nation's colleges and universities face in trying to safeguard students' private information.
HARVARD: Thousands exposed in data breach
Security and privacy are the No. 1 technology concern for schools, according to an annual survey of 535 colleges and universities by Educause, which will publish the results in May. The Washington, D.C., organization works with universities on a range of information technology issues, including securing its systems.
"Data security incidents have been epidemic in the last two to three years and not just at colleges and universities," says Rodney Petersen, Educause's security task force coordinator, who works with schools to secure their databases. "It's a significant problem and source of concern."
The most recent college breach occurred at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in February, when a hacker broke into a Web server that contained personal information on 10,000 grad-school applicants. The information ranged from Social Security numbers and addresses to food allergies and housing preferences.
FIND MORE STORIES IN: Washington | Web | Social Security | Harvard University | Sciences | Bay | Pirate | Educause | Rodney Petersen
The server contained data on students who applied to the graduate school for the 2007 school year and graduate housing applicants for 2006 and 2007. There was no financial information.
The university has found no evidence that the data has been used in identity theft, says Daniel Moriarty, Harvard's chief information officer.
"The reason we moved to notify individuals was as a precaution" because the school does not know the extent of the breach, he says.
University officials took down the site on Feb. 17 after they learned that 19 student housing records had shown up on a website called Pirate's Bay, where hackers show off their work. Since then, the school has sent letters to all students whose records were on the server and has offered to pay for credit-protection services.
In 2007, there were 139 reported information security incidents at colleges and universities around the world, a 68% increase from the previous year, according to a report by Educational Security Incidents, which tracks information security breaches in higher education.
Incidents range from stolen laptops containing student and employee data to breaches of the schools' network systems. The most common data pilfered are names, addresses, ages and Social Security numbers, the report says.
http://www.usatoday.com/
Thursday, March 20, 2008
More government cash for universities and colleges
UNIVERSITIES AND colleges are to receive an extra £20 million of funding, the Scottish government has announced.
The package will be split evenly between the higher education and further education sectors.
Fiona Hyslop, cabinet secretary for education and lifelong learning, said: "Colleges and universities are at the heart of our drive to build a smarter, more prosperous Scotland.
"That's why, even though we are working within an extremely tight financial settlement, I am pleased to be able to announce a package of measures to support our higher and further education sectors."
Hyslop said universities would receive £10m to assist them and colleges will get £10m to allow them to invest in key areas "such as supporting young people who need more choices and more chances; articulation; and innovative approaches to learning delivery".
The announcement comes after a funding settlement that higher and further education principals have criticised.
Before the SNP's first Budget last year university leaders said the sector needed a £168m increase to keep Scottish institutions competitive with their English counterparts, who can charge students fees. But they received £30m, which was blamed on a tight settlement from Westminster.
Last month the principal of Dundee University, Sir Alan Langlands, said his institution would have to lose jobs because of the financial climate.
Strathclyde University is reviewing its situation. Last year it said it would lose 250 jobs, but postponed its decision until after the Budget. In response to the sector's concerns a taskforce was set up, and in January the government released an extra £10m of revenue funding for universities.
Education groups welcomed yesterday's announcement.
Sir Muir Russell, convener of Universities Scotland said: "This goes a very long way to addressing the cost pressures the university sector will face in 2008-09."
But opposition politicians criticised the government's "ad hoc" and "piecemeal" approach.
Murdo Fraser, the Scottish Conservative education spokesman, said: "This extra cash will not go anywhere near enough to filling the gap the universities believe needs to be completed in order to prevent them falling behind better-funded institutions south of the border."
http://www.sundayherald.com/
The package will be split evenly between the higher education and further education sectors.
Fiona Hyslop, cabinet secretary for education and lifelong learning, said: "Colleges and universities are at the heart of our drive to build a smarter, more prosperous Scotland.
"That's why, even though we are working within an extremely tight financial settlement, I am pleased to be able to announce a package of measures to support our higher and further education sectors."
Hyslop said universities would receive £10m to assist them and colleges will get £10m to allow them to invest in key areas "such as supporting young people who need more choices and more chances; articulation; and innovative approaches to learning delivery".
The announcement comes after a funding settlement that higher and further education principals have criticised.
Before the SNP's first Budget last year university leaders said the sector needed a £168m increase to keep Scottish institutions competitive with their English counterparts, who can charge students fees. But they received £30m, which was blamed on a tight settlement from Westminster.
Last month the principal of Dundee University, Sir Alan Langlands, said his institution would have to lose jobs because of the financial climate.
Strathclyde University is reviewing its situation. Last year it said it would lose 250 jobs, but postponed its decision until after the Budget. In response to the sector's concerns a taskforce was set up, and in January the government released an extra £10m of revenue funding for universities.
Education groups welcomed yesterday's announcement.
Sir Muir Russell, convener of Universities Scotland said: "This goes a very long way to addressing the cost pressures the university sector will face in 2008-09."
But opposition politicians criticised the government's "ad hoc" and "piecemeal" approach.
Murdo Fraser, the Scottish Conservative education spokesman, said: "This extra cash will not go anywhere near enough to filling the gap the universities believe needs to be completed in order to prevent them falling behind better-funded institutions south of the border."
http://www.sundayherald.com/
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
State university faculty and system reach tentative labor agreement
The Inter Faculty Organization, the union representing about 3,300 faculty members at Minnesota's seven state universities, has reached a tentative labor agreement with the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.
The tentative agreement would cover a two-year period ending June 30, 2009. Details of the tentative agreement will not be released until the parties have an opportunity to review the tentative agreement.
In a joint statement issued recently, IFO President Nancy Black and Minnesota State Universities Chancellor James McCormick said, "We are pleased to have reached a tentative settlement that makes significant progress in improving the competitiveness of our salaries relative to peer institutions nationally and assures that our state universities will be able to continue to provide high-quality education to their students."
The Inter Faculty Organization Board of Directors will meet and make a recommendation to the faculty, who will vote on the agreement. It will then be forwarded to the Minnesota State College and Universities Board of Trustees and ultimately to the Legislature for approval.
Dr. Black said she would encourage the IFO Board to recommend the contract to the membership.
The Bureau of Mediation Services assisted the parties in reaching tentative agreement. Chancellor McCormick and Dr. Black thanked both teams for their hard work and constructive negotiations and praised the Minnesota Legislature for providing the funding to support higher education that made the settlement possible.
The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system comprises 32 state universities, community colleges, technical colleges and combined community and technical colleges located on 53 campuses across the state. The system serves approximately 242,000 students annually in credit-based courses and another 140,000 in non-credit courses.
http://www.echopress.com/
The tentative agreement would cover a two-year period ending June 30, 2009. Details of the tentative agreement will not be released until the parties have an opportunity to review the tentative agreement.
In a joint statement issued recently, IFO President Nancy Black and Minnesota State Universities Chancellor James McCormick said, "We are pleased to have reached a tentative settlement that makes significant progress in improving the competitiveness of our salaries relative to peer institutions nationally and assures that our state universities will be able to continue to provide high-quality education to their students."
The Inter Faculty Organization Board of Directors will meet and make a recommendation to the faculty, who will vote on the agreement. It will then be forwarded to the Minnesota State College and Universities Board of Trustees and ultimately to the Legislature for approval.
Dr. Black said she would encourage the IFO Board to recommend the contract to the membership.
The Bureau of Mediation Services assisted the parties in reaching tentative agreement. Chancellor McCormick and Dr. Black thanked both teams for their hard work and constructive negotiations and praised the Minnesota Legislature for providing the funding to support higher education that made the settlement possible.
The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system comprises 32 state universities, community colleges, technical colleges and combined community and technical colleges located on 53 campuses across the state. The system serves approximately 242,000 students annually in credit-based courses and another 140,000 in non-credit courses.
http://www.echopress.com/
Six Colleges and Universities Receive Presidential Award for Exemplary Community Service
SAN DIEGO, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Six colleges and universities today received presidential recognition for extraordinary contributions to service in their communities in the second annual 2007 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. David Eisner, Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service, announced the awards at the annual meeting of the American Council on Education.
Three of the schools -- Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio, the University of Colorado at Boulder, and the University of Pennsylvania -- received Presidential Awards for General Community Service. Chaminade University of Honolulu, Syracuse University and the University of Redlands in Redlands, Calif., were recognized for Service to Youth from Disadvantaged Circumstances, a special focus area of this year's Honor Roll competition.
"College students are tackling the toughest problems in America, demonstrating their compassion, commitment, and creativity in by serving as mentors, tutors, health workers, and even engineers," Eisner said. "They represent a renewed spirit of civic engagement fostered by outstanding leadership on caring campuses."
The Honor Roll is jointly sponsored by the Corporation, through its Learn and Serve America program, and the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, USA Freedom Corps, Campus Compact, and the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.
In congratulating the winners, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said, "Americans rely on our higher education system to prepare students for citizenship and the workforce. We look to institutions like these to provide leadership in partnering with local schools to shape the civic, democratic and economic future of our country."
In all, 528 schools were listed on the Honor Roll for their community service activities during the 2006-2007 academic year. This year, new Special Achievement Awards for outstanding service by minority serving institutions and community colleges were presented to Lake Area Technical Institute, Watertown, S.D; Raritan Valley Community College, Somerville, N.J.; Johnson C. Smith University, Charlotte, N.C.; and California State University, Fresno. In addition, the Honor Roll also recognized 127 schools as Honor Roll With Distinction members and 391 schools as Honor Roll members. A full list is available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/honorroll.
"Educating students for citizenship and the workforce are the key responsibilities of American higher education, and these colleges and universities are doing an excellent job of fulfilling that role," said U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings in congratulating the winners of the Honor Roll. "We look to these educational institutions to provide leadership today in partnering with the K-12 schools in their communities to develop the leaders of tomorrow."
Launched in 2006, the President's Honor Roll recognizes institutions of higher education that support innovative, effective, and exemplary community service programs. Honorees for the various award levels, including the Presidential Award, were selected based on a series of factors, including scope and innovativeness of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.
"There is no question that the universities and colleges who have made an effort to participate and win the Honor Roll award are themselves being rewarded today," said David Ward, President of the American Council on Education. "Earning this distinction is not easy. But now each of these schools will be able to wear this award like a badge of honor."
Recent studies have underlined the importance of service-learning and volunteering to college students. In 2006, 2.8 million college students gave more than 297 million hours of volunteer service, according to the Corporation's Volunteering in America 2007 study. Using Independent Sector's estimates of the value of volunteer time, college student volunteering was worth more than $5.6 billion last year. The U.S. Department of Education found a growing service-learning trend, with more schools offering service-learning as part of their curriculum. Students who participate in service-learning are more likely to continue service in college. In 2005, the UCLA Higher Education Research Institute reported that two-thirds of entering college students believed it was very important to help others, which is the highest percentage in the last 25 years.
Expanding campus incentives for service is part of a larger initiative to spur higher levels of volunteering by America's college students. In 2006, the Corporation set a national goal of engaging 5 million college students in service annually by the year 2010 as part of its five-year strategic plan. The agency is working with a coalition of federal agencies, higher education and student associations, and nonprofit organizations to achieve this goal. Each year, the Corporation invests more than $150 million in fostering a culture of service on college campuses through grants awarded by its main programs; the education awards that AmeriCorps members receive at the conclusion of their term of service to pay for college; and through support of training, research, recognition, and other initiatives to spur college service.
The Corporation's Learn and Serve America program, in particular, is a catalyst for service-learning programs nationwide that connect community service with academic curriculum. Through these programs, in class and in extracurricular activities, college students serve others in their communities while strengthening their academic and civic skills. In addition, service-learning fosters partnerships between colleges and their communities that strengthens communities and meets immediate community needs.
The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. Each year, the Corporation engages four million Americans of all ages and backgrounds in service through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America programs.
http://sev.prnewswire.com/higher-education/20080211/DC1382711022008-1.html
Three of the schools -- Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio, the University of Colorado at Boulder, and the University of Pennsylvania -- received Presidential Awards for General Community Service. Chaminade University of Honolulu, Syracuse University and the University of Redlands in Redlands, Calif., were recognized for Service to Youth from Disadvantaged Circumstances, a special focus area of this year's Honor Roll competition.
"College students are tackling the toughest problems in America, demonstrating their compassion, commitment, and creativity in by serving as mentors, tutors, health workers, and even engineers," Eisner said. "They represent a renewed spirit of civic engagement fostered by outstanding leadership on caring campuses."
The Honor Roll is jointly sponsored by the Corporation, through its Learn and Serve America program, and the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, USA Freedom Corps, Campus Compact, and the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.
In congratulating the winners, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said, "Americans rely on our higher education system to prepare students for citizenship and the workforce. We look to institutions like these to provide leadership in partnering with local schools to shape the civic, democratic and economic future of our country."
In all, 528 schools were listed on the Honor Roll for their community service activities during the 2006-2007 academic year. This year, new Special Achievement Awards for outstanding service by minority serving institutions and community colleges were presented to Lake Area Technical Institute, Watertown, S.D; Raritan Valley Community College, Somerville, N.J.; Johnson C. Smith University, Charlotte, N.C.; and California State University, Fresno. In addition, the Honor Roll also recognized 127 schools as Honor Roll With Distinction members and 391 schools as Honor Roll members. A full list is available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/honorroll.
"Educating students for citizenship and the workforce are the key responsibilities of American higher education, and these colleges and universities are doing an excellent job of fulfilling that role," said U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings in congratulating the winners of the Honor Roll. "We look to these educational institutions to provide leadership today in partnering with the K-12 schools in their communities to develop the leaders of tomorrow."
Launched in 2006, the President's Honor Roll recognizes institutions of higher education that support innovative, effective, and exemplary community service programs. Honorees for the various award levels, including the Presidential Award, were selected based on a series of factors, including scope and innovativeness of service projects, percentage of student participation in service activities, incentives for service, and the extent to which the school offers academic service-learning courses.
"There is no question that the universities and colleges who have made an effort to participate and win the Honor Roll award are themselves being rewarded today," said David Ward, President of the American Council on Education. "Earning this distinction is not easy. But now each of these schools will be able to wear this award like a badge of honor."
Recent studies have underlined the importance of service-learning and volunteering to college students. In 2006, 2.8 million college students gave more than 297 million hours of volunteer service, according to the Corporation's Volunteering in America 2007 study. Using Independent Sector's estimates of the value of volunteer time, college student volunteering was worth more than $5.6 billion last year. The U.S. Department of Education found a growing service-learning trend, with more schools offering service-learning as part of their curriculum. Students who participate in service-learning are more likely to continue service in college. In 2005, the UCLA Higher Education Research Institute reported that two-thirds of entering college students believed it was very important to help others, which is the highest percentage in the last 25 years.
Expanding campus incentives for service is part of a larger initiative to spur higher levels of volunteering by America's college students. In 2006, the Corporation set a national goal of engaging 5 million college students in service annually by the year 2010 as part of its five-year strategic plan. The agency is working with a coalition of federal agencies, higher education and student associations, and nonprofit organizations to achieve this goal. Each year, the Corporation invests more than $150 million in fostering a culture of service on college campuses through grants awarded by its main programs; the education awards that AmeriCorps members receive at the conclusion of their term of service to pay for college; and through support of training, research, recognition, and other initiatives to spur college service.
The Corporation's Learn and Serve America program, in particular, is a catalyst for service-learning programs nationwide that connect community service with academic curriculum. Through these programs, in class and in extracurricular activities, college students serve others in their communities while strengthening their academic and civic skills. In addition, service-learning fosters partnerships between colleges and their communities that strengthens communities and meets immediate community needs.
The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. Each year, the Corporation engages four million Americans of all ages and backgrounds in service through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America programs.
http://sev.prnewswire.com/higher-education/20080211/DC1382711022008-1.html
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Local universities expect big expansion
Unlike 2007, Southwest Florida won’t be celebrating the 10th anniversary of its state university or the grand opening of a Catholic university’s new campus.
The landscape of local higher education, however, won’t be stagnant in 2008. The region’s five colleges will feature an abundance of academic and operational changes, and construction crews will be as common as cram sessions at three schools next year.
Here’s what is on tap at each area college:
Ave Maria University
The paint has barely dried at Ave Maria’s new campus in eastern Collier County, but university leaders announced in January that a fourth dormitory is needed to handle a projected enrollment surge. That project will be completed for the fall 2008 semester, and a recreational pool and cabana complex also will be ready about the same time.
Academically, Ave Maria cannot make any substantial program changes until it completes an accreditation process with the Southern Association of Colleges and Universities. Athletics will make a push onto campus, though, as the Gyrenes expect to field teams that will compete in National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
Edison College
Edison will offer two more bachelor’s degrees in the fall 2008, accepting students for secondary education in math and biology. The college already has a bachelor’s in public safety management. “Edison Online” also will debut in the fall, allowing students to complete an associate’s of arts degree without ever setting foot on campus.
Presidents of Edison’s Charlotte, Lee and Collier county campuses will start to operate more autonomously, essentially making decisions as if their campus is its own college.
Next fall, the Lee campus will break ground on a 50,000-square-foot nursing annex and reopen the library after a $6 million renovation project.
Florida Gulf Coast University
His honeymoon is over, and new President Wilson Bradshaw will have to get going on how he wants to shape the university’s second decade.
In the fall semester, FGCU will welcome its first doctoral-level students, offering physical therapy and education specialist degrees.
The construction frenzy will be at full steam in 2008 at the San Carlos Park school. A soccer stadium and parking garage will be ready next month. Another housing complex, resort and hospitality building and business hall will be finished in August. The state-of-the-art engineering complex will be completed by December, towering over the entrance to campus.
Hodges University
Already with campuses in Lee and Collier counties, Hodges will set up shop in Immokalee with an associate’s degree in interdisciplinary studies and a bachelor’s degree in management in Key West. That’s in addition to a distance education program that continually is adding more online courses, and a new bachelor’s in health administration for Charlotte County students.
Hodges will solidify plans for a Hispanic Institute to assist current and future students, as well as research education issues important to the area’s Hispanic community.
With $1.3 million already in the coffer, Hodges will continue raising scholarship money for its American Military Veterans Education Fund.
Southwest Florida College
Programs, programs and more programs.
The college is expanding its offerings from two to five bachelor’s degrees, creating tracks in elementary education, early childhood education and interior design. It also will add certificate programs for emergency medical technicians and paramedics.
The Fort Myers college already has a branch in Tampa, but is eyeing leased space in Estero, Lehigh Acres and Cape Coral. An agreement could be finalized in January, cutting down travel time for students.
The Tampa campus is piloting a bachelor’s in emergency medical services, a program that could make its way to Southwest Florida in 2008.
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071229/NEWS0104/71228074/1075
The landscape of local higher education, however, won’t be stagnant in 2008. The region’s five colleges will feature an abundance of academic and operational changes, and construction crews will be as common as cram sessions at three schools next year.
Here’s what is on tap at each area college:
Ave Maria University
The paint has barely dried at Ave Maria’s new campus in eastern Collier County, but university leaders announced in January that a fourth dormitory is needed to handle a projected enrollment surge. That project will be completed for the fall 2008 semester, and a recreational pool and cabana complex also will be ready about the same time.
Academically, Ave Maria cannot make any substantial program changes until it completes an accreditation process with the Southern Association of Colleges and Universities. Athletics will make a push onto campus, though, as the Gyrenes expect to field teams that will compete in National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
Edison College
Edison will offer two more bachelor’s degrees in the fall 2008, accepting students for secondary education in math and biology. The college already has a bachelor’s in public safety management. “Edison Online” also will debut in the fall, allowing students to complete an associate’s of arts degree without ever setting foot on campus.
Presidents of Edison’s Charlotte, Lee and Collier county campuses will start to operate more autonomously, essentially making decisions as if their campus is its own college.
Next fall, the Lee campus will break ground on a 50,000-square-foot nursing annex and reopen the library after a $6 million renovation project.
Florida Gulf Coast University
His honeymoon is over, and new President Wilson Bradshaw will have to get going on how he wants to shape the university’s second decade.
In the fall semester, FGCU will welcome its first doctoral-level students, offering physical therapy and education specialist degrees.
The construction frenzy will be at full steam in 2008 at the San Carlos Park school. A soccer stadium and parking garage will be ready next month. Another housing complex, resort and hospitality building and business hall will be finished in August. The state-of-the-art engineering complex will be completed by December, towering over the entrance to campus.
Hodges University
Already with campuses in Lee and Collier counties, Hodges will set up shop in Immokalee with an associate’s degree in interdisciplinary studies and a bachelor’s degree in management in Key West. That’s in addition to a distance education program that continually is adding more online courses, and a new bachelor’s in health administration for Charlotte County students.
Hodges will solidify plans for a Hispanic Institute to assist current and future students, as well as research education issues important to the area’s Hispanic community.
With $1.3 million already in the coffer, Hodges will continue raising scholarship money for its American Military Veterans Education Fund.
Southwest Florida College
Programs, programs and more programs.
The college is expanding its offerings from two to five bachelor’s degrees, creating tracks in elementary education, early childhood education and interior design. It also will add certificate programs for emergency medical technicians and paramedics.
The Fort Myers college already has a branch in Tampa, but is eyeing leased space in Estero, Lehigh Acres and Cape Coral. An agreement could be finalized in January, cutting down travel time for students.
The Tampa campus is piloting a bachelor’s in emergency medical services, a program that could make its way to Southwest Florida in 2008.
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071229/NEWS0104/71228074/1075
Environmental Group Features Colleges Going Green
Colleges and universities across the U.S. are going green. The Sierra Club, the nation's oldest and largest environmental group, has been following the trend, and in the current issue of its magazine, Sierra, it lists the ten schools doing the most to conserve energy and implement environmentally-friendly practices. Topping the list is a private liberal arts school in a small town in rural Ohio. Karen Schaefer visited Oberlin College, where students are doing everything from buying local foods for college dining halls to staging competitions between dorms to reduce energy.
Amanda Medris, a junior at Ohio's Oberlin College, says students can get very competitive over energy. "You know, how much shower time can I have in one week and how can I beat your shower time?" She and fellow junior Lucas Brown live with six other students in a century-old house that's owned by the college.
Amanda is into creative writing and Lucas is studying economics. Both are interested in learning to live in a more environmentally-friendly way. Amanda says it starts with small changes, like using a shower timer to save water. Lucas says they've also installed a device that allows them to shut the water off in the middle of a shower when they don't need it running. "We were doing military showers where you lather up with the water off," he explains, "but the water would get really cold when you turned it off. And this keeps a very tiny flow going to keep the heat."
Lucas and Amanda have also installed a flow restrictor in the bathroom sink and are planning to put some bricks in the toilet tank to reduce the amount of water needed for flushing. Those low-tech approaches should reduce energy use in their old house.
Across campus is a newer building that was designed with energy efficiency in mind. In one corner of the lofty, sunlit atrium of the Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies, water plays over rocks collected from the local landscape. But what looks like a water sculpture is actually a solar monitor. Oberlin College Environmental Studies Chairman John Peterson says it's powered by a solar panel that tracks the sun from dawn to dusk and makes passersby aware of how much energy is available. "If there are clouds in the sky, each time a cloud goes by, you get this modulation in sound, where the water sort of moves down to a trickle and then comes up again. If you're here on a cloudy day the flow's much less and at night there's no flow."
Solar panels cover the roof of the Lewis Center and a newly-erected canopy over an adjacent parking lot. Peterson says they'll provide more energy than the building uses and feed the excess back into the state's energy grid. The building is heated with geothermal power and an on-site wastewater treatment system uses plants like orchids as filters.
Peterson says in addition to being eco-friendly, the building helps people become more aware of the environmental impact of their actions. Standing in front of a data-monitoring screen that shows how much energy the building is producing, how much it's using and where the energy is going, he compares it to the real-time fuel efficiency screen in a popular Toyota car. "A lot of people when they come here, they say, 'Oh, this is a little like that gauge on my Prius car that's telling me how many miles per gallon I'm getting' and that's exactly right," he says. "Anyone who's driven a Prius knows that you begin to change your driving habits. When you can instantly see how much fuel you're using, you sort of get into this game. When you begin to have this new feedback that we're trying to provide people with, you begin to behave differently."
Peterson and his students have expanded the real-time monitoring of energy use to 17 campus dormitories. Last year they sponsored a friendly competition to see which dorm could use the least power. Peterson says two dorms cut their energy use in half.
That enthusiasm doesn't surprise Jennifer Hattam, associate senior editor for Sierra Magazine. She says it's today's students who will have to deal with global challenges like oil depletion and climate change, so greening the nation's colleges and universities can really make a difference. "If you can get students, young people, thinking about these issues at a young age, then it's something they will take with them as they go into their workplaces, they can use some of these ideas that they've worked out in college in their jobs, in their own homes in the future."
This is the first time Sierra Magazine has done a green college survey, but Hattam says it won't be the last. Along with Oberlin College, larger schools like Harvard, Duke and Carnegie Mellon also made the top ten list.
http://www.voanews.com/english/AmericanLife/2007-12-28-voa23.cfm
Amanda Medris, a junior at Ohio's Oberlin College, says students can get very competitive over energy. "You know, how much shower time can I have in one week and how can I beat your shower time?" She and fellow junior Lucas Brown live with six other students in a century-old house that's owned by the college.
Amanda is into creative writing and Lucas is studying economics. Both are interested in learning to live in a more environmentally-friendly way. Amanda says it starts with small changes, like using a shower timer to save water. Lucas says they've also installed a device that allows them to shut the water off in the middle of a shower when they don't need it running. "We were doing military showers where you lather up with the water off," he explains, "but the water would get really cold when you turned it off. And this keeps a very tiny flow going to keep the heat."
Lucas and Amanda have also installed a flow restrictor in the bathroom sink and are planning to put some bricks in the toilet tank to reduce the amount of water needed for flushing. Those low-tech approaches should reduce energy use in their old house.
Across campus is a newer building that was designed with energy efficiency in mind. In one corner of the lofty, sunlit atrium of the Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies, water plays over rocks collected from the local landscape. But what looks like a water sculpture is actually a solar monitor. Oberlin College Environmental Studies Chairman John Peterson says it's powered by a solar panel that tracks the sun from dawn to dusk and makes passersby aware of how much energy is available. "If there are clouds in the sky, each time a cloud goes by, you get this modulation in sound, where the water sort of moves down to a trickle and then comes up again. If you're here on a cloudy day the flow's much less and at night there's no flow."
Solar panels cover the roof of the Lewis Center and a newly-erected canopy over an adjacent parking lot. Peterson says they'll provide more energy than the building uses and feed the excess back into the state's energy grid. The building is heated with geothermal power and an on-site wastewater treatment system uses plants like orchids as filters.
Peterson says in addition to being eco-friendly, the building helps people become more aware of the environmental impact of their actions. Standing in front of a data-monitoring screen that shows how much energy the building is producing, how much it's using and where the energy is going, he compares it to the real-time fuel efficiency screen in a popular Toyota car. "A lot of people when they come here, they say, 'Oh, this is a little like that gauge on my Prius car that's telling me how many miles per gallon I'm getting' and that's exactly right," he says. "Anyone who's driven a Prius knows that you begin to change your driving habits. When you can instantly see how much fuel you're using, you sort of get into this game. When you begin to have this new feedback that we're trying to provide people with, you begin to behave differently."
Peterson and his students have expanded the real-time monitoring of energy use to 17 campus dormitories. Last year they sponsored a friendly competition to see which dorm could use the least power. Peterson says two dorms cut their energy use in half.
That enthusiasm doesn't surprise Jennifer Hattam, associate senior editor for Sierra Magazine. She says it's today's students who will have to deal with global challenges like oil depletion and climate change, so greening the nation's colleges and universities can really make a difference. "If you can get students, young people, thinking about these issues at a young age, then it's something they will take with them as they go into their workplaces, they can use some of these ideas that they've worked out in college in their jobs, in their own homes in the future."
This is the first time Sierra Magazine has done a green college survey, but Hattam says it won't be the last. Along with Oberlin College, larger schools like Harvard, Duke and Carnegie Mellon also made the top ten list.
http://www.voanews.com/english/AmericanLife/2007-12-28-voa23.cfm
Friday, November 16, 2007
What You Should Know About Scholarships
When it's time to go to college, the word "scholarship" is confusing for both students and parents. We automatically think about student loans, FAFSA, tuition and fees, EFC, grants, and work study. But what we don't realize is that knowing more about the scholarship process could save us thousands of dollars when trying to cover the cost of our kids' education.
Scholarships are "free money" given away by the government, private institutions and organizations, charitable foundations, schools, universities, clubs, etc. Unlike loans, scholarships are not repaid to the scholarship provider.
Some of the scholarships available are:
- Athletic Scholarships
- National Merit Scholarships
- Academic Merit Scholarships
- Professional, Career, and Trade Association-Sponsored Scholarships
- FAFSA
- Work Study
- Ethnic and Religious Scholarships
- Community Organization Sponsored Scholarships
- Special Scholarships
- Alumni Legacy Scholarships
- Transfer Student Scholarships
With so many scholarships, how do you know which one to apply to or where can you go for an application?
Some scholarships are based on your kid's grades or financial needs, while others are awarded based on ethnic groups, athletic or artistic abilities, or given to students interested in a particular field.
In some instances, your kids don't have to have perfect grades to apply for a scholarship, and some don't even ask for any proof of income.
For example, the Work-Study Scholarship will require your kid to work part-time for the money given and most jobs are on campus.
Finding information on scholarships on the Internet can be difficult because you won't find everything you need to know to finance your child's education.
A year ago, when my daughter was going to college, I searched the Internet and the only thing I found simple enough to do was fill out a FAFSA application. Since I didn't have time to search the Internet at the moment, and because other information I found was so confusing, I decided just to fill out the application and did nothing else.
I promised myself that for the next year, I would search in advance because even though my daughter got some financial aid, I was convinced that there had to be other resources out there for her education.
That's when I came accross a guide written by a father that went through the process of getting a scholarship for his child, who spent time talking to financial aid officers at many universities and discovered that just filling out the CSS Profile and FAFSA financial aid forms and meeting some deadlines is only half the battle in acquiring Federal Pell grants, college need-based grants, and Federal Stafford and Perkins loans.
I learned how college financial aid offices actually determine what federal aid and state grants will be given out to potential students and if you know in advance how to prepare yourself to receive the maximum amount for your child's college education, you will obtain better results.
Once you know where to find the information and when and how to apply for a scholarship, it will be easy to obtain financial aid for your kids.
For more information, visit http://www.1mykids.com/scholarships.html
Maria Estarellas
About The Author
Maria Estarellas is the webmaster for
"The Complete Website For The Whole Family".
Information on How to Apply for Scholarships, Parenting Tips, Crafts, Games, School Projects and Essays, Music Downloads, Clothing, Candles, Hobbies for Mom and Dad, Information on How to Start Your Own Online Business, Mortgage Tips, Beauty Tips and More.
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