The Student Athlete: Too Priveleged?

Xavier Baisden

Student Athletes are some of the most privileged people on college campuses. They are typically given full ride scholarships that cover all costs associated with their education, free apparel for their school, priority in registering for classes, and generally breaks and opportunities not afforded to the average student. However, with the recent controversies regarding student athletes, the question that raises is: Are they afforded too many priveleges? And in turn does this lead to their recklessness in society or belief that they are above the law?
Recently, there have been multiple controversies involving college student athletes breaking rules, whether it be with the NCAA or the law. Most notably, three University of Tenessee were arrested and charged with attempted armed robbery after they attempted to rob people with a pellet gun at a local gas station. However, this was far from the first time that a student athlete has been implicated in a wrongdoing. Other prominent student athletes involved in wrong doings include Derrick Rose, Reggie Bush, and Dez Bryant. The constant involvement of student athletes in legal cases brings to the forefront the question: Do student athletes consider themselves above the law?
In order to keep the student athlete in line, more should be done to show them that they are not above the law. They should in fact have less privileges than the average student, due to them being essentially a paid representative of not only the program, but the university as a whole. They should be considered role models for others, and their actions should be representative of such.

Community Colleges Close Doors

Greg Jones

A recent article in the New York Times entitled Two-Year Colleges, Swamped, No Longer Welcome All, by Lisa Foderaro, outlines a problem arising from the resurgence of the two year university. As Lisa (the author of the article) rightfully points out; "The battered economy drove many workers back to school to retool their skills, while others have eschewed a four-year degree in favor of a more affordable two-year program." The increased popularity of two year universities has put a strain on the financiers of these institutions. States are cutting funding for these colleges just when they need it most to support this influx of new students. According to TIME Magazine, the Obama Administration is attempting to meet these short falls and increase enrollment in community colleges across the nation. The twelve billion that Obama is seeking for community colleges will go a long way to fund these schools, but the needs of these institutions are not going to be met until then. This has forced many community colleges to close their doors and stop enrolling more students, some for the first time ever.

The idea that community colleges will be unable to accept applicants is shameful. Community college has long been the place where students can go for a second chance should they fail out of a university or did poorly in high school. The elimination of these second chances as a viable option is giving the wrong message to college and high school students everywhere. In saying that they aren't allowed to screw up we are getting rid of their safety net and telling them that they won't get another chance. The funding proposed by Obama is a good start to ensuring that community colleges aren't relegated to a back seat role in American education, but there is more that we could be doing. State legislatures need to stop eliminating funding for education simply because it's an easy way to save a buck.

Morning Classes in Higher Education - Failed Cognitive System

Harry Han

People have their own moment of concentration. Some say they are night-timers, others say that they are a morning person. But when it comes to higher education everybody seems like night-timers. Morning sessions and lectures may ease out on afternoon hours of higher education students, due to most students’ failure to concentrate early in the morning, morning education seems inefficient.

Amount of concentration definitely corresponds to time we spend sleeping. According to the article “Morning Classes Fail to Facilitate Learning” written by staffs of The Pioneer, with the workloads and activities that college students are involved in, “it is impossible to get a necessary amount of sleep before an 8 am class.” Thus students find themselves in morning lectures trying to listen to what their professor is saying but it only result they get is input through one ear and output through the other. Due to these effects, said by staffs of The Pioneer, some colleges started abolishing 8:00am classes. But is this really necessary?

Morning classes seem like a waste of time for college students. With short amount of lecture time at college each classes should work towards being more efficient with amount of knowledge or skills they teach. However, getting rid of morning classes seems unreasonable as to fit large number of the students in the afternoon would also bring about lack of concentration. As a result, professors should manage morning classes as fun or active classes so that students find enthusiasm in their classes. Not only professors but also students should prepare themselves for morning classes rather than hanging out with friends the night before the morning classes.

P.S. Coffee and a short Jeopardy Quiz helps

Academic Freedom in Higher Education

Aimee Turner

Academic freedom is the right of the teacher and student to be free from external or institutional censorship or other forms of restriction in terms of the teaching, research and critique of the University's governance. This is assumed to be an essential characteristic of an institution of higher education. Academic freedom includes, for faculty and students, the right of faculty to full freedom in research and in the publication of results, freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects, and the right of faculty to be free from institutional censorship or discipline when they speak or write as citizens.

Although higher education institutions are thought of as places that exude academic freedom, the protection of academic freedom has been a key issue in higher education for centuries. There are many recent cases of the violation of academic freedom. A respected Egyptian sociologist was arrested for “defaming” Egypt and a prominent Iranian social scientist was sentenced to death for calling for democracy. International protests led to the Egyptian’s release and the lifting of the Iranian’s sentence in 2004; however, the immediate consequences of these professor’s actions did not honor the principle of academic freedom.

Universities cannot achieve their potential nor fully contribute to the emerging knowledge-based society without academic freedom. Even colleges and universities in western democracies face subtle but significant challenges from the privatization and commercialization of research and from the complexities of the information society. The goal of all higher education institutions is to research and discuss a wide spectrum issues that affect the human, world, and universal condition. From discussion of the beginning of life, war and peace, and the atomic structure of the atom, all of these subjects should be open to free discussion and research in order to better enlighten mankind.

Study Abroad...If You Can Afford It

by: Kevin Brawley

In higher education, gaining an international perspective is very beneficial when working toward a career with a major company. When employers see that students have had experience in other countries, they value them almost instantly. There are many reasons for this. Now that most businesses have reached the international level, they are faced with language and cultural differences that students who study abroad are faced with and can learn how to solve. With less than one percent of American Students studying abroad, companies reward those who do greatly.

You may be asking yourself: If studying abroad is so helpful, then why don't more students do it? There are many reasons for this as well. The first being a common misconception: studying abroad is expensive. Students generally feel that studying in another country is much more expensive than studying at their home institution, and for this reason, they do not even consider it as an option. However, the fact is that studying abroad is, in some cases, cheaper than studying at home. The cost of studying abroad is generally about the same as tuition at home. For this reason, out-of-state students generally pay in-state tuition when they study abroad through a program specific to their university, which saves them quite a bit. Another reason many students choose not to study abroad is the fear of going so far away from home for so long. If they do not know anybody else who is going, or if they have never been out of the country before, students are sometimes afraid of what they may find in the other country. They do not know what to expect. Schools could help alleviate this problem by having students who have studied abroad give presentations, and by providing cultural workshops for students who are about to go abroad so that they do know what to expect.

Small Economy Means More Grad Students

Chris Massad

Many have been talking of the effects the weak economy has had on the United States. The economy has effected many aspects of life, higher education being one of them. The economy's recession has marked a spiked increase in the number of graduate students in the United States. Could this due to the fact that employers are looking for the most qualified employees, and knowing this, employees are competitively earning higher degrees? Doubtful. Based on the general consensus of students, surveys have shown that students who finish undergraduate school go straight to graduate school because the job market is horrendous. The strength of the job market is directly proportional to the economy.

University of Illinois second year graduate student Andrew Stevens was one of the students surveyed and was further interviewed. He is currently studying aerospace engineering and graduated at a time with a relatively stable job market, but decided to get his masters anyways. He explains, "At the time (of my graduation), the job market was high. Shortly after, my friends started to get laid off," Stevens said. "So grad school was a smart economic decision for me." The University of Illinois recorded a record high 10,495 graduate students enrolled this semester, marking a 4.27 percent increase from last year's number of grad students.

This is not just a local Illinois issue. Acr0ss the nation, students are taking advantage of the weak economic times to earn higher degrees. Stewart Heiser, spokesman for the Council of Graduate Schools stated, "For this semester, applications to graduate schools for domestic students (from the U.S.) are up 8 percent." Either way, officials believe that it is a smart move for students to wait a while before joining the work force; furthering your education is a wise decision that will more than likely be beneficial in the future.

Take Your Time

In movies and books that display the college lifestyle, typically things rapidly change from the high school lifestyle to the party atmosphere of college. In these movies, a basic student becomes king of the college campus, superstar athlete, and finds the love of his or her life within the time span of a year. In actuality, this doesn't happen, or at least not at such a rapid pace. College is a marathon, not a sprint. It is much more important to slow down and gradually adapt to the college lifestyle rather than rush in and attempting to try everything immediately.
Realistically, it takes about a year to adapt to what in a college environment. This time is where the habits that will stick around for the next 4, 5, or 6 years will be developed. It is much easier to slowly add more to your schedule than it is to be overloaded at the beginning and have to drop activities.
Many things about the "prototypical" college lifestyle can be delayed until one is comfortable. These things include relationships, pledging with a fraternity/sorority, joining different organizations in a leadership position, or just going out and partying. All of these things are integral to the college experience, however they should definitely be waited upon until one is ready to add these to their workloads.
Many people come into college planning on partying it up, and doing everything they have always envisioned when they thought about college as soon as possible. However, it is very important to take your time, and keep your grades up, to make your college experience the best it can be.

Should there be a limit to Laptop Requirements?

Harry Han

Laptop has been a great use to the students of higher education. However sometimes it is questionable whether the quality of its graphic cards and CPU’s are necessary for educational needs. Thus there are no doubts that students bring their own laptops not for their educational needs but more of their entertainment in higher education.

Most seniors of high school, as they move onto the level of higher education, purchase laptops that meet the standard of college requirements. However, some decide to purchase high-tech gizmos of the most recent gadgets of current time, such as Alienware and Asus-Republic of Gamers. With rapidly running processors and graphic cards, these laptops may seem like a necessity for the higher education but they are rather a reverse effect in higher education. That is, students who tend to have laptops of high quality tend to fall into entertainments rather than study much harder. According to the article “Laptops for College – the Best aren’t Necessarily the Most Expensive Ones,” by Lillian Wills, “the best laptops for college might just be an inexpensive laptop with just the features that a college kid needs.” It is clearly unnecessary that a freshman student needs a high-tech i7 processors with its graphic card GE force 260M for his essay in his English class.

Higher education should be where students dedicate themselves to education and academics. Laptops are tools for students to reach their goals through higher education but sometimes they become tools of mere entertainments. Limits to laptop requirements are not really necessary, however the best suggestion is that keeping laptop level to its necessary needs would lead students to their success.

R.O.T.C. at elite universities

Greg Jones

Back in the 1960s during the anti-war movement, many Ivy League Universities banned their R.O.T.C. programs because of the way the program was being treated by students at the universities. Despite most universities now showing an outpouring of support for the military, the R.O.T.C. programs at many are still banned. In an article by the New York Times entitled The R.O.T.C. Dilemma the author, Michael Winerip, explains that despite recent polls of students that show support for R.O.T.C programs, Ivy League schools still refuse to reinstate their programs. Most Ivy League schools show only token support for their students that wish to pursue R.O.T.C regardless of the barriers.

The few students that still chose to pursue R.O.T.C programs have to travel to host universities in the area of their school to receive their training. For students at schools like Yale this means a three hour round trip drive to the University of Connecticut with no special considerations for classes they might miss making the drive 3-5 days a week. Being involved in an R.O.T.C. program can be stressful and time consuming enough without having to factor in the added stress of trying get to another campus to participate in training. In a recent article by The Harvard Crimson, entitled R.O.T.C. May Return to Ivy Schools, stated that the Department of Defense has expressed interest in restarting the programs at Ivy League schools.

The thing that is interesting to note is that even if the Defence Department does chose to reinstate these schools as training academies, it will most likely not result in R.O.T.C. training centers. For example, the R.O.T.C. uses what's called the host school program in which it puts programs on campuses that are big and centralized and has these programs service the schools nearby. The Georgia Tech R.O.T.C. program, for instance, serves; Georgia Tech, Georgia State, Kennesaw, Emory, Morehouse, Spelman, Clark, West Georgia, Southern Poly, Clayton, Agnes Scott, and Mercer. So if a school like Harvard were to express interest in reinstating their R.O.T.C program on campus their request would most likely be denied and they would be told to send their students to M.I.T. along with the other 8 schools in the area whose students go to M.I.T. for R.O.T.C. training. This is a fact that is often overlooked by both students at these universities and critics of the lack of program at these schools.

Stereotypes of Minorities in Higher Education: AAPIs

Aimee Turner

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) have come to be defined in contemporary America as the "good" minority that seeks advancement through quiet diligence in study and work and by not making waves—the minority that other American minorities should seek to emulate. In reality, AAPIs are a diverse group of various ethnicities and cultural backgrounds; no simple generalization can characterize the group as a whole. Furthermore, despite the "model minority" stereotype, AAPIs also face academic challenges and socioeconomic hardships.

To help dispel the "model minority" myth, College Board Advocacy released "Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders—Facts, Not Fiction: Setting the Record Straight " in June 2008 in collaboration with New York University's National Commission on Asian American and Pacific Islander Research in Education (CARE). The report provides empirical data to refute prevailing fictions about this group of students, and explains how the "model minority" stereotype can be harmful: in assuming universal academic strength, teachers and counselors often do not extend help to their AAPI students to the extent they do other students.

Although this types of stereotypes about different minorities are discussed privately amongst groups, these stereotypes can have adverse effects on the performance of the said minority and on those around them. It must be understood that the success rates of all minorities are dependent on their personal goals and ambitions.

We Always Knew Plagiarism Was Bad...

by: Kevin Brawley

Ever since elementary school when we started learning to write, the idea of plagiarism being forbidden was forced into our little minds. "Don't be a copy-cat," the teacher would say. Sometimes little kids do not realize that they are copying more than they should because they feel like the way the source they got the information from presented the information is the best or only way to present it, and they simply reproduce most or all of the original source in their writing. However, throughout elementary school and into high school, students learn how to synthesize and rephrase information so that plagiarism is less of an issue, which is a good thing because as students enter college, policies on plagiarism become stricter than ever before. Not only do most colleges fail and or expel students for copying others' work, they sometimes refer them to a court of law. This is something new for most high school students who have never faced such a serious threat for plagiarism before; in high school, they would get a zero for the assignment and be told not to do it again. Another complication for today's students is the ease of exchange of information through the use of computers and the Internet. It is much easier to copy and paste than it would have been to copy everything by hand fifteen or twenty years ago.

Students are truly treated as adults in college, and they are held to the same standards as faculty, who are very much penalized for plagiarism.

The Benefits of Teaching Naked

Chris Massad

In today's world, life would not be possible without computers. People rely more on computers than they do anything else in life, and it is becoming so in lecture halls as well. In elementary, middle and high school, most teachers are required to incorporate some sort of technology based learning in their curriculum. University professors use programs like PowerPoint to teach the class and often take pride in their "tech-smart" classrooms. In fact, PowerPoint has become the norm for presenting a lecture/lesson in universities. It seems as if the new age technology world would make teaching more efficient, but in many cases, using PowerPoint-like methods to teach do more harm than good.

José A. Bowen, a dean at Southern Methodist University has adopted the idea of teaching naked and is proudly removing all computers from lecture halls. He has challenged his colleagues to "teach naked." "More than any thing else, Mr. Bowen wants to discourage professors from using PowerPoint, because they often lean on the slide-display program as a crutch rather using it as a creative tool." This idea takes root in the fact that class time should be used for discussion and educated debate. Nowadays, lecture videos are posted online and any factual information can be found on the web.

However, the reason Bowen is encouraging the switch more than anything because students find lectures with PowerPoint boring and do not learn as much in result. A survey consisting of 211 students at a university in England was conducted by researchers at the University of Central Lancashire and found that "59 percent of students in a new survey reported that at least half of their lectures were boring, and that PowerPoint was one of the dullest methods they saw." Personally speaking, from a students perspective, powerpoint is a really boring method of teaching and the lectures I remember from the past are the ones with lively interactions, challenging debates, and scholarly discussions. Boredom in the classroom can be eradicated as soon as computers are taken out of the picture.

Bowen's Take on Teaching Naked.

Courtesy of The Chronicle of Higher Education

Roomies

Xavier Baisden
When coming to a place of higher learning, one of the first things that students typically have to adjust to first is living with a roommate. Most students have become accustomed to living in a much larger room by themselves, so the prospect of living in a smaller room while having to share it with someone else is quite harrowing. However, having a roommate can be quite beneficial in many ways.
One of the main differences encountered when having a roommate can be simply realizing that someone else is in the room. This can be a double-bladed sword, as it will provide you with someone to talk to at times when you need to converse with, but it also prevents you from having privacy whenever you need some space. However, having someone from a different background to converse with can open your eyes to different practices. Many students have been raised by their parents to think there is only one train of thought when it comes to home life. This mindset can be slightly molded or radically changed when the student gets to college, as they will likely encounter many other cultures and practices as they observe others and what they consider to be normal.
Having a positive relationship with a roommate can be quite beneficial, as they can be the person to lift you up when you are feeling down, help you with homework problems, or even take care of you when you are sick. The relationship between roommates will typically last long past the time you spend together in college, due to the amount of time you have spent together, and can have many long-lasting positive effects.

Military - Dementia for Korean Students in Higher Education

Harry Han

In most things there exists a flow to it and a right timing. However if that stream of flow stops, people find themselves struggling to butt right back into the stream of flow. People say during higher education, students vastly expand their knowledge and prepare for their career. Unfortunately, most Korean students in higher education concern about whether military should be attended during higher education or after, and consequences may vary according to their choices.

Avoiding to attend military service is not an option for Korean students. According to an article “Leave of Absence for Korean Students,” by So-Yeong Kang, number of students staying out of colleges for a long period of time increased from 500,000 to 600,000 between years 2000 and 2005. Among these large groups of people, there are Korean students who are mostly of attending military. This so called gap year affects academic lives of Korean college students as it brings a stop to their thinking process. Within almost two and a half years Korean students miss out on every aspect of academics while undergoing hardcore training. Thus, by the time they get back to college, students find themselves troubling to readjust to the academics and most regret as they notice their brain no longer functions as it used to be.

People say between the age of 20 through 25 is the best period where one can obtain most knowledge. However to throw out this chance of pushing students to their next level of academics, by attending mandatory military service is a disadvantage to students’ lives. Although avoiding this mandatory service is impossible there are other options to it. According to Korean Government Law, one may attend military within the age of 19 to 24. This indicates that Korean students has a choice of finishing their college first and then attend military.

Attending military service within college years is not a smart move. Korean students will surely face consequences having an absence of academics, and in order to succeed one should plan ahead, judge smart, and study when they can.

As States Decrease Funding, Institutes Look Out of State

Greg Jones

Throughout 2008 and up until the summer of 2009 the state of California underwent a massive budget crisis. Falling incomes made income taxes less reliable and legislators disagreed on what to do. Some people in the state senate wanted to increase taxes while others wanted to cut funding. The California constitution stipulates that no increase in taxes can be done without a bond measure voted on by California residents. Not surprisingly the residents of California repeatedly rejected the idea of tax hikes. This eventually ended up leading to furlough days for state workers, $2 billion in IOUs being written by the state, and the eventual agreement to cut $15 billion in spending (K-12 education cannot be affected by these cuts because the state constitution says these funds cannot be cut without a bond measure but spending on higher education is affected).

The University of California system is already hurting for funding, but these additional cuts will only make the situation worse. The article At Public Universities: Less for More, by New York Times writer Paul Fain, details how some flagship universities, like UCLA, are attempting to cope with these decreased budgets. According to Paul (the article's writer), the most viable option for many of these universities is to admit higher percentages of out of state students because the tuition payed by them is much higher. The downside that he points out, however, is that with the downturn in the economy there is only a small pool of students looking to go out of state and universities would have to compete for these students. The increased number of in state applicants to flagship universities along with the decreased number of students seeking an education out of state could limit this ability to only a select few universities. This strategy is one that hits close to home because I am an out of state student at a flagship university, namely Georgia Institute of Technology. I think that admitting out of state students is in fact a good way to raise funds, but maintaining your commitment to in state students should be your top priority as a state school.

Access to Higher Education for Undocumented Students

Aimee Turner

A Supreme Court decision in 1982 (Plyler v. Doe) guaranteed undocumented children a free public school education; however, this ruling applied only to K–12. Access to postsecondary education remained severely constrained by federal laws that prevented undocumented students from receiving financial benefits to attend college. Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and many acts to follow aimed to exclude undocumented students from receiving state or local benefits for postsecondary education. Neither federal nor state law forbids undocumented students from attending college, but in effect many are turned away for financial reasons.

Most immigrants now come from Mexico and the countries of Central America, the Caribbean, and South Asia, rather than from Europe. There are also many more undocumented immigrants than ever before, now numbering around eleven million. Most of these illegals entered the United States by crossing the Mexican border with Mexico. Others entered with stolen or fraudulent visas or simply overstayed legal visas. Most illegal immigrants come to the United States to get better-paying jobs. Like most Americans, they pursue the American dream of a better life than they left behind. Education is the key to fulfilling this dream; however, this dream is stifled by their inability to fund the education on a collegiate level.

Remember that the Plyer v. Doe ruling is geared towards undocumented “children” who are seeking a free public education. These students came into America as children, in many cases against the will, and they should not be penalized for their parents’ choice to come to America. Furthermore, for those who are indeed taking the initiative to do well in grades K-12, should not have to struggle to make it to the next level in education.

Economic Crisis Affecting Educational Opportunities?

by: Kevin Brawley

In the current economic situation, individual businesses and corporations are taking the brunt of the force of the downfall. Just like any business, higher education is taking a real hit. Universities are having to raise their prices to stay afloat, and students were already having to pay large amounts of money to study at these universities. According to Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed, public institutions are having to increase their prices the most because of cuts in the state budgets. When paying for college, a majority of what students have to pay besides the tuition is the room and board. For public schools, this price went up 5.4% to $8,193. For private schools, this price went up 4.2% to $9,363.

With these shifts in academic costs, student financial aid has decreased therefore paying for college has become more difficult. Students at private universities receive on average $14,400 in total grant aid, lowering their net tuition cost to about $11,900. In-state students at public four-year universities receive around $5,400, making the net tuition to about $1,600. However, the majority of students attend public and community colleges. These schools are experiencing a larger increase from last year to this year than from two years ago to last year in the total cost of tuition and fees. Private colleges have managed to slightly reduce the increase in cost between the two times, but the fact is, the costs are still increasing from year to year. At this rate (assume a yearly increase of 5%), students could be paying twice what they pay now in just fifteen years. And this is not even counting the many other unexpected costs associated with attending college (books, activity fees, supplies, etc.).

All in all, college is becoming more expensive when students and their families are facing difficult economic times and the job market is also suffering (making it difficult to pay off those massive student loans). Education should be an institution that works to relieve the economic problem, not add to it.

College: For You? Or Your Parents?

Xavier Baisden
Throughout our youth, many students have been pushed by their parents to get good grades. Sometimes parents would introduce a motivator, whether it was a reward or punishment, but in the end, the focus would be on the student succeeding with their education. However, college is one of the first times that students are autonomous and have full control over themselves and their grades. At this point, the motivation is placed solely on the student and their desire to succeed in their education, not on their parents motivation for their child to succeed. This lack of an external motivator causes many students to relax and not work as rigorously, or take the attitude of a quote from Ben Franklin, "I am lord of myself, accountable to none." This attitude can be quite detrimental to a student's college grades.
Rather than having the student have heaps of freedom along with the pressure given to them all at once upon arrival at college, both the student and the parent should work together to make sure that the student will use their time wisely. This will allow for a much easier and much more successful transition to college. A student's first semester in college is their most important as it is during this time that they develop most of the habits they will carry with them for the rest of their college career. If the student can develop responsible time management skills early, the stress that they experience will be much easier to handle than it would've been, resulting in a much more positive college experience for them and their parents. (Except at Georgia Tech, where students will always be stressed out and happiness is unknown.)

Stolen Laptops – Thefts in Higher Education

Harry Han

Today laptop is almost a requirement in higher education. However it comes as a difficult task keeping them safe. Having a laptop is a convenience to work through higher education however when it gets stolen numerous issues emerge, disrupting both life of higher education students and the security of University.

Students use vast number of data and files within their classes of higher education and these files are essential sources to thrive within tough higher education courses. Laptops are convenient sources of keeping these files organized both within the class and outside the class. But when it comes to losing it, not only student’s life in higher education but also the security of entire school are devastatingly impacted.

According to the article “Increase in Stolen Laptops Endangers Data Security” by Andrea L. Foster, in University of Virginia, due to a stolen laptop, the thieves were able to retrieve up to US$22,000 by hacking into university systems under names of 7,000 employees, students and professors. Clearly, thefts can bring severe impact to University securities but it also influences the lives of the victim of the theft issue.

Stolen laptops not only concerns student with its cost of replacing it but it also disturbs and confuses the student. Due to the stolen laptop, student may find himself difficult to be back on track with his academics as he is missing data and files. Moreover, as Foster states that there is no way to prevent laptops from wandering, which indicates that chances of finding the laptop are pretty low. However, higher education students find the problem difficult to shake it off. Plus replacing the laptop also kills time thus meanwhile students will face numerous inconveniences.

Stolen laptops come as a serious issue to higher education today. Although it may seem like an issue affecting just an individual, it is rather an issue that the Universities must face and work to find a conclusion of prevention.

Universities Look in New Places to Trim Budgets

Greg Jones

Schools are running out of funding, and as a result they are looking to the private sector for ways in which they could trim their bloated budgets. The University of North Carolina recently did what most companies do when their budget is running a little high, they hired a consulting firm. In a recent story by the New York Times entitled Universities Turn to Consultants to Trim Budgets, by Tamar Lewin, outlines how the consulting firm hired by UNC told them how to save up to $150 million dollars. The key, the consulting firm says, is to make sure to stay away from touchy subjects like tenure and course loads. "Like any other large organization," the chancellor of UNC was quoted as saying, "we hire people, we buy stuff, we connect to the Internet, we build buildings and take care of our property, and we wanted [the consulting firm] to look at how we could carry out those functions as efficiently as possible." Since this consulting company, Bain & Company, did this consulting with UNC, it has been hired by University of California: Berkley and Cornell University. The University of North Carolina clearly isn't the only one interested in trimming the fat in preparation for budget shortfalls.

The main advantage of hiring a consulting firm to streamline processes such as procurement and IT is, put simply, experience. It's the same reason why doctors don't attempt to treat themselves when they get sick, because they know there are specialists out there with more experience in the field they are looking at getting treatment for. The people at Bain & Company have been doing this for over a decade, and though their prices may be high ($3 million dollars in the case of Berkley), if they produce real results the cost will be well worth it. This issue is important to students in higher education because if solutions aren't found to budget crises at universities on the business side, then funding will start to be subtracted from the academic side. These funding cuts could even include; rises in tuition, cuts of programs, and overcrowding of classes.

Facebook: How to Make the Most of It

Aimee Turner

The fact of the matter, one cannot be bias about the effects of Facebook on college admissions, job interviews and networking. However, one should be mindful of the image they are portraying on their Facebook profile. As you enter college, be mindful of the people who will be viewing your page such as, the admissions staff, new peers at your college, your professors, potential employers, both on and off campus, and of course, that creepy kid who is obsessing over you.

So how do you ensure that your image is protected? Remove or block any photos that show you drinking alcohol, even if you were in a situation where it was legal. Remove photos with rude gestures, that are sexually suggestive, promote illegal activity. Unsubscribe from any groups that show bias or bigotry and groups that promote illegal activity (those "I hate the World" and "I Love Getting High" groups). Also, remove contact information such as your phone number and address--not only is this a safety issue, but inclusion of such information shows bad judgment on your part. Choose an attractive and professional-looking photo for your profile picture. Most importantly, visit your site frequently to untag any unflattering photos your friends may have posted.

Many people will suggest that you block access to your account so that no one but your friends can view your site. This is good advice, but some housecleaning is still a good idea. It's hard to keep track of your online friends once you have hundreds of them, and it's hard to know who might be looking over the shoulder of one of your "friends."

Also, realize that you can actually turn the tables on those nosey employers and admissions officers who might be snooping around your site. Use your site to make yourself look good. Think of it as a free place to promote yourself and increase your chance of acceptance. For example, post pictures that show you doing constructive things (i.e. reading to kids, doing volunteer work, restoring a car). Post pictures that show you and your friends in a positive light -- colleges and employers want applicants with healthy social skills. Join groups that have positive messages (breast cancer awareness, peace not war, and so on)

If approached thoughtfully, social networking sites can be one more tool to help you get into your top choice colleges.

Volunteering...Everybody's Doing It

Kevin Brawley

Students in college face the overwhelming knowledge of the fact that the world will soon be in their hands. In a few short years, the students studying in our universities will take over important roles like city mayors, state governors, national presidents, and international ambassadors. The current state of affairs in the world, combined with the fact that information spreads so quickly making the world smaller and smaller everyday, is cementing this fact more and more to today’s students. In 2006, The Chronicle of Education reported that more college students were volunteering their time than ever before. That same year, Georgia Tech was named to the President’s Honor Roll for the amazing turn out of their students on the largest community service day of the year, Team Buzz. And the trend continues. This year, Team Buzz again produced a record turn out of Tech students to help out in the Atlanta community. When asked, one volunteer related that she “knows how much of a difference she can make in the world, and really just wants to make it.” That mentality reverberates throughout virtually all college campuses in America and in the world. Poverty and other issues in their local communities are made very real and apparent to them, and students recognize that if they want to make a difference in the ever-shrinking world, they can, at home, or abroad; the number of opportunities, in fact, is almost overwhelming. The largest issue they face is the choice of which projects they want to be involved in and when they want to be involved.

Smoke Cleared, Truth Revealed

Chris Massad

Fortunately, the percentage of Americans that smoke has decreased and is still decreasing every year. In contrast to this statistic, more specifically speaking, the percentage of smoking students has been on the rise for the past ten years. The problem is not confined to public universities alone. No, the issue surrounds both private and public institutions. It is not limited to one gender or cultural group but affects both religious and secular institution, two and four year colleges, large and small universities, and schools in urban and rural areas.

First year students are thrown into a big, new environment, away from home, and are free to choose their own lifestyle. They are presented with many opportunities to make risky decisions. The decisions students make in college mold and shape their past lives into new life patterns that will define who they become. This is why college smoking is an issue with such a priority level. However, despite this great need for change, universities have not successfully devised a program to eraditcate the problem. The rise in tobacco use has not been accredited to one cause. It is due a number of variables, some of which have not been realized, making it that much more difficult to create an effective prevention program. Universities have done research on the matter and it suggest that "one of the issues that must be taken into account in studying this population is the growing cultural diversity of our college campuses. Cultural as well as gender differences in smoking habits have been repeatedly found. This suggests that different groups of people might have different reasons for smoking." Universities have launched new projects to try and eradicate the ideals students have on smoking and research shows that within the next decade, the percentage increase could be reversed to a decline.

College & Alcohol: A Deadly Combination

Xavier Baisden
The freedoms that students face as they are in high school typically are rather mundane, as most of the time students are generally always accounted for by their parents. However, once students reach college, they are truly free and for the first time, at risk for some of the dangerous activities that are consistently found on college campuses across the nation. The most common and deadly of these hazardous activities is alcohol consumption.

The most common danger that students may not have been exposed to, or at least at this magnitude, is the presence and ease of access of alcohol. In high school, alcohol had a much more suppressed presence, due to the fact that nobody in high school is of legal age to buy alcohol. However, in college, there are many fraternities, sororities, and other organizations that not only supply alcohol for their own parties, but freely serve it to anyone. This danger is not only that is is being served to students that are underage, but to students that may easily be pushed past drinking amounts that they're body can handle in an attempt to impress others. This leads to competition and games involving alcohol, such as beer pong and races to see who can consume the most alcohol.

Alcohol also has many far reaching effects for days and weeks after it is consumed. According to a report by Ball State University, one night of heavy drinking can hamper your ability to think for up to 30 days. This report also shows that 1 in every 3 students has admitted to failing a test or project due to the aftereffects of alcohol. One final statistic is that 1,400 people a year die on college campuses from alcohol abuse. So when offered a drink, ask yourself: Is it worth it?

Universities See a Rise in Violent Crimes

Greg Jones

Ever since the '66 shooting perpetrated by Charles Whitman in the University of Texas bell tower, there have been more and more incidents of violence on school campuses (see HERE). These incidents culminated in the Virginia Tech Massacre and, more recently, a stabbing incident at UCLA last Thursday. The latter of these outbreaks hit especially close to home for me and inspired me to do this blog post on the subject of violence at universities across America. The victim of this particular episode was stabbed five times, and had her throat slit after being chosen at random by a deranged student, luckily she was rushed to UCLA medical center in time for her to become stable and survive the incident. She also attended my high school, went to her senior prom with one of my closest friends, was really tight with my sister, and was my teammate on several science competition teams (see Science Bowl). When an incident such as this affects someone that you know well, it reveals to you the true severity of violent crimes at the university level.

After I was informed of what had happened, I instinctively asked; why would someone do such a thing? The answer is the same as it always is in cases of school violence; mental distress of the perpetrator. The professors of the suspect in this case reported the student to the UCLA administration multiple times, citing e-mails in which it was clear to at least one professor that the suspect was in need of help. The question then becomes; why, after having gone through an incident like that of Virginia Tech, do university administrations continue to ignore warning signs pointing out the troubled students. Colleges and universities across the nation need to do a better job of recognizing these warning signs, taking these warning signs as serious threats, and acting upon these signs in order to prevent further rises in violent crimes on university campuses.

Ongoing Quarrel: Religion over Science in Higher Education

Harry Han

It all begins with Adam or Lucy; for centuries or even for thousands of years, an argument of whether to continue religious practices or search further knowledge has been a question to many people. Today science drives and improves people’s daily lives, and religion seems to fade out. Thus when it comes to higher education most religious students find themselves in trouble whether to focus more on the logics of science rather than their religious practices, and turns out balancing between religion and science seems difficult.

In class students face numerous interferences with religion and the discovery of science, especially in the class of biology. In the article “Religious right fights science for the heart of America,” by Suzanne Goldenberg, Al Frisby, a high school student who has been educated with the idea of God’s creation of “Eve out of Adam’s rib,” challenges his Biology teacher during the topic of genetics that God created life rather than bunch of cells. It’s possible that this argument can be debated within the high school level. However as education takes up to much higher level of college, science seems more logical and understanding than the words of the Bible. Thus sometimes religious students lose the idea of believing.

But the idea of science is not really the counter of God’s creation. According to the Merrium-Webster’s dictionary, the definition of science is “knowledge or a system of knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws.” This infers that science is a process of seeking truth but if the idea from the Bible and the general definition combine, science is a language to understanding god’s truth.

Many people still believe that science and religion cannot bind together as they contrast in their ideas. However the ideas between each other cannot clash nor counter as science in higher education is merely a language tool to figure out what god has created.

The Balancing Act: Degrees and Marriage

Aimee Turner

The primary motivation for going to college is considered to be the increase in earnings power that college education provides. However, there is also another potentially important benefit of college: college improves marriage opportunities by providing a social venue to meet potential spouses. Furthermore, a college-educated individual is substantially more likely to have a college-educated spouse. Thus, the individual enjoys educational balance in the household and benefits from the earnings power of the spouse. While this “marriage benefit” of college surely applies to both sexes, it is likely to be particularly important for women since married men on average have higher labor force participation rates and higher incomes than married women.

As Steve Watters pointed out in his article “Why College Men Aren't Ready to Marry,” the average age for marriage, for both men and women, has risen significantly since the middle of the last century. Is this a positive sign? In a culture where a significant portion of the current adult population hasn't been able to make a marriage last, it seems best to proceed with caution. The assumption is that that the longer you wait to get married, the more ready you will be emotionally, financially, and spiritually to build a lasting marriage when the time comes.

So when is the time right? Research studies have shown that women are tending to want to wait longer than their male counterparts. A common reason found amongst women who are decided to wait is that that they need an extended period of independence to “discover ourselves.” A second common reason I hear for delaying marriage is that college women need to focus first and foremost on getting a degree and pursuing a career. Often, there is pressure from parents, relatives, and teachers to continue on this path. But what message is this sending? Has money seems to have become more of a priority than relationships?

Are We Choosing the Right Major?

By: Kevin Brawley

When students across the nation, or the world for that matter, are applying for college, they have to make an important decision: what do they want to major in? This is a very important question that takes serious thinking. Some people base their major decision on which major will give them the best career in the future. Karin Fischer and David Glenn, from the Chronicle of Higher Education, wrote an article called 5 College Majors On the Rise that identifies and describes five majors that are now emerging at colleges.

The five majors are as follows: Service Sciences, Health Informatics, Computational Science, Sustainability, and Public Health. Service Sciences studies ways to "improve productivity and increase innovation." Health informatics will teach students going into health-care how to use electronic databases. Computational science teaches "the use of computer modeling and simulation to advance other fields." Sustainability teaches the science behind being environmentally sustainable. This major is along the lines of environmental engineering. Lastly, Public Health teaches more epidemiology and less of actual medicine in an undergraduate setting.

These five majors are on the rise because they are all based around the most rapidly growing fields today. However, most college students probably do not have that in mind when choosing their major. Unfortunately, some choose the easiest major just so they can go through college carefree. Others choose their majors to follow in the footsteps of relatives, or it is predetermined by their parents which major they want their son or daughter to pursue at university. Then, there are some students that go through three years of college to finally figure out the right major for them. Fortunately, in the end, a lot of students choose their majors based on what they are passionate about and feel like they can contribute the most to the advancement of the field.

Sticky Hands

Chris Massad

Americans between the age of 25 and 44 are the most likely age group victims of scam and credit card theft, according to a 2004 Federal Trade Commission report. However, many people are unaware of the growing rate of identity theft and scam for college students. Experts say that because of their naivete and love for technology, students in college are prime targets. Many scams are birthed online. Buying books online is one way thieves target students. Experts are urging students to be extremely careful when purchasing books online. Denise Owens, Comerica Bank's Texas fraud and identity theft investigator says, "If it seems too good to be true, it is." Another way criminals like to take money is through money transfers. Foreign students are often wiring money home or having money wired to them from home, and that creates opportunities for smart computer hackers to drain an account.

Many college students either lose or report stolen debit or credits card every day. Sometime, this is unavoidable, but universities have been making matters worse. Colleges around the nation have adopted an I.D. card with debit card capabilities. Students don't treat these cards like credit or debit cards, and coupled with the fact that they need them most everywhere they go on campus, it makes it very easy for another student with sticky hands to grab the card and drain the funds. It's tough for students to avoid theft when there are many opportunities to fall victim to the crime. The only preventive measure students can take is be careful when purchasing this online and use protected sites whenever possible.

Assignments: from Paper to Electronic

Harry Han

Communication makes our life comfortable. One of the best communication systems developed during the 20th century, internet has been providing people convenience and nowadays, paper-printing seems ancient. Thus due to the improvement of communication worldwide, colleges are finding internet a useful source of convenience for handing assignments in.

Online sites known as “T-Square” and “Web-Assign” are a convenient systems for Georgia Tech professors and students, where they can have access to assignments and homework online. As a result, professors are able to assign homework to students, in their very own desks, without handing each student a hand-out for their assignment. Moreover, it also became convenient for students as students did not have to track down their professors to find out what they have missed as they only had to log in to T-Square and check out the assignment block in their classes. However, with great convenience, students had to show some more maturity in their management with assignments.

As posting up and handing in assignments became easier, some students find themselves finishing their homework during the last hour of assignment due date. Moreover, students now have fewer excuses to earn a freebie from late assignments because all their assignments are posted online and missing a class due to sickness will not extend their due date. Therefore through this type of online system, students can learn to finish their tasks without other people around them nagging.

Online posts came as a convenient and fast education system for both professors and students. However with much convenience, students of higher education find themselves in need of much maturity and organization with their assignments. In a nutshell, students may thrive within higher education if they are not influenced to procrastinate due to convenient online post assignments.