Giving thanks

As we all take today to give thanks with our families (or to watch football and eat all day and not feel bad about it) I dug up some higher ed gems to ponder so you can say “Thank God that isn’t me!”. (And if it is, my apologies):

A grim future for Niche Colleges: That’s what Carnegie Communications predicted after surveying 860 high school students across the country. The results overwhelmingly showed these colleges — mostly all- women’s, historically black, and Catholic colleges and universities — were not as popular as similar public and private college choices, which surveyors say is a result of a “continued economic downturn.”

Only 10 percent of women said they would be “very likely” to apply to women’s colleges, and only 11 percent of black students said the same of historically black colleges and universities. Thirty-six percent of Catholic students said they would be very likely to apply to Catholic institutions.

Why? When money is tight students look for a college where they can get the strongest academic programs with the most diverse student life for their money. A narrow population or course of study doesn’t fit that need, surveyors said.

VTech (non)alert system: After gunshots sounded at the Blacksburg, Va campus, Virginia Tech officials sent emergency notifications across campus with one small glitch — they didn’t get delivered to cell phones or other mobile devices.

The alert went to places like campus LED screens, the university homepage and staff, student and faculty e-mail accounts. But messages to cell phones, mobile devices and non-university e-mail accounts, which are sent by on a system, run by company 3n, did not go through. More than 30,000 people are signed up for this service, officials said.

The university later determined the shots came from nail-gun cartridges, which police said were likely exploded manually with a trash-bin lid. Needless to say, those who were on campus for the 2007 massacre that killed 33 people were not amused by the pranksters or the failed service.

And the first thing to go is .. the students?: The New York Times reported last week that the California University system will have to cut enrollment if the state doesn’t increase its aid.

The board said it would cut the enrollment by 10,000 students for the 2009-10 academic year — the first time in history it will turn away students who otherwise meet their admissions standards.

To make things worse, the Times also reported applications for Fall 2009 are up almost 20 percent from last year, with a 36 percent increase in applications from community college transfer students.

“We have put the education system on a starvation diet, and each and every year it becomes weaker.”

-Lt. Gov. John Garamond

Cuomo=Champion for change?

He’s at it again.

New York State Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo is blanketing the northeast with subpoenas. Last year, it was to unravel some pretty serious mishaps in the student loan industry. But now it’s to take a closer look at colleges and universities who require their students to buy health insurance.

An article in the Washington Post today reports Cuomo has supoenad Georgetown University, after issuing subpoenas to several New York State private and public universities late last week, including Columbia, Sarah Lawerence, Cornell and several State University of New York campuses.

The inquiry is similar to that of the loan industry, which revealed that colleges and universities were steering their students toward specific lenders. This investigation aims to determine if these institutions offer enough disclosure about policy terms and costs to students, many of whom are already insured under their parent’s insurance. The Post article suggests investigators suspect schools are not giving enough information about options,and the Times suggests investigators are also examining whether or not they are receiving payment for steering students toward using one insurer over another. (If you followed the loan scandal, this should ring a bell).

As of 2006, one in five traditional-age college students was uninsured, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office. Both articles reported 57 percent of schools require their students to have health insurance, and the majority of those schools are private.

A representative for the SUNY schools — which include Stony Brook, Buffalo State, Oswego, Purchase, the University at Buffalo and Binghamton — told the Times that these institutions received requests for documents (not subpoenas) that included copies of colleges’ requests for contracts with insurers, statistics on paid premiums and any information the schools give to students about the policies that are available.

Cuomo’s two-year inquiry into the loan industry ended with a comprehensive marketing code many schools now follow. And his investigations into the banking industry and L.I.RR yielded similar results. If his success continues, it could help ignite the kind of reform higher ed advocate always talk about but can never quite deliver.

Curbing tuition hikes? It’s not so crazy.

Apparently, there ARE pockets of innovation in Texas. (Who knew?)

According to an article in the Daily Texan, if a bill filed Monday by two Texas senators passes during the passes during the 2009 Texas Legislative Session, the state could curb unregulated tuition increases for the next two years.

State Sens. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, a McAllen Democrat, and Tommy Williams, a Woodlands Republican, presented the bill in a bi-partisan effort on Tuesday.

Their bill would also cap tuition increases beyond that two-year timeframe using the Consumer Price Index The most “forward-thinking”  provision is one that would  require a majority of students who are eligible to vote to approve university fees not required by statute (cool).

In 2003, the legislature passed a bill that allows the boards of public universities to set differente designated tution rates. In other words, there is no current limit on the amount a univeristy in Texas can raise tuition.

Because of that, tuition and fees in the state have increased a total average of 53 percent since 2003.

(let me say that again).

A 53 percent increase in five years. According to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board,  Tuition at UT alone cost $2,721 in the fall 2003 semester and $4,065 in fall 2007 — an increase of 49 percent.

The 81st legislature meets beginning Jan. 13. If this passes it could set a (much needed) precedent for other state-run colleges and universities

Comm Colleges to Ivys: Eat your hearts out.

In a rare moment of higher ed optimism, this year’s National Survey of Student Engagement (nessie!) found the average student experience doesn’t vary greatly between institutions — instead, 90 percent of the difference in educational quality is happening among students on the same campuses.

Nessie releases national averages of college and universities scores on “effective educational practice.” Institutions that participate can choose to release their individual results, and several hundred have done so. (A local note of interest: traditionally, Ithaca College has not, though this year it is listed on USA Today’s comparison of scores. More on that later.).

The  Chronicle of Higher ed pulled several examples of variations within institutions from the survey, which which polled 380,000 randomly selected first-year and senior students at 722 four-year colleges and universities, including :

Like these two examples, much of the data that illustrates the finding is anecdotal. Still, the point it tries to make is a good one: often, institutions lose sight of achieving a consistent student experience across their own campus because they are too focused on where they stand among other colleges and universities.

For example, USA Today’s article on this year’s survey showed:

• Only 56% of first-year students who expected to frequently discuss grades or assignments with an instructor reported doing so.

•Among students whose parents did not go to college, about half of first-year students and seniors were not involved in any extracurricular activities such as campus clubs or student government.

Alexander C. McCormick, director of the survey and a professor at the University of Indiana at Bloomington, told the Chronicle of Higher Education that individual results can help institutions identify which students and programs need more attention.

“The current climate really drives us to focus solely on interinstitutional comparisons. That’s what we’re trying to complicate a little bit … Even institutions that perform pretty well on assessments like Nessie may still find that there are pockets of disengagement within their institution that deserve attention.”

Old news in a new light

The demographic shift looming over higher education is a problem that’s been projected for at least a year — if not more. But as it approaches, more organizations are beginning to study exactly what the shift could mean for America’s colleges and universities.

One of them is The College Board’s Task Force on Admissions in the 21st Century, which released a report Wednesday the Chronicle of Higher Ed said “describes admissions as an increasingly complex (and confusing) process, warped by public misperceptions, a dearth of professional development, and unequal access to higher education.”

(You don’t say.)

But the report did raise a few interesting questions. For one, it predicted a possible “new Gilded Age,” which would divide Americans into two categories: affluent and educated, or poor and underprepared.The “two Americas” would be divided by income, which the report said is also linked to inequities in admissions.

“Although the mailboxes of high-achieving students overflow with letters urging them to apply to colleges across the country,” it says, “the mailboxes of nearly half a million potential college students sit empty because their high school grades and test results are disappointing.”

The report predicted an increase in low-income and minority students who attend college and require remediation. It also proposed a “declaration of values,” which would consist of 10 principles for admissions administrators. They include broad suggestions as well as more specific ones, like simplifying the financial aid system and also strengthening relationship between elementary schools, secondary schools and colleges.

The report also asks professionals to pledge to seven action commitments, which include helping train admissions officials and engaging the community in discussions about education.

It took three years to compile the data in the report — and I think it will take at least twice that amount of time to see significant results.

There ARE other parts of the ballot …

Don’t get me wrong — I’ve loved following the presidential race (even if it has been going on for two years).  I’m a strong Obama supporter and I hope he earns a victory tonight.

But what a two-year media frenzy can do to state or local measures on an election ballot is fascinating. Especially in a race as exciting as this one, propositions or amendments can be overlooked — or worse, ignored.

But they shouldn’t be. Most state-level initiatives can start to affect residents even before the next president takes office.

(That means you should probably take the time to read some of them).

Higher ed is an issue with a number of propositions in this election — 18, to be exact, in 13 states

You can read a full list of propositions here, but highlights include:

  1. Luck of the Draw: In Arkansas, Amendment 3 would create a state lottery thats proceeds would go directly to financing student scholarships at state four-year and two-year colleges. Amendment 3 supporters say it could bring in  $100-million annually for the scholarships. Those who oppose the amendment estimate closer to $60-million. Measure 62 in Oregon also proposes a lottery system that would benefit higher ed.
  2. Affirmative … inaction?: Amendment 46 in Colorado would eliminate affirmative-action programs that give priority to “groups or individuals based on race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin” at all public institutions, including universities and community colleges. Nebraska’s Initiative Measure 424 is almost identical.
  3. Bring on the blackjack: Question 1 in Maine would allow the state to go forward with plans for a casino in Oxford County. Ten percent of the revenue would go to higher ed programs, including  funds to help state residents repay student loans, to create prepaid-tuition plans, to continue NextGen First Step Grant Program, the state’s college saving plan, and to expand facilities and courses offered at the Maine Community College System. Questions on the ballots in Colorado and Maryland also involve casinos.

Get out and vote!

Maybe if we whine they’ll think we care about politics.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry at this editorial from Kent U.’s student newspaper, the Daily Kent Stater.

It appears the editorial board decided the issue most worthy of their attention before the election was the fact that their classes weren’t canceled for election day.

(What?)

It gets better:

“Many students have worked non-stop since the semester’s start. However, they haven’t had a chance to cast an early ballot, and some may struggle to find time to vote Tuesday.”

If you want to vote, you make time for it. Most Polls are open for 10 to 12 hours. Unless Kent U is some degree-mill, I don’t think students have classes straight through that time period.

It’s things like this that give the college-aged generation the “apathetic, i work too hard” stereotype … and it’s things like this that make that stereotype harder to shake.