The Kept-Up Academic Librarian

Community Colleges Need More Funding But Must Show Results

As elite universities debate with Congress over how much of their multibillion-dollar endowments to spend, a new report argues that higher education's heavy-lifters, community colleges, need both more money and better results. As elite universities debate with Congress over how much of their multibillion-dollar endowments to spend, a new report argues that higher education's heavy-lifters, community colleges, need both more money and better results. Read more at:
http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2008/01/31/community_colleges_need_funds_study_says/

Latest Issue Of University Business Now Online

The February 2008 issue of University Business is now available online. The cover article is about orientation programs. Other articles discuss baby-boomers retiring on campus, creating campus-wide wireless networks, and building access control systems. Find this issue at:
http://www.universitybusiness.com/viewpage.aspx?pagename=[currenttoc]

College-Age Voters Considered A Political Wild Card

A new study finds that increased voter participation extends beyond college students to young people from many walks of life -- working to unemployed, Asian American to Hispanic. Rock the Vote organizers also say the interest extends to states with upcoming primaries and caucuses, with a significant increase in young voters downloading registration forms online, compared with this time in 2004. Political experts consider voters in the college age group to be a wild card; it's not clear how they'll vote. Read more at:
http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2008/01/29/will_young_voters_have_an_impact/

Veterans Getting Shortchanged By The GI Bill

When today's military veterans return home from their nightmarish tours of combat duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, many nurture dreams of earning a college degree, just as many of their grandparents did after serving in World War II. Unfortunately, the nation is not responding to their service as it did for WWII vets. Today's combat veterans encounter a GI Bill whose stinginess would have been unimaginable to their grandparents. Read more at:
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bal-op.gibill27jan27,0,4866005.story

All Indicators Are Pointing To A Crazy Admissions Season

It looks to be the year of the wait list. For many top colleges, the application process has been roiled by changes, among them a dramatic shift in financial aid, and a few influential schools have ended early admission programs. There is an unusual level of uncertainty, both for colleges and students -- as if the admissions process weren't stressful enough. Adding to the mix is another year of historically high numbers for applications at many schools. Read more at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/25/AR2008012503080.html?wpisrc=rss_education

Use Of Open Source Software Will Double In Higher Ed

Open source software will nearly double in the education space over the next four years. From its present level of $286.2 million, the market--including software, services, and maintenance--will reach $489.9 million by 2012, according to a report released today by market analyst Datamonitor, which proclaimed that "open source software has the ability to change the face of the education Industry." The report also warns, however, that there are risks involved with deploying open source solutions, particularly in the areas of support and maintenance. Read more at:
http://www.thejournal.com/articles/21900

Presidents Are Blogging Away

Around the nation, blogs are becoming part of university presidents' outreach arsenal, much to the delight of students, alumni and parents and to the trepidation of public relations handlers, who worry about an inadvertent slip destroying a reputation. As many as 30 or more college presidents in North America, from large public universities to two-year technical colleges and Christian universities, have jumped into the blogosphere in the past two or three years. The trend heated up this year. Read more at:
http://www.courant.com/news/education/hc-prezblog0128.artjan28,0,3229930.story

When Study Abroad Goes Bad

The University of Washington is paying 17 students $2,500 each because a study-abroad trip to Ghana last summer didn't go as expected. Students say that's putting it mildly -- that they were isolated from the coordinating faculty member, given little food and didn't get proper care when they were sick. Students say the amount they've been promised won't cover their tuition and travel expenses, estimated by one student to be a few thousand more. Read more at:
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/348661_uwghana25.html

Community Colleges New Destination For Foreign Students

More middle-class kids from abroad, whose English-language skills won't pass muster at universities, are discovering two-year programs. Keen to attract these kids and stand out in a crowded field, schools are ramping up their global marketing efforts. It's no secret why Nguyen and her peers are descending on community colleges. Besides being easier to get into than universities, they also cost far less. It all adds up to community colleges falling all over themselves to attract attention overseas. Read more at:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_04/b4068065102668.htm?chan=search

Latest EDUCAUSE Review Now Online

The January/February 2008 issue of EDUCAUSE Review is now available online. This issue contains articles a new article from John Seely Brown on Learning 2.0, an article on educational analytics and a variety of columns from folks like Diana Oblinger and Clifford Lynch. Find the issue at:
http://connect.educause.edu/Library/EDUCAUSE+Review/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVol/45821