About Education

This page contains an archive of the last 100 entries posted to ProgressNow.org Daily News Digest in the Education category. They are listed from newest to oldest. You can find older entries using the search box below.

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February 28, 2008

A Lender Halts U.S.-Backed Student Loans - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/28/business/28loans.html?ref=business...
The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, one of the nation’s largest student loan operations, announced Wednesday that it would suspend making federal-guaranteed loans starting early next month. The move offered further evidence of how the tight credit markets are affecting the industry, with some lenders warning that it could be more difficult and more costly for many students to obtain college loans for the 2008-9 academic year. “Widespread lack of confidence in the capital market has spilled over into other asset classes, driving up our cost of borrowing and denying us the capital needed to fund new student loans,” said James Preston, the interim chief executive of the Pennsylvania lender, a state-owned company that both makes and guarantees loans. Such loan operations have been dealing with two problems. Congress reduced subsidies to lenders in the federal-guaranteed student loan program. In addition, investors have recently shied away from purchasing securities backed by student loans, making it more costly for the lenders to raise the capital they need.
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Colleges guard soaring endowments - The Boston Globe

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/02/28/colleges_guard_soaring_end...
Under growing pressure from Congress, the country's wealthiest colleges and universities are sharply resisting calls to spend more of their soaring endowments to expand financial aid and curb tuition hikes that critics say are putting college beyond the reach of ordinary families.
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February 25, 2008

More states consolidate on 529 college savings plans - USATODAY.com

http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/college/2008-02-24-529-plans_N.htm...
As families strive to save money for college, several small states are dumping their 529 college-savings plans and urging the investors to roll their money over to other states' lower-cost plans. Investors can use any state's 529 plan — and later pull out all the funds, federal tax-free, for college costs. But many invest in their own state's plan for state tax breaks and convenience. Tennessee is closing its 529 savings plan this year because of lackluster demand. Investors can roll their money over to any state's plan, but Tennessee is recommending that they consider Georgia's much larger 529 plan. Both plans are managed by TIAA-CREF. The move follows the closing two years ago of Wyoming's plan; Wyoming now encourages its residents to consider a 529 plan sponsored by Colorado. Mississippi may be next. It says it's "considering options" such as partnering with Georgia to offer a 529 plan. Georgia says it's also talking to a few other small states about rolling over assets to its plan.
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Some Teachers' Contracts Bind Reforms, Study Says - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/24/AR2008022402012....
The study produced by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a District-based think tank that studies educational policy, added fuel to an ongoing debate over whether there is a need for more management-friendly contracts that allow superintendents to reward skill over seniority as school systems seek to meet the goals of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The study divided the blame between unions and school leaders, saying the former were too bound to industrial-era protections and the latter need to negotiate more aggressively and take advantage of areas in which contract language is murky. "These findings suggest that tales of victimhood told by superintendents, school boards, and principals may reflect more than a hint of blame shifting and exaggeration," wrote the study's authors, Frederick M. Hess of the American Enterprise Institute and Coby Loup of the Fordham Institute. The authors suggested school and district leaders were sometimes "lethargic" or vulnerable to "exertions of union influence."
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Reading and Math Curtailing Other Topics, Study Finds - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/24/AR2008022401996....
The No Child Left Behind law has led many elementary schools to spend more time on reading and math and less on social studies, science, art and recess, a report released last week finds. The Center on Education Policy's survey of 349 school systems across the country bolsters anecdotal evidence that the 2002 federal law's goal of having every child proficient in reading and math by 2014 has forced schools to focus on those subjects, sometimes squeezing out other lessons. "This accountability movement is having a significant impact," said Jack Jennings, president and chief executive of the center, based in the District. "School people are feeling the pressure to do better and raise scores. But they are stuck with the amount of time they have." Curriculum narrowing, as the phenomenon is known, has become a key issue in the debate over revamping the law. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, has said he plans to introduce a bill this spring to reauthorize the law with changes.
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February 22, 2008

Duke Lacrosse Players Sue School, City -- chicagotribune.com

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-duke-lacrosse,1,2855312.st...
More than three dozen current and former Duke lacrosse players filed a lawsuit Thursday claiming they suffered emotional distress during the furor over the now-discredited rape case against three of their teammates. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Durham, accuses Duke University, the City of Durham and several school and police officials of fraud, abuse and breach of duty for supporting the prosecution of the case. The lawsuit accuses the private university of implying the highly ranked team was guilty by canceling its season after the rape allegation surfaced. It also accuses Duke of ignoring, suppressing and discrediting evidence that proved the players innocent, and of idly standing by while players suffered abuse and harassment on campus.
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Teachers Strike in Puerto Rico - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/21/AR2008022103180....
Teachers in Puerto Rico walked off the job Thursday, paralyzing most of the island's public schools and staging protests that led to clashes between demonstrators and police. Teachers, parents and students picketed in front of many of the commonwealth's public schools. At least two teachers were injured in the confrontations. Fourteen protesters were arrested, and several were forcefully removed by authorities as they attempted to block access to some schools. The Puerto Rico Teachers Federation, the island's largest union, called the strike after 30 months of failed contract negotiations. The union, which represents 42,000 teachers, called the strike Wednesday after a three-day summit with government leaders -- a last effort to stop the strike -- failed to yield results.
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Genetic Mutations Offer Insights on Human Diversity - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/21/AR2008022102739....
We're all pretty much the same except, of course, for the little things that make us different. Those are the conclusions of three studies published this week that looked at human diversity through the keyhole of the genetic mutations we all carry. The findings -- the latest dividend from the world's investment in the Human Genome Project in the 1990s -- confirm a broad narrative of human history known from previous biological, archaeological and linguistic studies. But the new research adds an astonishing level of detail and a few new insights that were not previously available. All three studies support the idea that modern human beings left East Africa, walked into Central Asia and then fanned out east and west to people the entire planet. The studies also confirm earlier research showing that as a group, Africans have more diverse genes than people of other continents. But the new research further shows that genetic diversity declines steadily the farther one's ancestors traveled from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, which is roughly the site of the exit turnstile for the "out-of-Africa" migration. The studies also show that many seemingly "purebred" ethnic groups have ancestry traceable to more than one continent.
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February 21, 2008

Stanford will eliminate tuition for some students - USATODAY.com

http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/college/2008-02-20-stanford-tuition_N.htm...
Stanford University said Wednesday it plans to eliminate tuition for students with annual family incomes less than $100,000. It also will pay most room and board for students with families making less than $60,000. Financial aid director Karen Cooper says the move comes as middle-income parents express concern about paying for a Stanford education.
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February 19, 2008

As Lending Tightens, Education Could Suffer - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/business/19colleges.html?ref=business...
Major commercial education companies are scrambling to ensure a steady stream of college-level students despite the credit squeeze, with some preparing to offer student loans themselves. The move shows how dependent this sector of education is on student loans and how vulnerable the industry could become if credit woes continue to make it harder for lenders to raise capital. Commercial colleges largely offer practical education in fields like business, computers, health care and culinary arts, often catering to low-income students and students already in the work place. Seeking to reassure investors, Corinthian Colleges Inc., one of the nation’s largest chains, recently said it was exploring “alternatives to help students fund their educational programs,” including expanding its own lending program and finding new lenders. The Career Education Corporation, another large chain, has announced a similar effort. ITT Educational Services Inc. recently announced a deal with three major banks to preserve students loans through the rest of the year.
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Princeton Plans for an Early Year Abroad - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/education/19educ.html?ref=us...
Seizing on students’ desire for a year off before college, Princeton University is working to create a program to send a tenth or more of its newly admitted students to a year of social service work in a foreign country before they set foot on campus as freshmen.
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Students Fight Back Against Gossip Site - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/17/AR2008021701147....
The Cornell University junior was in his dorm between classes when the text message came in from a friend. Check out JuicyCampus.com, it said. The student found his name on the Web site beside a rambling, filthy passage about his sexual exploits, posted by an anonymous student on campus. The young man could only hope the commentary was so ridiculous nobody would believe it. "I thought, `Is this going to affect my job employment? Is this going to make people on campus look at me? Are people going to talk about me behind my back?" said the student, who asked not to be identified. He also wondered about his 11-year-old sister, who is spending more time on the Internet. "What if she Googles me? What will she think about her big brother?" he said. JuicyCampus' endless threads of anonymous innuendo have been a popular Web destination on the seven college campuses where the site launched last fall, including Duke, UCLA and Loyola Marymount. It recently expanded to 50 more, and many of the postings show they've been viewed hundreds and even thousands of times. But JuicyCampus has proved so poisonous there are signs of a backlash.
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February 18, 2008

Colleges Chasing Potential Students - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/16/AR2008021602484....
It's harder to get into the most selective colleges than it was five or 10 years ago, said David Hawkins, director of public policy and research at the National Association for College Admission Counseling, in part because of an unusually large population of high school seniors sending out more applications, driving up numbers of candidates and forcing admission rates down. But the bigger picture is that there are thousands of colleges in the United States, and many are open to almost anyone with a high school diploma. On average, U.S. colleges accept about seven of every 10 applicants, Hawkins said. "It's not really all that difficult to get into a four-year college now." That's why counselors are always trying to reassure stressed-out students: Don't get hung up on one or two big-name universities. Apply to a range of schools. Find the places that fit you and your interests. You'll be fine.
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February 15, 2008

$20 Million Saudi Gift Is Questioned - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/14/AR2008021403487....
A Virginia congressman has asked Georgetown University to explain how it used a $20 million donation from a Saudi prince for its academic center on Muslim and Christian relations. Rep. Frank R. Wolf (R) sent a letter yesterday to university President John J. DeGioia expressing concern about the donation and asking whether the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding has ever produced any reports critical of Saudi Arabia. Wolf has been critical of Saudi Arabia and what he calls its influence on U.S. affairs for some time. His letter to Georgetown states that the Saudi government has financed activities that is suspected of supporting Islamic militants and extremists. He asks for assurances that the center "maintains the impartiality and integrity of scholarship" befitting a great university.
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February 14, 2008

Larger Share of Students Succeed on A.P. Tests - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/14/education/14exam.html?ref=us...
A higher percentage of students in public high schools are taking and passing Advanced Placement exams, according to a report issued Wednesday by the College Board. The gap between the performance of black and white students, however, remains large. Advanced Placement courses, which offer college-level study in 37 subjects, are prepared by the College Board and have been widely seized on as a good route to increasing the rigor of a high school education. The exams are scored on a five-point scale, and some colleges offer course credit to students who pass, earning a score of 3 or above. The proportion of students taking the courses has grown slowly but steadily over the last five years, as has the percentage of students with a score of 3 or higher.
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February 12, 2008

Report Warns of Threat to Campus Reactors - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/12/us/12nuclear.html?ref=us...
The risks of a terrorist attack on a nuclear reactor on a college campus, and the potential consequences, have been underestimated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Congressional auditors say in a report. The report, by the Government Accountability Office, said the commission had overruled expert contractors who thought differently, and misrepresented what the contractors had said. Security requirements at the reactors have changed little since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, according to the auditors, even though many of the reactors still run on enriched uranium, which terrorists could convert into an atomic bomb. In contrast, the rules for civilian power plants have become much stricter, the report said. An unclassified version of the audit found uncertainty “about whether N.R.C.’s assessment reflects the full range of security risks and potential consequences of an attack on a research reactor.” The audit said that the rules “may need immediate strengthening” and that more parts of research reactors were probably vulnerable to damage than the commission assumed.
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February 11, 2008

Selection Methods Vary Across Nation - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/10/AR2008021002075....
In Maryland and 22 other states, the schools chief is chosen by the state board of education, according to the Council of Chief State School Officers. The Maryland board is appointed by the governor, but its members serve staggered terms, limiting the influence of a new governor such as O'Malley. Grasmick has served since 1991. In Virginia and 12 other states, the governor chooses. Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) appointed Billy K. Cannaday Jr. to a four-year term as superintendent of public instruction in 2006. In a few of the above 36 states, the gubernatorial or state board appointment power is subject to confirmation. In 14 states, voters elect a schools chief. The longest-serving superintendent, North Dakota's Wayne G. Sanstead, was first elected in 1984 and took office in 1985.
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February 8, 2008

House Backs Billions in New College Aid - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/07/AR2008020703973....
The House passed legislation yesterday that calls for billions of dollars in new financial aid for needy students to attend college and new steps to protect student loan borrowers and lower the cost of textbooks. The bill, which passed 354 to 58, also would lead to the creation of a Web site to help families to compare the costs of schools and would require that institutions of higher education with rapidly growing tuition and fee prices report why costs are rising. "Congress is taking steps to make college more affordable, and this is a good first step," said Gabriel Pendas, president of the United States Student Association. "We are heading in the right direction. We don't have the whole picture here, though."
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U-Md. Offers Ivy League Lessons to Older Crowd - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/07/AR2008020703974....
For those who feel they missed out on an Ivy League education, there's this: The University of Maryland is bringing leading professors from Harvard, Yale and other top schools to teach classes, and students won't need SAT scores or prerequisites to get in. With an eye on the booming boomer interest in lifelong education, U-Md. officials are announcing a partnership today that will marry talent from the country's best-known schools with the university's own. Professors will lead a day of seminars March 29 geared toward alumni and local residents long out of school, officials said. "The baby boomers, the over-50 group, are the fastest growth area in higher education," said Judith Broida, dean of U-Md.'s office of professional studies. "We are very much targeting alums of the university and others who would love to come back for a day of education and enlightenment."
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February 7, 2008

States push for cyberbully controls - USATODAY.com

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-02-06-Cyberbullying_N.htm...
The problem of cyberbullying gained national attention last November when the story surfaced of a 13-year-old Missouri girl who killed herself following an Internet hoax. The death of Megan Meier, who was allegedly tormented by a neighbor on the Web, echoed another case three years earlier in Vermont. There, a 13-year-old boy committed suicide after being bullied online by peers who spread rumors that he was gay. Those incidents — along with complaints from teenagers, parents and educators — are spurring an increasing number of state lawmakers across the USA to draft legislation giving schools more power to do something about bullying over the Internet.
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February 4, 2008

Endowments Widen a Higher Education Gap - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/04/education/04endowment.html?ref=us...
The result is that America’s already stratified system of higher education is becoming ever more so, and the chasm is creating all sorts of tensions as the less wealthy colleges try to compete. Even state universities are going into fund-raising overdrive and trying to increase endowments to catch up. The wealthiest colleges can tap their endowments to give substantial financial aid to families earning $180,000 or more. They can lure star professors with high salaries and hard-to-get apartments. They are starting sophisticated new research laboratories, expanding their campuses and putting up architecturally notable buildings. Other campuses are fighting to retain faculty, and some, with less cachet, are charging tuition that rival Harvard’s and scrambling to explain why their financial aid cannot match the most prosperous of the Ivy League.
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Area Schools Set To Lose Millions Under Medicaid Policy Changes - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/02/AR2008020202555....
Educators nationwide are protesting a Bush administration move to curtail hundreds of millions of dollars in Medicaid funding for disabled students that could force some schools already in budget straits to trim health services or cut back instructional programs. The shift in federal reimbursement policy threatens to strip about $635 million from schools in the next academic year and $3.6 billion over five years, with Washington area schools in line to lose millions of dollars. The rule, to take effect in June unless Congress intervenes, will bar schools from billing Medicaid for busing special education students to and from school and for certain administrative expenses, including enrolling children in Medicaid and coordinating and scheduling services. Administration officials said schools, required under federal law to provide education to children with special needs, should pick up the bill for expenses that are part of their "educational mission." But educators said it would further strain schools in a time of lean budgets, hitting big city and poor rural systems hardest.
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Law Seen as Step To Cut Students' Debt Burdens - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/03/AR2008020302539....
As students confront rising tuition, a new federal law aims to help those who are borrowing more than ever to pay for college. Student aid advocates and higher education experts say the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, signed by President Bush in September, marks a significant but imperfect step toward alleviating college debt. For the neediest families, the law allows lower-than-ever monthly payments on some federal loans and provides increased Pell grants. And for those who plan on being career prosecutors or who work for nonprofit agencies or in other public service for at least 10 years, the law forgives remaining federal debt. Aid advocates hope the Democratic-led Congress will continue increasing federal benefits and taking other steps to help students. Some are backing legislation, expected to reach the House floor as early as this week, that would compel lenders to disclose more about interest rates on private loans. They also urge lawmakers to bar private lenders from using the names of universities for "co-branding" as they market loans to students who might not be aware of how to obtain the best possible rates.
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February 1, 2008

Online Schooling Grows, Setting Off a Debate - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/01/education/01virtual.html?ref=business...
Half a million American children take classes online, with a significant group, like the Weldies, getting all their schooling from virtual public schools. The rapid growth of these schools has provoked debates in courtrooms and legislatures over money, as the schools compete with local districts for millions in public dollars, and over issues like whether online learning is appropriate for young children. One of the sharpest debates has concerned the Weldies’ school in Wisconsin, where last week the backers of online education persuaded state lawmakers to keep it and 11 other virtual schools open despite a court ruling against them and the opposition of the teachers union. John Watson, a consultant in Colorado who does an annual survey of education that is based on the Internet, said events in Wisconsin followed the pattern in other states where online schools have proliferated fast. “Somebody says, ‘What’s going on, does this make sense?’ ” Mr. Watson said. “And after some inquiry most states have said, ‘Yes, we like online learning, but these are such new ways of teaching children that we’ll need to change some regulations and get some more oversight.’ ”
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January 28, 2008

Heftier Aid at Elite Colleges Draws Praise, Rebukes - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/26/AR2008012601814....
Decisions by Harvard, Yale and other elite schools to make college more affordable to a larger pool of applicants might have the unintended consequence of harming less wealthy institutions and the students who attend them, some educators and financial aid experts say. Yale University this month became the latest school with an enormous endowment to announce it was slashing prices for lower-, middle- and upper-middle-income families and substituting grants for loans. Harvard University announced a similar program in December, and since then, the moves have drawn praise and criticism. Sen. Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, who had been pressuring universities to do more to make college affordable, applauded Yale and Harvard. But he chastised more than 60 other schools with endowments of at least $1 billion that have failed to follow suit, saying they "are making church mice sound loud by comparison."
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Sallie Mae Settles Suit Over Buyout That Fizzled - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/28/business/28deal.html?ref=business...
Sallie Mae, the embattled student lending giant, reached a settlement on Sunday over its scuttled $25 billion buyout, ending months of legal fighting that had cast a cloud over the company, according to people briefed on the agreement. The company, formally known as the SLM Corporation, agreed to settle with its onetime buyers, which include the private equity firm J. C. Flowers & Company, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, in exchange for a deal to refinance about $30 billion in debt that was due next month. Both Sallie Mae’s lawsuit and the buyers’ counterclaims will be dismissed, and the merger agreement has been terminated, these people said. A trial in Delaware Chancery Court had been scheduled for December of this year. A spokesman for Sallie Mae declined to comment, as did a spokeswoman for the buyers’ consortium.
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Sex misconduct by teachers weighed - USATODAY.com

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-01-27-teacher-abuse_N.htm...
Heeding a steady drumbeat of sexual misconduct cases involving teachers, at least 15 states are now considering stronger oversight and tougher punishment for educators who take advantage of their students. Lawmakers say they are concerned about an increasingly well-documented phenomenon: While the vast majority of America's teachers are committed professionals, there also is a persistent problem with sexual misconduct in U.S. schools. When abuse happens, administrators too often fail to let others know about it, and too many legal loopholes let offenders stay in the classroom. Advocates include governors, education superintendents and legislative leaders.
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January 25, 2008

Senators press for colleges' financial details - USATODAY.com

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2008-01-24-senators-education_N.htm...
Two key members of the Senate Finance Committee, which is responsible for setting U.S. tax policy, today wrote to 136 colleges with endowments of $500 million or more, pressing for additional details on their finances and signaling an interest in legislation that would require colleges to use more of their endowments to keep costs to families manageable. "A top concern for Americans, and for Congress, is the rising cost of higher education," says the letter, signed by Sens. Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the committee's chairman and ranking member, respectively. "It seems clear … that there is much that can be accomplished by colleges and universities, particularly those with significant endowments, to control costs and provide real relief for students from low- and middle-income families."
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January 24, 2008

Bad Loans Help Push Sallie Mae To Loss - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/23/AR2008012301275....
Sallie Mae, the student loan giant, reported Wednesday that it lost $1.64 billion in the fourth quarter, a sharp reversal from its $18 million profit in the comparable quarter a year earlier. Bad loans were partly to blame as the loose lending practices that crippled the mortgage industry also infected the student loan business. Chief executive Albert L. Lord told investors and Wall Street analysts during a briefing here that the Reston-based lender had ignored its own precepts by issuing loans to students who had poor prospects of paying them back. "Sallie Mae has lent too much money to students who have gone to schools without very good graduation records," Lord said.
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January 17, 2008

Climate Talk’s Cancellation Splits a Town - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/17/us/17climate.html?ref=us...
School authorities’ cancellation of a talk that a Nobel laureate climate researcher was to have given to high school students has deeply divided this small farming and ranching town at the base of the east side of the Rocky Mountains. The scholar, Steven W. Running, a professor of ecology at the University of Montana, was scheduled to speak to about 130 students here last Thursday about his career and the global changes occurring because of the earth’s warming. Dr. Running was a lead author of a global warming report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the 400-member United Nations body that shared last year’s Nobel Peace Prize with former Vice President Al Gore. But when some residents complained that his presentation here would be one-sided because no opposing view would be offered, the superintendent of Choteau School District No. 1, Kevin St. John, canceled it. Dr. Running was surprised. “Disbelief was the primary reaction,” he said in a telephone interview. “I’ve never been canceled before. But it was almost comical. I had a pretty candid discussion with the superintendent and the school board, and they said there were some conservative citizens who didn’t want me to speak.”
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January 16, 2008

Global Advances Challenge U.S. Dominance in Science - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/16/us/16nsf.html?ref=us...
The United States remains the world leader in scientific and technological innovation, but its dominance is threatened by economic development elsewhere, particularly in Asia, the National Science Board said Tuesday in its biennial report on science and engineering. The United States’ position is especially delicate, the agency said, given its reliance on foreign-born workers to fill technical jobs. The board is the oversight agency for the National Science Foundation, the leading source of money for basic research in the physical sciences.
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January 15, 2008

Yale Announces Plan To Cut Tuition for Many - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/14/AR2008011401122....
Yale University is slashing the cost of tuition by as much as 50 percent for some students, joining a list of elite schools seeking to make college more affordable for lower-, middle- and upper-middle-income families, officials said yesterday. The move comes amid concern about the cost of college and calls by U.S. legislators for universities with healthy endowments to do more to ease the financial burden on families. Last month, Harvard University announced that it would cut costs by as much as 50 percent and eliminate student loans. In a meeting with Washington Post reporters and editors yesterday, Yale President Richard Levin said that in the past 1 1/2 years, university officials had become "concerned that we were shortchanging" students by not providing more financial aid to needy families. He said increased returns on Yale's $22.5 billion endowment enabled the university to move forward with its plans.
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January 14, 2008

Sallie Mae Pays Price To Hire New CFO - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/13/AR2008011302328....
Sallie Mae, reeling from a series of setbacks, paid heavily to recruit a new chief financial officer last week. The Reston-based student loan company agreed to pay John F. "Jack" Remondi an annual salary of $1 million. Remondi also was given a form of stock award that would deliver $2 million for every $1 increase in the company's share price, subject to certain conditions. Remondi, 45, could earn an annual cash bonus of up to $3 million. His perks include up to two years of housing in Reston and $100,000 a year for personal use of corporate aircraft. If he is fired without cause within a year, he would receive at least $1.5 million in severance pay, according to a company filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
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January 8, 2008

Congress Is Urged to Enhance 'No Child' Law - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/07/AR2008010701823....
President Bush urged the Democratic-led Congress on Monday to revive a stalled effort to reauthorize the No Child Left Behind law before he leaves office, but he pledged to veto any bill that "weakens the accountability" measures at the core of one of his signature domestic achievements. To champion the law enacted six years ago, Bush spoke here at Horace Greeley Elementary, a school with a high percentage of Latino students, where reading and math test scores have jumped in recent years. Flanked by students in the school's small library, Bush said the law's requirement for measurable academic gains has led to improvement in schools nationwide. "I know No Child Left Behind has worked," Bush said, as he urged Congress to revise the law to increase flexibility for state and local agencies without loosening the annual testing and enforcement provisions that give it teeth. "If Congress passes a bill that weakens the accountability system in the No Child Left Behind Act, I will strongly oppose it and veto it."
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Sallie Mae Names Bank Executive as Chairman - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/07/AR2008010701160....
Sallie Mae yesterday named former bank executive Anthony P. Terracciano as its chairman, a title that had been held by chief executive Albert L. Lord. The appointment boosted the student loan company's stock, which has plummeted in recent weeks, partly because of a December briefing in which Lord's lack of answers, profanity and brusque treatment of analysts shook investors' confidence. The Reston firm's stock closed at $17.83 yesterday, up $1.16 but still far below its 52-week high of $58. Terracciano, 68, brings substantial experience to the role as a former president of First Union, now known as Wachovia. He has also held senior positions at First Fidelity, Mellon and Chase Manhattan banks. He joined the board of District-based Riggs National in 2004 when it was under federal investigation for money-laundering, and he served as chairman of Riggs when it was acquired by PNC Financial the following year.
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Court Revives Lawsuit Against No Child Left Behind Law - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/education/08child.html?ref=washington...
A federal appeals court on Monday revived a legal challenge to the federal No Child Left Behind education law, saying that school districts have been justified in complaining that the law required them to pay for testing and other programs without providing sufficient federal money. The 2-to-1 ruling from the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, in Cincinnati, gave new life to a 2005 lawsuit and appeared to be a setback to the Bush administration. The ruling came on a day when President Bush marked the law’s sixth anniversary with a visit to an elementary school in Chicago, where he said, “I know No Child Left Behind has worked.”
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January 4, 2008

Academy defends the teaching of evolution - Los Angeles Times

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-evolution4jan04,1,3865876.s...
The U.S. National Academy of Sciences on Thursday issued a spirited defense of evolution as the bedrock principle of modern biology, arguing that it, not creationism, must be taught in public-school science classes. The academy, which operates under a mandate from Congress to advise the government on science and technology matters, issued the report at a time when the theory of evolution, first offered in the 19th century, faces renewed attack by some religious conservatives. The report says creationism, based on the explanation offered in the Bible, and the related idea of "intelligent design" are not science and, as such, should not be taught in science classrooms at public schools. "We seem to have continuing challenges to the teaching of evolution in schools. That's something that doesn't seem to go away," Barbara Schaal, an evolutionary biologist at Washington University in St. Louis and vice president of the National Academy of Sciences, said in a telephone interview. "We need a citizenry that's trained in real science."
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January 2, 2008

Texting Fuels Arkansas School Panic - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/29/AR2007122901050....
Rumors spread by cell phone text-messaging flew through a school after a student's suicide, rumors that other kids planned to kill themselves, that students planned to bring weapons to school, that there was going to be "a shoot 'em up." Panicked parents rushed to take their children home. But police and officials at Augusta High School say the panic turned out to be only a way for students to avoid taking semester-ending exams.
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December 28, 2007

Sallie Discloses Billing Audit - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/27/AR2007122702301....
Sallie Mae said yesterday that the Education Department is investigating its billing practices and that its business of issuing loans subsidized by the federal government will be significantly less profitable because of changes by Congress. The disclosures were in a regulatory filing outlining the Reston student lender's plans to raise $3 billion to satisfy an agreement requiring it to buy back its own stock at above-market prices. Sallie Mae shares closed yesterday at their lowest price since 2001. In its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, SLM Corp., as the company is officially known, also said it faces a federal lawsuit filed in Connecticut that seeks class-action status and alleges that Sallie Mae steered minority students toward more expensive loans. The company denied the charge in the filing.
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December 27, 2007

Sallie Mae Bids to Raise $2.5 Billion In Stock Sale - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/26/AR2007122601694....
Sallie Mae, the Reston student loan company, said yesterday that it would try to raise $2.5 billion by issuing new stock and use the proceeds to help it satisfy a standing agreement to repurchase its shares. The planned stock sale is part of an effort to extricate the company from a financial bind -- another link in a chain reaction of trouble set off by the collapse of negotiations to sell the company and the collapse of its stock price. After the stock market closed yesterday, the company said it would try to raise the $2.5 billion by selling both common stock and preferred stock that converts into common shares. Most of that money would be used to settle buyback contracts that have become a millstone around the company's neck. Sallie Mae had been working for months on a leveraged buyout that would have given stockholders $60 per share, but the deal fell apart. Its stock closed yesterday at $22.13 a share, up 7 cents.
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Grading Disparities Peeve Parents - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/26/AR2007122601791....
Parents nationwide are increasingly frustrated with wild variations in grading systems that, they say, are costing their children thousands of dollars in merit-based scholarships and leaving them disadvantaged in college admissions.
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December 21, 2007

Sallie Mae Delays Stock Repurchase - New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/21/business/21sallie.html?ref=business...
The SLM Corporation, which is the parent of Sallie Mae, is the largest student lender in the United States, and only weeks ago was expecting to be acquired in a leveraged buyout at $60 a share. Now, with the bad news swirling and growing concerns over the company’s ability to finance itself, the share price has fallen to barely a third of the planned buyout level. It appears that the company will have to raise capital, presumably by selling common or preferred stock, by late February. Thus it may be in the position of selling shares at a low price to come up with money to buy shares at a much higher price.
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December 17, 2007

Columbia Still Roiled by Iranian's Visit - washingtonpost.com

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/15/AR2007121501553....
When the head of Columbia University suggested that free speech was banned in Tehran, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad not only disagreed, he also invited Lee C. Bollinger to come and see for himself. The retort won Ahmadinejad applause on the New York campus and accolades back home. For Bollinger, the sharp remarks he made in introducing Ahmadinejad were meant to kick off a lively debate. But three months later, they have kept Columbia roiling. The remarks, faculty members said in interviews, have exacerbated an already tense climate that is increasingly pitting Muslim and Middle East studies professors against positions held by Jewish colleagues, particularly on the issue of tenure for two Arab professors. "There have been an accumulation of events since Bollinger arrived that have people riled up. I have never seen a situation quite like this one, an