293. Summer College News

Here are some links to today's stories

about college access and success.

by

Joe Rottenborn

Executive Director, Mahoning Valley College Access Program (MVCAP)

1. Colleges boost student fees to fill gaps in state funding, by Mary Beth Marklein - http://t.co/a1pYDOo via @USATODAY - "Colleges are tacking on mandatory student fees at a time when state funding is dwindling and public universities are trying to hold the line on tuition."

2. Pell as a Paycheck, by Libby A. Nelson - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/pHk5gG - "Many students use the check to pay for their books, or to buy a laptop or other equipment to use during their studies. For others, it covers living expenses while they are enrolled. A new project from the Institute for College Access and Success and MDRC, a policy research organization, wants to use the leftover money in a different way: as a biweekly paycheck for students."

3. Promoting Educational Opportunity: The Pell Grant Program at Community Colleges - http://www.aacc.nche.edu/Publications/Briefs/Pages/pb07212011.aspx - "In this brief, we examine the historical and programmatic nature of the Pell Grant program and investigate how it has come to form trends over time. Underlying the examination is the use and importance of the program to college students, with a focus on those attending community colleges."

4. Obscure Colleges That Produce Highly Paid Graduates, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy - http://t.co/rhG743d via @cbsmoneywatch - "If you look at the schools producing the highest paid graduates, many of them are earning diplomas from places that you’ve never heard of. . . . You don’t have to attend a top university to earn a great salary. What you major in can be even more important than where you get that degree."

5. Debt Ceiling Victims: Colleges Could Be Forced to Close, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy - http://t.co/flG1YFb via @cbsmoneywatch - “If Congress doesn’t raise the debt ceiling, the government will not be able to make new federal education loans and it is very likely that all other federal student aid programs, including the Pell Grant, will be eliminated. Most colleges would be forced to lay off some faculty and staff and many colleges would be forced to close. It would be nothing short of a national disaster, and one of man-made origin.”

6. A Sleepaway Camp Where Math Is the Main Sport, by Rachel Cromidas - http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/28/nyregion/a-sleepaway-camp-for-low-income-ny-math-whizzes.html?_r=1&hpw - "She and 16 other adolescents are spending three weeks at Bard College here in a free, new camp for low-income students gifted in mathematics. All are entering eighth grade at New York City public middle schools where at least 75 percent of the student body is eligible for free lunches. And all love math."

7. Summer learning program seeks to close opportunity gap, by Emma Brown -http://t.co/P9F7muI via @washingtonpost - “There’s a real disconnect between how much we know about the negative impact of summer learning loss and what is actually being done in terms of policy and programming,” he said. “We spend nine months, from September through May or June, devoting enormous amounts of time and energy — not to mention resources — to promoting student achievement and learning. And then we step away for three months and allow a good portion of those gains to be lost.”

8. The 13 Worst-Paying College Majors: PayScale List - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/28/the-13-worst-paying-colle_n_911809.html#s317428&title=Children_and_Family - "Salary data site PayScale calculated the dirt on the best and worst-paying college degrees in their annual salary survey and, according to its findings, the latter career paths include things having to do with art, children and social services."

9. Common App available Aug 1st, by Jolyn Brand - http://t.co/o2kWjJj - "This year, the Common Application will be available on Aug 1st for students applying to college admissions Fall 2012. The most obvious change is the addition of a word requirement to the personal statements. Students will now be limited to 500 words.Other changes include questions about language proficiency, parents' marital status will now have an option for 'civil unions", and revised language on disciplinary problems.The Common App will also be avaiable via smartphone!"