Oct. 1

Quick Takes: Prof Accused of Hacking, Megagift Possible for Texas, 4 Suspended for Obama Effigy, Anthropology Debate, Trouble for MyRichUncle, Liberal Arts Advice for Next President, American Indian Enrollments, New Leader for Hughes Institute

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Stephan Grzeskowiak entered a plea of not guilty Tuesday to charges that he hacked into the e-mail of a former student who is also alleged to be his former lover. The allegations relate to Grzeskowiak’s time teaching at the University of St. Thomas, in Minnesota, but he was arrested moments before teaching at the College of William and Mary, where he is a visiting professor, The Pioneer Press reported. In addition to facing federal charges over the alleged hacking, Grzeskowiak has been sued by his former student, who is identified as “Jane Doe” in court documents and also has sued the University of St. Thomas.
The University of Texas at Austin could be receiving one of the largest gifts ever to higher education — but a legal fight must take place first. The university announced Tuesday that Moncrief Oil International has pledged 25 percent of the proceeds it receives from a Russian gas field — with the university receiving up to $500 million. But litigation is currently taking place in both the United States and Germany related to the field, so the outcome is uncertain. Funds that the university receives would be designated for research on alternative energy.
George Fox University, in Oregon, has suspended four students who admitted hanging a cardboard cutout of Sen. Barack Obama on a tree on campus last week, The Oregonian reported.
The Network of Concerned Anthropologists has issued a statement offering some support and also some concerns about proposed revisions in the ethics code of the American Anthropological Association. The revisions move in the direction — sought by the network — of banning secret research. But, as expected, the network does not think the revisions go far enough. The association is expected to continue to debate the issue.
MyRichUncle, the maverick student loan company that angered many college officials and other lenders with its highly critical advertising, appears to be in trouble. The company said this summer that it was suspending its participation in the federal student loan program to concentrate on private loans, but a notice on its Web site now says that it has “paused” its private loan operations, too. “Due to continued disruptions in the capital markets, combined with the continued demand we have experienced this year, we are reaching funding capacity limits,” MyRichUncle said. “As a result, we are unable to receive new applications at this time. We regret not being able to serve you, but hope to in the near future. We are working to try to obtain funds that would enable us to continue to accept new customers.”
The next president of the United States needs to take specific steps to improve higher education’s ability to contribute to the national good, according to an open letter released Tuesday by the Council of Colleges of Arts & Sciences. Among the recommendations: more money for Pell Grants, a commitment to “more regular, open and peer-reviewed competition” for federal research grants with more money for ‘agencies that conduct rigorous, merit-based review processes,” the creation of a federal program to support research facilities, and increased funding for international education.
Over the last 30 years, the number of American Indians enrolled in colleges and universities has more than doubled, according to a new report released Tuesday by the National Center for Education Statistics. The report includes data on education of American Indians at all levels of education.
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, a major player in support for biomedical research and the reform of science education, on Tuesday named Robert Tijan as its next president. Tijan is a professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of California at Berkeley.

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Comments

My Rich Uncle...in trouble......maybe the attorney general from NY should send flowers...oops that might mean there is something going on there.....gee just a thought..

funny isn’t it....when you (My Rich Uncle) get what you want.....you (My Rich Uncle) can’t handle it.....

like a wise man said...the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence...until you get there.....then it is the same old mud hole..

have a great day...

I for one will not be sending condolences to My Rich Uncle......

Jim, at 8:20 am EDT on October 1, 2008

RIP MRU. Couldn’t happen to some nicer or more deserving bunch of blokes. There is at least one real benefit to the terrible credit shortage. If it kills off MRU it could be genuinely beneficial in at least one real way.

So Sad, at 12:20 pm EDT on October 1, 2008

Wow — what narrow-minded, ignorant posters we have here. How in the world does a competitive lender’s trouble translate to good news for students? Perhaps you’re all just closet fans of Sallie Mae’s shenanigans and predatory lending practices? It certainly wouldn’t be the first time this loyalty has been shown for no apparent reason. Let’s be honest with ourselves financial aid community — there are a lot of us right now who are scrambling, desperate, looking for any lender who will give students a loan to pay their tuition bills. Our so-called moral high-ground has been quickly put aside for the sake of putting our students into loans with any lender that will dare to take them in this credit environment, because hey, the bills need to be paid, right? Let’s remember, this was the first lender to cut rates on federal loans and other lenders followed suit. We call that competition and it’s good for EVERYONE. These were also the first guys to give loans to students who didn’t have co-signers. And if they saw fit to talk about the bad behavior of certain lenders and certain financial aid officers, then let them. It was found to be true and students became wiser about borrowing for it.

We need to wake up and realize what a mess this situation is and hope that as many lenders as possible survive the credit crisis so that students will have options in the future.

Shocked, at 8:40 pm EDT on October 1, 2008

Re: Shocked

My Rich Uncle was not the first lender to cut rates on federal loans, was not the first lender to offer private loans without a co-signer, and certainly did not bring competition to the marketplace. It was a vibrant, competitive market that began in 1992 with the advent of Direct Lending. What they did was smear an industry made up of hard working people who were trying to help students, while starting a chain reaction that resulted in more expensive, and less available borrowing for all. Their departure will not cause a ripple except in their own bank accounts.

Student aid scholar, at 5:05 am EDT on October 2, 2008

I couldn’t agree more. What if all the lenders need to or decide to bail. That is really bad news. We must support a competitive environment. Our students need lower priced loans and that isn’t going to happen if Sallie Mae is the only company left standing. We cannot cut of our noses to spite our faces. Quite frankly, Sallie left standing is a scenario that I cannot accept. Let’s get beyond ourselves and stop celebrating this — because this is good for no one, least of all, the students.

Tim, at 5:05 am EDT on October 2, 2008

The Network of Concerned Anthropologists

As I understand it, the AAA established non-secrecy in research by its members in 1971, during the Vietnam War, but in 1998 they must have relaxed this to allow for covert research, thereby enabling its members to work with the DOD.

But now this Network is of the opinion that we are doing a “brutal occupation” in Iraq, and causing “massive casualties.” Further, they seem to assume the worst of us:

“We, the undersigned, believe that anthropologists should not engage in research and other activities that contribute to counter-insurgency operations in Iraq or in related theaters in the “war on terror.” Furthermore, we believe that anthropologists should refrain from directly assisting the US military in combat, be it through torture, interrogation, or tactical advice.”

This is part of the pledge being petitioned at that AAA meeting where they noticed two Pentagon people taking down names and affiliations of signers. So, they are demanding justification from the Pentagon, and disposition of this collected information.

I think that there probably is some overlap between the insurgent forces and SOME anthropologists here, and the Pentagon would be remiss in the War on Terror if they did not attempt to identify them.

But, leaving that aside, perhaps the Pentagon merely wanted not to waste their time attempting to recruit anyone so ill-disposed towards secret research?

I think the Network’s use of quotation marks around War on Terror says it all.

DFS, at 5:05 am EDT on October 2, 2008

MRU

MRU will be judged in the long run on whether its business strategy was in the best interests of students.

Its scorched-earth tactics were about supplanting the role of financial aid offices (which outcome the liberals at New America Foundation cheered) with direct-to-consumer marketing (which liberals at NAF detest).

Are we better off in a society in which the taking on of debt to pay for college occurs in a structured environment in which third parties (financial aid officers) help guide the decision-making toward grants, federal loans, scholarships, work study, etc.?

Financial aid offices are not entirely without conflicts. But neither are the MRU sales reps marketing its loans.

Full Monty Hall, at 12:25 pm EDT on October 21, 2008

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Quick Takes: Prof Accused of Hacking, Megagift Possible for Texas, 4 Suspended for Obama Effigy, Anthropology Debate, Trouble for MyRichUncle, Liberal Arts Advice for Next President, American Indian Enrollments, New Leader for Hughes Institute

Comments

Re: Shocked

The Network of Concerned Anthropologists

MRU

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