Lone Star College has seen two violent incidents this year: the stabbings of 14 (a student has been charged) and the shooting of three. On Tuesday, college officials pledged that if Houston voters approve a bond referendum next month, some of the funds will be used to improve security. Among the improvements planned: more video surveillance, enhanced lighting, improved public address systems and automated door locking systems.
The president of Kappa Delta sorority at Indiana University at Bloomington has issued an apology for a party at which attendees mocked the homeless with costumes and signs, and rubbed dirt on their faces to appear homeless. "I want to express my sincere apology to the campus community and public for the actions of our chapter at a social event this week that made light of those who are homeless. Our choice was a poor one. We know that it was not acceptable and does not align with our values," said a statement from Aubrey McMahon, the chapter president. The website Jezebel published photos of the party, drawing attention to its theme.
Four men have been charged with hazing in the drowning deaths in the Appomattox River of two freshmen at Virginia State University, The Richmond Times Dispatch reported. Two of the men charged are also Virginia State students. The students were apparently completing an initiation for "Men of Honor," an unrecognized student group. University officials said that they can't bar students -- who are legal adults -- from joining unrecognized groups.
In today’s Academic Minute, Jason Martin of DePaul University explains the growth of Chinese social media sites and the government’s attempts to control them. Learn more about the Academic Minute here.
Dartmouth College has called off classes for today to discuss the college's "commitment to fostering debate that promotes respect for individuals, civil and engaged discourse, and the value of diverse opinions." A series of programs, featuring faculty members and a diversity and social justice consultant, will be held. The college's decision follows a series of threats received by students online -- some citing the students' sexual orientation or race, college officials told the Associated Press. The threats followed a protest in which some students interrupted a program for high school students who have been admitted to Dartmouth. The protesters chanted "Dartmouth has a problem," and said that the college wasn't doing enough to prevent homophobia, racism and sexual assault on campus. The online threats were subsequently posted -- some against students who had participated in that protest, and some against other students.
U.S. Senator Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, has posed the question of whether student visas should be suspended in light of the Boston Marathon bombing. Although neither of the suspected bombers was in the United States on student visas (one was a permanent resident, and the other a naturalized citizen), Paul nonetheless raises the student visa system as an area of concern in a letter about national security and the immigration system, asking: “Finally, do we need to take a hard look at student visas? Should we suspend student visas, or at least those from high-risk areas, pending an investigation into the national security implications of this program?”
Paul raises the issue of potential flaws in the student visa system, as well as in the system for admitting refugees, as part of his broader point that the Senate should not proceed in enacting comprehensive immigration reform "until we understand the specific failures of our immigration system. Why did the current system allow two individuals to immigrate to the United States from the Chechen Republic in Russia, an area known as a hotbed of Islamic extremism, who then committed acts of terrorism?"
State leaders are demanding explanations -- and in some cases urging retribution -- for the University of Wisconsin System's decision to quietly store hundreds of millions of dollars of budget funds in hundreds of accounts spread across its institutions, the Journal-Sentinel reported. A state audit last week found that the university system had cash reserves of $648 million, about a quarter of its annual appropriation, that the funds were distributed among many accounts across the system -- and that the funds had gone virtually unmentioned to state officials.
Wisconsin system officials acknowledged to the newspaper that they did "not draw attention" to the funds in the past, and some legislators accused university leaders of purposely misleading state officials about the system's financial standing. Some called for a two-year freeze on new state support and tuition -- and some went further, suggesting that President Kevin Reilly should consider resigning. Reilly is supposed to testify at a legislative hearing today in Madison.
The Minerva Project, the San Francisco-based "hybrid university" trying to appeal to top-tier students that plans to open in 2015, announced Monday that it has joined with a Nobel laureate to offer a $500,000 prize each year to a distinguished educator. Roger Kornberg, a Stanford University professor who won the 2006 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, is governor of the newly created Minerva Academy, which will award the prize. The prize is "designed to recognize extraordinary advancements in teaching excellence and impact" in higher education.
CareerCast.com has released its annual list of the best and worst jobs, and university professor is ranked the 14th best job out there. From the data and job description, it appears that the website was evaluating tenure-track positions, not adjuncts.
The New York City campus being created by Cornell University and Technion-Israel Institute of Technology on Monday announced a $133 million gift from Irwin and Joan Jacobs, Cornell alumni who are longtime givers to their alma mater and to the Technion. The new technology-oriented campus was the result of a competition organized by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
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