Wednesday, June 21, 2006

UNIVERSITY IN THE NEWS

U.VA. FINANCIAL AID GIFT
By Alyson Smith of WVIR NBC-29 / June 20
Thanks to a large donation more students from Albemarle County could have the opportunity to attend the University of Virginia. Late UVA alumnus Mortimer Sutherland has left a $6 million dollar endowment for financial aid at the university. 75 percent of the money will be used for need-based scholarships for students admitted to the university from Albemarle County. The remaining 25 percent will go to a nursing scholarship in his sister's name.

HOUSE RECOMMENDS $2 MILLION FOR SOUTH LAWN
By John Borgmeyer of C-Ville Weekly / June 20
Earlier this month the U.S. House Appropriations Committee allocated $2 million for a pedestrian bridge to cross Jefferson Park Avenue, part of UVA's $105 million South Lawn project. The allocation comes as part of the 2007 Transportation, Treasury and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Bill, which would provide $67.8 billion in federal spending; the House and Senate, however, have not cast the final vote on the proposed appropriations. The $2 million for the South Lawn is one of only seven projects in the Commonwealth to receive funding in the bill.

STEM CELL AMENDMENT NOT INCLUDED IN STATE BUDGET
By Nancy Young of The Virginian-Pilot
The state budget that received final legislative approval Tuesday did not include an amendment that would have withheld state money from institutions that use human embryos or aborted fetuses in stem cell research. … Del. Vincent Callahan Jr., R-Fairfax , the sponsor of the amendment and chairman of the House Appropriations Committee , said budget negotiators "were hearing from universities who were saying it would hurt their efforts to attract" research money and faculty. The University of Virginia and Virginia Tech lobbied against the amendment, Callahan said.

U.VA. MEDICINE CENTER GIVES CHANCES TO WORTHY REFUGEES
By Christina Tkacik of The Daily Progress
In his homeland of Zaire, Abraham Ntenda was a certified veterinarian who oversaw the poultry production of the entire country. He fled the country during the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko, and eventually came to Charlottesville, where the local International Rescue Committee helped him find an entry-level position at the University of Virginia Center for Comparative Medicine....Today, Ntenda, father of nine, is a lab specialist at UVa's Center for Comparative Medicine, a research facility specializing in animal testing.

BUILDING CHAMPIONS: THE JOHN PAUL JONES ARENA / A SPECIAL REPORT
By The Daily Progress

KAUFT EUCH DIE BESTEN AMIS
By Christoph Mohr of Handelsblatt / June 2006
[The University of Virginia and the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration mentioned in article about custom executive education programs.]
Not available online; text available on request (in German).

UNIVERSITY RESEARCH IN THE NEWS

REGION'S 'FOOD SHED' NEEDS WORK / U.VA. CLASS GETS HARD FACTS ON HOME-GROWN EATS
By Meg Mcevoy of C-Ville Weekly
A UVA class has released the first study of our local food system, which could help address problems like diabetes, obesity, heart disease and hunger in our neighborhoods. The class, called "Community Food Systems," was offered last spring in the Architecture School's department of urban and environmental planning, and had students participate in every aspect of a project that gathered data about the region's "food shed."

CENSUS BUREAU SAYS NORFOLK FASTEST-SHRINKING CITY IN U.S.
By Harry Minium of The Virginian-Pilot
With condominiums sprouting from Ocean View to downtown, officials have been boasting for years that the city's population is rapidly expanding. Which explains why city leaders reacted with surprise, shock and even laughter Tuesday when the Census Bureau released figures that indicate Norfolk is America's fastest-shrinking city... Neither does the University of Virginia's Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, which produces population estimates for the state. U.Va.'s population estimate, released in January, indicated Norfolk gained 300 residents and the Beach 1,600. Chesapeake's population grew by 2,800, Portsmouth's by 600 and Suffolk's by 1,000, according to U.Va.

FACULTY/STAFF/ADMINISTRATORS IN THE NEWS

ROBERT BRUNER
Bruner, dean of the Darden School of Business, was quoted in a TheStreet.com article headlined:
MITTAL CEO SEES NO FUTURE IN STEEL FUTURES
By Simon Constable of TheStreet.com / June 20

DAVID MARTIN
Martin, law professor, was quoted in a National Law Journal article headlined:
SENATE BILL WOULD ADD NEW IMMIGRATION JUDGES / AT DOJ, GETTING TO BE AN IMMIGRATION JUDGE CAN DEPEND MORE ON POLITICAL CONTACTS THAN EXPERIENCE.
By Jason McLure of the Legal Times / June 20

LARRY J. SABATO
Sabato, politics professor and director of the Center for Politics, was quoted in an Associated Press article headlined:
HIRING SCANDALS SHINE LIGHT ON PATRONAGE IN STATES
By The Associated Press

ALUMNI IN THE NEWS

PAT KELLY
Kelly, who has a bachelor's from the engineering school, was featured in a Business Wire press release headlined:
PAT KELLY TO JOIN VIGNETTE AS CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
By Business Wire / June 20

ANNA MCCREREY
McCrerey, who graduated from U.Va., was featured in a Richmond Times-Dispatch article headlined:
U.VA. GRADUATE IS POINT SCHOLAR / SHE'S ONE OF 30 GAY, LESBIAN, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER RECIPIENTS
By Tiffany Hsu of the Richmond Times-Dispatch / June 21

RON SUSKIND
Suskind, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and graduate of the College,  had his latest book "The One Percent Doctrine" reviewed in a New York Times article headlined:
'THE ONE PERCENT DOCTRINE': PERSONALITY, IDEOLOGY AND BUSH'S TERROR WARS
By Michiko Kakutani of The New York Times / June 20
[* Mr. Suskind will speak about his new book at the Miller Center of Public Affairs on Friday. See today's Top News Daily for details.]

STEVE ZECOLA
Zecola, who holds a master's in economics from U.Va., was featured in a Business Wire press release headlined:
IN THE RACE TO CURE PARKINSON'S DISEASE, STEVE ZECOLA CHRONICLES HOW THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT WENT WRONG FOR MILLIONS OF PEOPLE AFFLICTED WITH PARKINSON'S DIESEASE
By PRNewswire / June 20

UVA TOP NEWS DAILY HIGHLIGHTS

U.VA. STUDY ABROAD COURSE YIELDS DISPATCHES FROM AFRICA

PRINTING AND COPYING SERVICES AT U.VA. ROLLS OUT NEW WEB SITE DESIGN

PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR TO VISIT U.VA. ON FRIDAY; WILL DISCUSS
'IMPROVISING' IN WAR ON TERROR

This week's featured publication is LINK.

HIGHER EDUCATION NEWS -- VIRGINIA

NEW LAW IN VIRGINIA WILL REQUIRE COLLEGES TO REPORT APPLICANTS' PERSONAL DATA TO POLICE
By Samanatha Henig of the Chronicle of Higher Education / June 21
College officials are nervous about a Virginia law that requires all colleges and universities in the state to submit personal information about their applicants to the state police to be checked against registries of sex offenders.

BALANCING SAFETY AND STUDENT PRIVACY
By Elia Powers of Inside Higher Ed / June 21
Sex offenders who change addresses when attending college can be asked to re-register with their home states as a security safeguard. A new Virginia law, passed this year by the state's General Assembly, will place some of the onus on colleges by requiring both public and private institutions to give the government data about students who they have admitted.

HIGHER EDUCATION NEWS -- U.S.

NUMBER OF STUDENTS TRANSFERRING FROM COMMUNITY COLLEGES TO ELITE INSTITUTIONS PLUNGES
By Elyse Ashburn of The Chronicle of Higher Education / June 20
Selective four-year colleges enroll a smaller percentage of transfer students than they did 20 years ago, despite the growing number of students who start their postsecondary education at community colleges, according to a report on a national study released on Monday by the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation.

STATE BANS ON AFFIRMATIVE ACTION HAVE BEEN OF LITTLE BENEFIT TO ASIAN-AMERICAN STUDENTS, REPORT SAYS
By Paula Wasley of the Chronicle of Higher Education / June 21
Contrary to predictions in a widely cited 2005 study that said Asian-American students were the biggest losers in affirmative action, those students made only minor gains at law schools when the practice was banned in three states, according to a new study.

NEW ARGUMENTS ON AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
By Scott Jaschik of Inside Higher Ed / June 21
While courts continue to hear arguments about affirmative action and Michigan voters prepare to decide the issue in their state, another round of intellectual debate is brewing in law reviews. Two articles - one just published and one forthcoming - challenge some conventional wisdom about affirmative action in higher education.

EDUCATION DEPARTMENT WON'T REVISE RULES FOR HELPING PEOPLE WITH TOO MUCH STUDENT-LOAN DEBT
By Stephen Burd of the Chronicle of Higher Education / June 21
The U.S. Education Department has rejected a formal request to revise regulations that are designed to help borrowers who have taken on unmanageable levels of federal student-loan debt. The agency did, however, leave the door open for considering some of the proposed changes in the future.

LUMINA FOUNDATION TO OFFER MILLIONS TO FURTHER IDEAS FOR REDUCING COLLEGE COSTS
By Sara Hebel of the Chronicle of Higher Education / June 21
The Lumina Foundation for Education plans to award $25.5-million in grants over the next five years to foster the development of broad national approaches that could cut colleges' operating costs and make price less of a barrier to higher education.

A PUSH FOR PUBLIC HEALTH
By Rob Capriccioso of Inside Higher Ed / June 21
Facing a slew of retirements at a time of burgeoning crises and challenges, the field of public health is ailing. Colleges and universities may have part of the cure, creating new schools and programs designed to meet the need for workers.

ADMISSIONS ISSUES IN HIGHER EDUCATION

COLLEGE PRESIDENTS CONSIDER JOINT EFFORT TO IMPROVE ADMISSIONS PROCESS
By Elizabeth F. Farrell of The Chronicle of Higher Education / June 20
A number of presidents of small liberal-arts colleges agree that the culture of college admissions is damaging to applicants, and together they want to change that. Last Friday about 20 such leaders convened in New York to discuss possible steps they could take to improve the college-application process for students. The conference, "College Admissions in the Public Interest," was sponsored by the Education Conservancy, a nonprofit group based in Portland, Ore.

WITH GOOD REASON / NPR

Mind Your Manners
Tonight at 7:30 p.m.; WVTF-Roanoke (88.5 FM)

Dining etiquette seems to be a lost art, particularly among college students who tend to eat fast-food while studying or watching TV. But June graduates are in for a rude awakening when potential employers judge their table manners at dinner-time interviews. Don Rieley and Amy McPherson (VT) teach students how to handle themselves with grace when a job interview takes place over a meal.

Also: Suzanne de Janasz (UMW) says fewer employees are willing to sacrifice their family life for career advancement and smart companies are taking note to institute more family-friendly policies.

"With Good Reason," produced by the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, is broadcast on 10 public radio stations in Virginia and Washington, D.C.  For complete listings of shows and times visit the program's website at http://www.withgoodreasonradio.org

INTERACTIVE RESOURCES

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