Friday, September 30, 2011
The most ambitious social experiement to alleviate poverty in our lifetime
Pay close attention to how cultural and structural factors are talked about in this video.
Racism in Hawai'i
I was looking up racism against Polynesians in America and actually ran into racism against whites in Hawai'i. Since people usually don't hear about prejudices towards whites I thought this would be interesting to share with the class. I know many Polynesians, Hawaiian's in particular, that are racist towards whites. Often times I think they grow up with that perspective. With our history with whites it's easy to not like them. I didn't think racism was this bad in Hawai'i and still don't feel it's really like that. I've read blogs and articles where whites feel unsafe in Hawai'i or hesitant in coming and I'm pretty shocked. I've never read such negative things about Hawai'i. Wondering if anyone has experienced this or have anything to share.
http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/intelligence-report/browse-all-issues/2009/fall/prejudice-in-paradise
I was also wondering about the concern about Kamehameha Schools. People feel that it is considered as discrimination or segregation to have schools of Hawaiian ancestry. The story behind the schools is that Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop (long story made short) left her money for these schools for good education of the Hawaiian children. Shouldn't her wishes (made around 1884) be considered and recognized even in this modern day?
http://www.discriminations.us/2006/12/in-paradise-“diversity”-means-no-whites/
I feel that a lot prejudices stated are connected closely with our history.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Gay Parents Bashed
What would you do observes how people react to gay parents with children being harassed by a waitress.
This takes place in a small conservative town in Texas which is very family oriented. I assumed that the reactions would be very different than they were. I thought more people would be judgmental. I was pleasantly surprised and even brought to tears by the kindness and understanding of the most unlikely people in this restaurant.
I have a lot of respect for the two main men in this video. They both represent what I feel is the ideal Christ-like person.
My personal opinion about gay parents raising children? I am all for it. There are enough kids in this world with no parents who need homes and need love. Love from two moms or two dads is still love, there is no difference. It will absolutely not "make them grow up to be gay", that is just ridiculous.
Also ridiculous, how there are apparently still states in this nation that allow discrimination against homosexuals in public places. If you have thought that sexual orientation wasn't a human rights issue up until now, please reconsider.
As you watch this video truly ask yourself how you would react in this situation. I hope that we could all be that voice of kindness, love and tolerance. As is said in the video, "Silence is the only failure".
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
What Would You Do / Racism In America
Do racism and discrimination still exist? Here are a couple of videos that try to answer this:
Monday, September 26, 2011
Universities Seeking Out Students of Means
Universities Seeking Out Students of Means
By TAMAR LEWIN
Published: September 21, 2011
Money is talking a bit louder in college admissions these days, according to a survey to be released Wednesday by Inside Higher Ed, an online publication for higher education professionals.
More than half of the admissions officers at public research universities, and more than a third at four-year colleges said that they had been working harder in the past year to recruit students who need no financial aid and can pay full price, according to the survey of 462 admissions directors and enrollment managers conducted in August and early September.
Similarly, 22 percent of the admissions officials at four-year institutions said the financial downturn had led them to pay more attention in their decision to applicants’ ability to pay.
“As institutional pressures mount, between the decreased state funding, the pressure to raise a college’s profile, and the pressure to admit certain students, we’re seeing a fundamental change in the admissions process,” said David A. Hawkins, director of public policy and research at the National Association for College Admission Counseling. “Where many of the older admissions professionals came in through the institution and saw it as an ethically centered counseling role, there’s now a different dynamic that places a lot more emphasis on marketing.”
In the survey, 10 percent of the admissions directors at four-year colleges — and almost 20 percent at private liberal-arts schools — said that the full-pay students they were admitting, on average, had lower grades and test scores than other admitted applicants.
But they are not the only ones with an edge: the admissions officers said they admitted minority students, athletes, veterans, children of alumni, international students and, for the sake of gender balance, men, with lesser credentials, too.
At many colleges and universities, the survey found, whom you know does matter. More than a quarter of the admissions directors said they had felt pressure from senior-level administrators to admit certain applicants, and almost a quarter got pressure from trustees or development officers.
“If external parties are trying to influence admissions decisions, that’s a concern that strikes at the legitimacy of the whole process,” Mr. Hawkins said. “We certainly have standards, but there needs to be awareness that when the economy starts to crumble, the standards may start to go out the window.”
Lloyd Thacker, executive director of the Education Conservancy, a two-person nonprofit he founded in 2003 to improve college admissions, said the Inside Higher Ed findings were troubling.
“There’s always been elements of this behavior, but it seems to me that it’s growing,” Mr. Thacker said. “I don’t know whether to blame it on hard times or lack of courage and leadership.”
Mr. Thacker said his own research had found students becoming more cynical about higher education.
“Students say, ‘They’re cheating us, so we can cheat them,’ ” he said. “The cheat they see is that colleges are out for themselves, not for them as students. Our research, with 2,500 students, found that of all the sources of information students get about higher education, they thought the least trustworthy sources are the colleges and college reps themselves.”
While community colleges said their most important challenge in the near future was reduced state funding, all the other institutions named rising concerns from families about tuition and affordability.
Admissions directors at many public universities said in the survey that recruiting more out-of-state and international students, who pay higher tuition, was their top strategy. At community colleges and private institutions, admissions officers were more likely to say that providing aid for low- and middle- income students was their focus.
More than half the admissions officers from four-year institutions said that coaching by parents or college counselors was making it harder to really learn about applicants.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/21/education/21admissions.html?_r=2&ref=us
Since many colleges and universities are having hard time financially, they are accepting students who can pay full tuition without scholarship and student loan even if they have lower grades. Also, they are accepting minorities. Then what about normal students with decent grade but don't have enough money to pay full-tuition? Do parents' wealth still matter in childrens' education?
By TAMAR LEWIN
Published: September 21, 2011
Money is talking a bit louder in college admissions these days, according to a survey to be released Wednesday by Inside Higher Ed, an online publication for higher education professionals.
More than half of the admissions officers at public research universities, and more than a third at four-year colleges said that they had been working harder in the past year to recruit students who need no financial aid and can pay full price, according to the survey of 462 admissions directors and enrollment managers conducted in August and early September.
Similarly, 22 percent of the admissions officials at four-year institutions said the financial downturn had led them to pay more attention in their decision to applicants’ ability to pay.
“As institutional pressures mount, between the decreased state funding, the pressure to raise a college’s profile, and the pressure to admit certain students, we’re seeing a fundamental change in the admissions process,” said David A. Hawkins, director of public policy and research at the National Association for College Admission Counseling. “Where many of the older admissions professionals came in through the institution and saw it as an ethically centered counseling role, there’s now a different dynamic that places a lot more emphasis on marketing.”
In the survey, 10 percent of the admissions directors at four-year colleges — and almost 20 percent at private liberal-arts schools — said that the full-pay students they were admitting, on average, had lower grades and test scores than other admitted applicants.
But they are not the only ones with an edge: the admissions officers said they admitted minority students, athletes, veterans, children of alumni, international students and, for the sake of gender balance, men, with lesser credentials, too.
At many colleges and universities, the survey found, whom you know does matter. More than a quarter of the admissions directors said they had felt pressure from senior-level administrators to admit certain applicants, and almost a quarter got pressure from trustees or development officers.
“If external parties are trying to influence admissions decisions, that’s a concern that strikes at the legitimacy of the whole process,” Mr. Hawkins said. “We certainly have standards, but there needs to be awareness that when the economy starts to crumble, the standards may start to go out the window.”
Lloyd Thacker, executive director of the Education Conservancy, a two-person nonprofit he founded in 2003 to improve college admissions, said the Inside Higher Ed findings were troubling.
“There’s always been elements of this behavior, but it seems to me that it’s growing,” Mr. Thacker said. “I don’t know whether to blame it on hard times or lack of courage and leadership.”
Mr. Thacker said his own research had found students becoming more cynical about higher education.
“Students say, ‘They’re cheating us, so we can cheat them,’ ” he said. “The cheat they see is that colleges are out for themselves, not for them as students. Our research, with 2,500 students, found that of all the sources of information students get about higher education, they thought the least trustworthy sources are the colleges and college reps themselves.”
While community colleges said their most important challenge in the near future was reduced state funding, all the other institutions named rising concerns from families about tuition and affordability.
Admissions directors at many public universities said in the survey that recruiting more out-of-state and international students, who pay higher tuition, was their top strategy. At community colleges and private institutions, admissions officers were more likely to say that providing aid for low- and middle- income students was their focus.
More than half the admissions officers from four-year institutions said that coaching by parents or college counselors was making it harder to really learn about applicants.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/21/education/21admissions.html?_r=2&ref=us
Since many colleges and universities are having hard time financially, they are accepting students who can pay full tuition without scholarship and student loan even if they have lower grades. Also, they are accepting minorities. Then what about normal students with decent grade but don't have enough money to pay full-tuition? Do parents' wealth still matter in childrens' education?
Racial Bake Sale
http://www.cnn.com/2011/09/25/
Students at UC Berkley have decided to host a bake sale--with prices dependent on race and gender. This is to highlight the controversy over what they have deemed as unequal practices in college admissions, as the state government is considering a bill that would make race and gender possible deciding factors in the admissions process.
Students at UC Berkley have decided to host a bake sale--with prices dependent on race and gender. This is to highlight the controversy over what they have deemed as unequal practices in college admissions, as the state government is considering a bill that would make race and gender possible deciding factors in the admissions process.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Keeping them honest: Stop bullying
Another tragic case of a young teen killing himself after years of being bullied because of his sexual orientation.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Mississippi teen charged with capital murder in alleged hate killing
This is a tragic reminder that racism still exists in our society. This murder of a black man by white teens was caught on tape (warning: the video is graphic and disturbing).
The full story is available at the following website:
http://www.cnn.com/2011/09/20/justice/mississippi-hate-crime-charge/index.html
The full story is available at the following website:
http://www.cnn.com/2011/09/20/justice/mississippi-hate-crime-charge/index.html
The History of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
Here is a video of the history of the policy "don't ask, don't tell."
Friday, September 16, 2011
Poverty Rises in the U.S.
Here is an article that outlines the latest trends in poverty in the United States.
http://money.cnn.com/2011/09/13/news/economy/poverty_rate_income/index.htm?hpt=hp_t1
Thursday, September 15, 2011
The American dream is built on hard work...or is it?
Before you listen to this story, I want to take a couple of minutes and think about how you got to where you are today. Think about the resources you've received, whether it be in the form of financial, emotional, spiritual, or any other kind of support. Think about the little things along the way that encouraged you to go to college. Now compare your story with the two families in this podcast.
Notice that both families are successful, but the path they took was very different. How can we help people in our communities to become successful?
Notice that both families are successful, but the path they took was very different. How can we help people in our communities to become successful?
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