C2M Senior News Editor Jordan J. Frasier
Off-Campus Weekend: September 2, 2010
|Looking for something to do this weekend? Check out this round-up events and entertainment in the area, compiled by C2M Senior News Editor for Off-Campus and Community Jordan Frasier.
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Two more Hampton Roads residents get stuck in elevator
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Emergency crews respond to the scene at Hampton Roads (David Bier, submitted).
Headline Summary:
The left Hampton Roads elevator became stuck again Wednesday night around 9 p.m.
According to the residence staff member posted in the building’s lobby, two students were trapped in the elevator for about five minutes before maintenance crews and the fire department were able to free them.
Related:
>> Hampton Roads residents get stuck in elevator
>> What caused the first malfunction?
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Hampton Roads residents get stuck in elevator [updated]
|Five Hampton Roads resident students started the semester by getting trapped in and later rescued from their building’s elevator Sunday night.
The group was traveling from the third floor down to the first floor a little after 11 p.m. when the elevator car started to shake. The car made a loud noise and then dropped slightly, according to Molly O’Rourke, who was one of those trapped in the car.
More:
>> Read the update-- What caused the malfunction?
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Bets, Substance, Speed and iPads [Higher-Ed Snapshot 8/13]
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Photo via gadgetdude, under Creative Commons
Don't keep up on what's going on at colleges and universities in the area and across the country? No worries-- Connect2Mason's new Senior News Editor for Off-Campus & Community Jordan J. Frasier has you covered. Here's a round up of higher education headlines from down the street and around the country.
Consider them five things you should know.
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Making the Grade by Making a Bet?
A year-old company, Ultrinsic, lets students place bets on their ability to earn certain grades. The company promotes the program by saying it motivates students to perform well academically, but education officials have reservations about the program’s impact on students. If a student wins a bet, the company pays them. If a student loses a bet, they pay the company. Read the full Inside Higher Ed story here.
Out with the Textbooks and In with the iPad?
Select courses this fall at Oklahoma State University will use electronic textbooks based on the iPad. Professor Bill Handy, whose class will be using the iPad, hopes to use the opportunity to test the effectiveness of the technology as a teaching tool. Some question how the iPad and similar devices will affect learning. Read the full USA Today story here.
Digital Plagiarists, Comebacks, and Energy-Savers [Higher-Ed Snapshot 8/6]
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Photo via gadgetdude, under Creative Commons
Don't keep up on what's going on at colleges and universities in the area and across the country? No worries-- Connect2Mason's new Senior News Editor for Off-Campus & Community Jordan J. Frasier has you covered. Here's a round up of higher education headlines from down the street and around the country.
Consider them five things you should know.
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Interviews Make a Comeback, Play Larger Role in Admissions Process
Some colleges and universities are rethinking the benefit to using admission interviews to distinguish between thousands of similar applicants. With more students sporting similar GPAs and resumes, more school officials are utilizing interviews to better assess students and to get a glimpse into what makes potential students tick. Read the Washington Post story here.
College? Why Waste Time and Money on a Ponzi Scheme?
Many students assume the traditional education path to include a college degree, but those like financial columnist James Altucher argue why four (or, as he says, likely more) years working toward a college diploma could be better spent and more productive on your own. Read the full Daily Finance story here.
Google, Alcohol and Unpaid Internships [Higher Ed Snapshot 7/30]
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Photo via gadgetdude, under Creative Commons
Don't keep up on what's going on at colleges and universities in the area and across the country? No worries-- Connect2Mason's new Senior News Editor for Off-Campus & Community Jordan J. Frasier has you covered. Here's a round up of higher education headlines from down the street and around the country.
Consider them five things you should know.
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For Online Sources, Study Says Students Rely on Top Results in Google
A study out of Northwestern University shows that for the generation of students who grew up with the Internet, their technological prowess may not be very advanced, or at the very least, limiting. The study found that students use the first results returned by Google as their main Internet sources. Read the full Northwestern University story here.
USA Today Report: Administrations Not Doing Enough about Alcohol
A report by USA Today cites 2008 data from college administrators that looks at the alcohol related policies on and around college campuses. The report concludes that most colleges aren’t doing enough to regulate alcohol use by students Read the full USA Today story here.
Undergraduate Education Ranks 180th, 207th for Return on Investment
|EDUCATION VALUE
How Would You Rate It?
If you're an undergraduate, do you feel you're going to get a good return on your investment at Mason? What about your buddies?
If you've graduated, is this a good assessment? Or do the numbers simplify it all too much?
Leave a comment below, or jump into the conversation on Facebook.
Join in.
How Would You Rate It?
If you're an undergraduate, do you feel you're going to get a good return on your investment at Mason? What about your buddies?
If you've graduated, is this a good assessment? Or do the numbers simplify it all too much?
Leave a comment below, or jump into the conversation on Facebook.
Join in.
An online salary, benefits and compensation information company released a list that ranks universities across the country by the return students get on the price of their education, and it has placed George Mason University behind many universities in the region.
The PayScale.com list ranked Mason 180th for in-state and 207th for out-of-state. The rankings were based on undergraduate students who graduated in four to six years and lived in on-campus housing.
According to Payscale.com, George Mason University ranks 180th in return on investment (ROI) for in-state undergraduate students 30 years after graduation. These students have paid an average of $80,020 and receive a 30-year median return of $551,400, which calculates as an 11.7 percent annual return on investment. For out-of-state undergraduate students, Mason ranks 207th in ROI with an average cost of $141,700, a 30-year median return of $513,800 and an annual ROI of 9.8 percent.
Compared to other universities in the region, Mason ranked lower than most of the major universities.
Textbook Regulation, Law School, and the Disappearing Final [Higher Ed Snapshot 7/23]
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Photo via gadgetdude, under Creative Commons
Don't keep up on what's going on at colleges and universities in the area and across the country? No worries-- Connect2Mason's new Senior Editor for Off-Campus & Community News Jordan J. Frasier has you covered. Here's a round up of higher education headlines from down the street and around the country.
Consider them five things you should know.
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National Textbook Regulation Takes Effect
A provision of the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 that took effect this month requires textbook publishers to openly disclose the price and revision information of books when marketing them to professors. Publishers are now also required to sell bundled items, like CDs and pass codes, as separate items. Read the full Albany Times Union story here.
Law School Popularity Increases Despite Less Jobs, Higher Tuition
The number of LSAT tests administered between June 2009 and February 2010 increased 13.3 percent over the previous year. At the same time law school tuition rose and according to recent information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 22,000 legal jobs were cut in the last year. Read the full US News & World Report story here.
Former Mason Student Charged with Attempting to Join a Terrorist Group
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This photo was originally published without caption or photo credit on the blog Jawa Report. Zachary Adam Chesser confirmed via e-mail this spring, however, that this picture was indeed of him. (Jawa Report)
A former George Mason University Student was arrested Wednesday as an alleged terrorist recruit on his way to join al Shabab, a Somali-based terrorist organization with ties to al Qaeda.
According to the Washington Post, Zachary Adam Chesser, 20, was stopped earlier this month after being placed on a no-fly list. He was barred from boarding a commercial flight from New York City to Uganda as part of multi-leg journey to Somalia, where Islamist insurgency al-Shabab wants to topple the country's weak central government, according to the FBI and papers filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Alexandria. He attended Mason as a freshman for one semester in 2008.
Chesser, who goes by the pseudonym Abu Tallah Al-Amrikee, made threats earlier this year against the creators of “South Park” for presenting a negative view of Islam and the prophet Muhammad.
In an e-mail interview with Connect2Mason in April, Chesser stated that members of Revolution Muslim, a group based out of New York City to which he has claimed association, did not plan to stay in the United States very long.
"We do not encourage Muslims to remain in the West and we do not plan on doing it either," he said. "If immigration laws were not such a pain, than I would not be here right now."
Connect2Mason continues to investigate this story.
Read the full Washington Post story here.
