Those with degrees still enroll!

These days, thousands of people who enroll in community college programs already have four-year degrees — or more — in hand. Almost 11,000 students pursuing an associate's degree or a diploma in the N.C. Community College System in 2006 had a bachelor's degree. More than 2,500 students had a master's degree or higher. The reason for pursuing another degree is usually related to job marketability.

Read more at:http://www.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070625/NEWSREC0101/70624001

Diplomas Count

A new report published in Education Week looks at the skills required to get jobs in every state and concludes that, at both the state and national level, people need to complete at least some college to earn a decent wage.

The report bases such findings on an analysis of data from two sources: a U.S. Department of Labor database that classifies jobs based on the education, training, and experience that they require, and U.S. Census Bureau statistics showing how many people work in various types of jobs and how much they earn.

"At both national and state levels, our research shows that a high-school diploma alone is not sufficient for students to access the jobs that will provide a real future and to thrive in our economy," said Christopher B. Swanson, who conducted the analysis as director of a research center affiliated with the newspaper.

In other findings, the report estimates that about 30 percent of ninth graders fail to graduate from high school with their peers four years later. For black males, the four-year graduation rate is 46 percent; for Hispanic males, it's 52 percent.

Based on an examination of state policies, the report says that just 11 states define what students should know and be able to do to be prepared for credit-bearing courses in college, and 14 states are working on a definition. Twenty-two states require high schools to administer exit examinations, while three others plan to do so. The number of states basing their exit exams on standards set at the 10th-grade level or higher has risen from six in 2002 to 18 in 2007. —Peter Schmidt

Read the entire article at http://www.edweek.org/ew/toc/2007/06/12/index.html

100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know

Just fun with words

Press Release

100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know by Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries (Editor)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSTON, MA — The editors of the American Heritage® dictionaries have compiled a list of 100 words they recommend every high school graduate should know.

"The words we suggest," says senior editor Steven Kleinedler, "are not meant to be exhaustive but are a benchmark against which graduates and their parents can measure themselves. If you are able to use these words correctly, you are likely to have a superior command of the language."

The following is the entire list of 100 words:

• abjure
• abrogate
• abstemious
• acumen
• antebellum
• auspicious
• belie
• bellicose
• bowdlerize
• chicanery
• chromosome
• churlish
• circumlocution
• circumnavigate
• deciduous
• deleterious
• diffident
• enervate
• enfranchise
• epiphany
• equinox
• euro
• evanescent
• expurgate
• facetious
• fatuous
• feckless
• fiduciary
• filibuster
• gamete
• gauche
• gerrymander
• hegemony
• hemoglobin
• homogeneous
• hubris
• hypotenuse
• impeach
• incognito
• incontrovertible
• inculcate
• infrastructure
• interpolate
• irony
• jejune
• kinetic
• kowtow
• laissez faire
• lexicon
• loquacious
• lugubrious
• metamorphosis
• mitosis
• moiety
• nanotechnology
• nihilis
• mnomenclature
• nonsectarian
• notarize
• obsequious
• oligarchy
• omnipotent
• orthography
• oxidize
• parabola
• paradigm
• parameter
• pecuniary
• photosynthesis
• plagiarize
• plasma
• polymer
• precipitous
• quasar
• quotidian
• recapitulate
• reciprocal
• reparation
• respiration
• sanguine
• soliloquy
• subjugate
• suffragist
• supercilious
• tautology
• taxonomy
• tectonic
• tempestuous
• thermodynamics
• totalitarian
• unctuous
• usurp
• vacuous
• vehement
• vortex
• winnow
• wrought
• xenophobe
• yeoman

Presidential Campaigns Create Student Jobs

Job prospects for college graduates are looking up thanks to the 2008 presidential candidates. Eighteen contenders and counting translates into plenty of campaign hiring of promising but untested newcomers, especially in states with early nominating contests. Laurin Manning is taking a break from law school to work as Democratic Sen. Barack Obama's jack-of-all trades, earning about $2,300 a month. Her office walls are bare, and her title for weeks was a work in progress. Read more at:http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/06/08/ap3803068.html

It's Mesmerizing...Hypnotic...Addictive! It's Flickrvision!

Flickrvision is a really cool mashup that combines the power of Google Maps with the worldwide usage of photo hosting website Flickr.com. Flickrvision lets you see the location on Google Maps of new pictures posted to Flickr as they are uploaded in real time. You can click on a photo to get an expanded view with some more details (such as the photo title and description if available).

Creator Dave Troy says, “We use geotagging data from the actual photos where it is available, and then rely on the user's profile location in cases where it is not. Because less than 1% of photos [on Flickr] are geotagged, we rely on user profile location heavily. This is why when you look at the expanded view of each photo it says 'posted less than a minute ago from London', etc."

Content from O'Reilly Radar, Gadling.com, and Google Earth Blog.

What are you doing this summer????

Traveling? Working? Going to Summer School? Backpacking in Europe? -- Tell us about your summer plans. Post a comment and let everyone know what you are doing!

Check out this Library - from You Tube.

Great Job Market for Graduates

From the Chronicle of Higher Education - Students graduating from college this spring face an exceptionally good job market, with almost 60 percent of employers saying they plan to hire more new graduates in 2006-7 than they did in 2005-6, according to survey results released in summary form this week by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. That translates into the hiring of nearly 20 percent more new graduates this year than last. The demand for employees has driven up starting salaries in a number of fields, according to another survey conducted by the association. The most-sought-after new workers have degrees in business, engineering, and computer-related fields, the association said. —Andrew Mytelka

View article...

Turn Off Goes Green...

A Joint Project of Earth Day Network and Center for SCREEN-TIME Awareness

Did you know that the average television consumes 200-300 kilowatt-hours per year, accounting for an estimated 3-4% of the annual electronic usage in the USA.

That’s a whopping 46.9 billion kilowatt-hours a year! Or, in environmental terms, approximately 36 million tons of carbon dioxide, a global-warming causing pollutant.

Next week on April 22nd is Earth Day - do you part and turn off your TV!

Find out more at the Earth Day Network. http://www.earthday.net/default.aspx

How do you use EMAIL?

Google is looking for input from university students on how they use e-mail on campus. They are trying to collect information on user preferences. The survey includes questions about preference and habits of students using e-mail and online applications. Google said it's looking to "understand the role email and online applications play on college campuses and in students' lives." Read more at: E-Mail Use: Google Looks for Answers from Students

The Greening Of America's Campuses

The Greening Of America's Campuses - College students across the country are fired up about global warming, and they're gathering online to agitate for change. Is this the next big youth movement?

Life After College - Are you ready?

You've had graduation day visualized in the back of your mind since freshman year and now you find it quickly approaching. Amidst the excitement and enthusiasm also comes a frenzy of emotions that borderline on hysteria. Don't panic. You're not alone -- and you're not going crazy. (more)

Read more at Colleges.com, U Magazine

USNews.com: America's Best Graduate Schools 2008

USNews.com: America's Best Graduate Schools 2008 Interested in going to graduate school?Take a look.

What will YOU read during Spring Break?

Got a recommendation for something to read over Spring Break? Here are some of the favorite fiction titles of Tarleton students, staff, and faculty, from the Library Lovers responses. Click on the title links to find the item in the Tarleton catalog. Click on the book cover photo to find the item in another library near you with Open WorldCat:

Stephen King’s The Stand

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Prey by Michael Crichton

The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

The Runaway Jury by John Grisham

Add your suggestions in the comments! (Photos courtesy Amazon.com)