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(11/15/11 3:10am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Jacobs School of Music faculty and student percussionists and the IU Drumline were showcased last weekend at the Percussive Arts Society’s 50th annual International Convention.The convention took place in Indianapolis, providing IU students and faculty a special opportunity to participate and perform throughout the weekend.“There was a significant IU faculty and student presence there,” said John Tafoya, chair of the Jacobs percussion department. “We are very proud because we feel like IU was really well-represented.”Tafoya and his fellow Jacobs faculty members Kevin Bobo and Michael Spiro were featured in performances and clinics throughout the weekend. Under the direction of Spiro, the IU Afro-Cuban Folkloric Ensemble performed Saturday during a special, full-length concert at the convention. The Percussive Arts Society selected the ensemble of about 30 students, who competed internationally for the opportunity to play at the convention.“We got to perform in front of a bunch of percussionists and percussion enthusiasts that understood the language we were speaking and understood where the music was coming from,” said Rod Costman, an ensemble member and second-year masters percussion performance student in Jacobs. “It was probably the most remarkable performance I have been a part of.”The drumline of IU’s Marching Hundred, directed by Jacobs Alumnus Joel Brainard, performed Friday at the convention.Tafoya said convention attendance usually reaches 6,000 to 7,000 people each year, and attendees range from middle school, high school and college students to current and retired professional percussionists.IU’s presence at the convention served as a recruitment and publicity tool, he said.“PAS is there to encourage the art of percussive arts and teaching,” Tafoya said. “It was an honor to have a significant IU presence during a significant milestone in PAS history. We are fostering the next generation of young performers.”
(11/09/11 4:31am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Students and staff will have to wait longer than originally planned for the completion of renovations in the Wildermuth Intramural Center since the center caught fire in July.The basketball courts and indoor track at the center in the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation will not be available for public use until summer 2012 at the earliest, said Jackie Puterbaugh, associate director of Campus Recreational Sports.“Right now we are saying summer, but we are committed to re-opening for the fall,” she said. In late July, Mark Land, associate vice president for university communications, told the IDS the repairs would be complete by mid-September. But after the University called on experts, they revealed the damage was more extensive.According to a report by Bloomington Fire Department Prevention Officer Scott Smith, three construction workers were using a 4-inch wheel grinder to remove steel gutter brackets from the building. The heat from their work sparked materials in the structure, and the fire broke out then quickly spread while construction workers repairing the roof were taking a break.It was a three-alarm fire that took three hours and 50 firefighters to extinguish and caused heat, soot and water damage to the roof and inside of the structure. Puterbaugh said the repairs have to be sequenced; in other words, most of the repairs cannot be completed at the same time. They have to replace a section of the roof, clean the entire facility, repaint the walls and ceiling, tear out five of the 10 basketball courts and re-sand and re-finish the remaining five. They are still evaluating whether or not they need to replace the indoor track. But Lexi Chaput, assistant director for informal sports and student personnel, said the CRS staff is trying to combat the misconception that the entire facility is unavailable. “The basketball courts and the track are the only features of the WIC that are unavailable for use,” she said. The martial arts studio, gyms 293, 171 and 163, pool 194, the racquetball courts and the Royer pool were undamaged and remain open to the public. Although some space for basketball will be allotted in Wildermuth, most students have to migrate to the Student Recreational Sports Center.“We are finding that students are starting earlier and finishing later and really adjusting,” Chaput said. “As long as we share what’s going on, students are extremely reasonable.”Staffers are still trying to determine how they will tackle the challenge of relocating the winter intramural basketball, which usually takes place in the center’s gyms. With winter looming, the staff at the SRSC is also preparing for the influx of indoor exercisers. Chaput said they have added to their staff despite the locale downsizing, specifically for the position of informal sport supervisors, which are the students who scan IDs at the entrance to the SRSC and intramural center facilities. They have added scanning stations throughout both facilities to ensure security and make it easier for people to come and participate. Beth Lampert, a junior in kinesiology and CRS staff team leader, said the key to smoothly running facilities is the constant communication among the professional and student staff.“They are always communicating with us through email and meetings,” she said. “So, we are able to explain what is going on to the participants, and so once they understand why we do what we do, it helps diffuse any problems.”She said people who want to fulfill their New Year’s resolutions or sculpt their “spring break bods” but avoid the crowd should consider group exercise classes, which usually aren’t as busy, or exercise in the available spaces at the Wildermuth center. Every year, 38,000 students use the recreational sports facilities, and 62 percent use them at least weekly. “We have an extremely active campus, so having a space out of use that students consistently use makes it a top priority for us to finish this process as soon as possible,” Puterbaugh said.
(11/08/11 4:36am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Two Jacobs School of Music students performed in the second round of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions this past weekend.Baritone Joshua Conyers and bass-baritone Jason Eck traveled to the Central Regional Auditions on Sunday at the Music Institute of Chicago in Evanston, Ill., They advanced after winning the Indiana District competition, which was Oct. 30 at IU.Maria Levy, executive administrator for strategic planning with the IU Opera & Ballet Theater for the Jacobs School, said it is a great honor for a student to advance in the auditions. “IU is quite often represented among the people who are selected to advance,” she said. “They hold these auditions because they want to discover excellent young talent for the Metropolitan Opera.”The auditions exist in four rounds: district, regional, semi-finals and grand finals. Although Conyers and Eck did not advance past the regional auditions in Evanston this year, Levy said their accomplishments are still great. “It feels awesome to be recognized by such a great organization as the Metropolitan Opera,” Conyers said. “Even if it’s just the first stage, it feels good, and I feel like I’m moving up.”Conyers is pursuing a masters in voice at Jacobs.Eck received an Encouragement Award, an honor given to students with promising talent who do not advance to the next round of auditions.“Every time we go up to sing it’s a learning experience,” Conyers said. “My dream is just to be an active opera singer and sing all over the world. And I’ll take it any way it comes.”
(11/04/11 6:00am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Music blared through the speakers.“Everybody dance now!” C+C Music Factory’s “Gonna Make You Sweat,” enticed 200 IU students to join the choreographed line dance that would kick off the 36 hours that lay ahead of them at the first IU Dance Marathon.After a day and a half of non-stop dancing, IUDM had raised $10,900.That was in 1991. Nearly 21 years and more than $10 million later, the structure of IUDM has evolved, but the mission has remained consistent: It’s all “For The Kids.” Back to the Beginning It started with a kid from Kokomo, Ind., named Ryan White.At 13, White was diagnosed with AIDS after receiving a contaminated blood transfusion. “It was kind of when AIDS first started coming about and no one really knew about it, so there was a lot of turmoil in the community,” said Gretchen Ahlers, IUDM alumni relations director. “He actually ended up getting banned from his school, and his family just didn’t know what to do, so they went to Riley (Hospital for Children).”White lost his battle in April 1990 and passed away the spring before he was to attend IU. His friends from high school transitioned to college. But one friend, Jill Stewart, wanted some way to “carry on Ryan White’s name and his passion for Riley”, Ahlers said. Stewart went to her student advisor to brainstorm ideas, and he proposed a dance marathon based on the annual 48-hour event at Pennsylvania State University to benefit Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital.Stewart asked Bryan Neale, then-president of the Interfraternity Council, to help her. He agreed and solicited the help of Kristi Engle, then-president of IU Panhellenic Association.Stewart, Neale and Engle flew to Pennsylvania to observe Penn State’s Dance Marathon and spent the weekend taking notes and interviewing participants. The three made a list of about a dozen student leaders on campus on a yellow legal pad. “We knew if we wanted this to succeed, we had to get the best core group of student leaders,” Neale said. “Our number one goal was to donate at least one dollar to Riley Hospital for Children and have a whole lot of fun.” Establishing an Evolving Tradition The first IUDM raised $10,900 — $900 from the dancers and $10,000 from the sales of White’s autobiography, “Ryan White: My Own Story.”“You actually had to sign up with someone, and it had to be someone of the opposite sex,” Ahlers said. “It was like a date-a-thon almost.”It was the beginning of a new tradition that would become the second largest college philanthropy in the U.S.That year, IUDM also made a promise to Riley, Ahlers said.“We told Riley that we would raise $10 million for the Ryan White Center for Infectious Disease at Riley,” she said.Riley opened the center in 2000. In 2010, IUDM’s 20-year funding total surpassed its $10 million goal. The 2011 dance marathon structure won’t be the same as the first year, but the 20 years that have passed are a timeline of evolving traditions that define IUDM today.With increasing participation and a drive to raise more money each year, dancer qualifications and fundraising methods vary annually. This year, dancers can sign up for a shift rather than the full 36 hours. This came from concerns about dancer welfare and venue accommodation, said IUDM President Michael Essling. This year’s marathon will be at IU Tennis Center due to construction at the HPER.“It does not change the purpose or the mission,” Essling said. Maintaining the MissionUntil 2005, the letters “FTK”, which stood for “For The Kids”, and White’s initials were on all IUDM apparel.The IUDM community added a third set of initials to its slogan in April 2005, after Ashley Louise Crouse, IUDM vice president of communications, died in a car accident. Their apparel now reads, “FTK-ALC-RW,” and Crouse’s memory is preserved by the dance marathon.“It started in memory of Ryan White,” Essling said. “But whether we are motivated by Ryan, who died 21 years ago or Ashley, who passed away six years ago, we have really tried to keep core principles.”Maintaining IUDM’s longevity has been a core tradition since 1991, and Neale said IUDM founders returned in 2010 to see how it had changed since its inception.“You still have a special place in your heart for it,” he said. “The thing that stood out to me the most was the ability of young people and students to achieve ridiculously outstanding results year after year after year. The dance marathon has never changed. It’s all about giving good and creating good, and having a good time doing it.”
(11/02/11 3:10am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The last time David Brooks was on IU’s campus, he went to a football game with his son Joshua, a sophomore studying history.But on Tuesday, the New York Times op-ed columnist and PBS NewsHour commentator returned to campus to address the politics and culture surrounding the 2012 election as a guest of the Center on Congress at IU and School of Journalism for their Speaker Series. He spoke at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, and his audience represented the people living between the juxtaposed worlds of journalism and politics.“Since the tensions between politicians and journalists are well known, our speaker tonight is taking a real gamble,” said Lee Hamilton, former Indiana congressman and director of the Center on Congress, as he introduced Brooks. “But good journalism is at the heart of making our democracy work. We cannot have a free society without a free press.”Brooks took to the lectern and jumped into a humorous story about overly aggressive politicians and the lack of modesty in American society. But he said Hamilton was the exception.“What I do is cover politicians, and Lee Hamilton is not normal,” he jokingly said. Brooks addressed several aspects of society he said have lead to the problems America faces today, including the way Americans spend, executive compensation and the growing polarization in politics. He said the country is trying to correct its flaws, though.“What I am trying to describe is a country reacting to economic crisis by returning back to values, but they are not sure they see the political leadership to get them there,” he said. His conclusion was a more positive reflection, admitting he has great faith in the American population younger than 30. “I put more stock in what people are doing, the way they are cutting down their debt and the way they are shifting their behavior, than deliverance in politics,” he said.Brooks left journalism students with a note of encouragement.“I used to think journalism was waning,” he said. “People are willing to pay for it, even though they can get around the pay wall, because they value it.”Freshman journalism major Jennifer Gehrke attended the lecture and said she appreciated what Brooks had to say about the future of journalism.“That was one of the first encouraging things I’ve heard about journalism in a long time,” she said.Media Scholar John Sullivan, a freshman double majoring in journalism and English, said he has been reading Brooks’ column since middle school and dropped everything to attend the lecture Tuesday. “He basically summarized the problems with politics, society and the media,” Sullivan said.
(11/01/11 4:33am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The atmosphere at Cook Hall tingled with composed anticipation as 28 of the 30 Army ROTC senior cadets gathered for their branch ceremony, on Monday.The cadets anxiously awaited their specific branch assignment, signifying where they would serve as officers in the U.S. Army after graduation.“We have chosen a place where many Hoosiers have allowed their dreams to come true,” Lt. Col. Michael Ogden, director of military science and commander of IU Army ROTC, said as he addressed the crowd of family, friends and veterans.Surrounding the perimeter of the upper deck, each cadet was positioned behind the banner of a distinguished IU alumnus athlete.“They have said ‘no job too difficult, no place too far, I am a warrior Hoosier,’” Ogden said. “Ten years of war have not deterred them from taking on this task. I’ve tested them, and I’m here to tell you that you can trust them.”Each man descended the stairs, purpose in each step they took. The salute.“Hoosiers, sir!”The handshake, the envelope, the congratulatory pat on the back. The about-face.“Infantry.”“Med Services.”“Artillery.”Each cadet called out the branch of service their enveloped revealed, holding back the urge to smile. A resounding “Hooah!” followed. But for two senior cadets, Alex Clem and John Brogan, the honor extended even further. In August, the two made IU ROTC history, ranking in the top 1 percent of senior cadets in the nation on the National Order of Merit list, an honor no other IU Army ROTC cadet had received. Cadets across the nation were evaluated on their academic grade point average, their performance both at the summer Leadership Development and Assessment Course and in Army ROTC. Clem and Brogan finished 15th and 17th, respectively, out of 5,650 cadets across the country.As the proximity of their individual rankings reflect, the two cadets have much in common. They both are majoring in the sciences, carry above a 3.8 GPA and plan to attend medical school and pursue the Army Medical Corps. They encompass what the army defines as "scholar athlete leader," Ogden said.“Another hallmark of just how special these two young men are,” Ogden said. “To maintain the degree of academic performance required to succeed in the pre-medicine curriculum and focus and learn to the degree necessary to learn the art of military science and leadership combined is a tremendously difficult endeavor to undertake. And those two mastered both of them.”Although both cadets are humble with their recognition, the paths that led them to IU ROTC and the roads they plan to travel as officers in the Army define their individuality. “I don’t know what I would have done if I had not done ROTC,” Clem said. “Having the camaraderie and all that, I love it. I wouldn’t change it.”But ROTC was not in his original plan. Clem contemplated enlisting directly out of high school and delaying college, but ultimately decided to enroll at IU and study biology.“During freshman orientation, I saw the Army ROTC booth and realized I can do both,” he said. “It seemed like a great thing to be a part of and I really like.”He joined Army ROTC and enjoyed the structure so much, he also enlisted in the National Guard. He spent the summer after his freshman year at basic training, qualifying him to be part of the simultaneous membership program. At the branch ceremony, Clem’s envelope read Medical Services. He has been accepted to the IU School of Medicine and will attend in the fall 2012. Because of the extra time he committed during his summers, Clem is only required to serve three years of active duty once he completes medical school and his residency. But he is applying for the Health Professions Scholarships, which would pay for medical school and require him to serve an additional four years of active duty. Clem would serve as an army doctor. Senior Cadet Brogan said he plans to attend medical school and later serve as a doctor in the Army as well, but he chose to serve his four years active duty first. His envelope read “infantry.” After those four years, he will spend his four inactive years going to medical school and then will return to the Army as a doctor. He didn’t always want to be a doctor. Brogan went to Iowa State University his freshman year. He was an engineering major and was involved with ROTC. After a summer internship in engineering, he knew it wasn’t what he was passionate about. And an untimely canoeing adventure that left him in the hospital for a couple days helped him discover that passion. The fact that a microscopic bacteria could bring him down fascinated him, so he transferred to IU to study microbiology and continued in ROTC.“It was something I always wanted to do, plus I felt like I kind of owed it to my country,” Brogan said. “I wanted to feel like I did something. Some people climb mountains. This is my mountain.”Clem and Brogan agreed on something that concerns them both. They said they think their top 1 percent ranking is a great honor, but it doesn’t prove anything yet.“It’s kind of hard because it’s almost like it’s not real. I feel like I worked hard, but now that it’s happened, it’s like I did that, but it doesn’t mean I’m going to be a good officer,” Clem said. “It’s almost like not feeling worthy. It’s really cool, and it’s a great honor, but it’s not like I have really done anything in the real army yet.”Brogan agreed there are still tests he hasn’t faced yet.“I feel like I don’t deserve it,” Brogan said. “I feel there are people who are much better than me, but I guess I can’t really argue with it.”But Ogden, who also ranked in the top 1 percent when he was a senior cadet in Army ROTC at Ball State University, said the two are as worthy as any.“The two of them exemplify that scholar athlete leader combination that it takes to be an army officer, to lead our nation’s sons and daughters into some of the most difficult and challenging circumstances our country can face and send them to solve the world’s problems at a moment’s notice,” Ogden said. “And it certainly takes mental toughness and the mental agility to lead our soldiers and to find the best solutions to those problems, whatever that may be.”Although having cadets in the top 1 percent is a first for IU Army ROTC, the program has always had a presence nationwide, Ogden said.“In that top 10 percent category we finished second in the nation only to University of Hawaii,” Ogden said. “We had more cadets in the top 10 percent than 276 other schools in the country, which is probably the record I am most proud of because that is the one everybody is aiming for.”
(11/01/11 3:38am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Nancy and Michael Uslan can sum up their IU experience in eight words: “Fell in love with IU and each other.”They are challenging the “Spirit of IU” community to do the same as part of the site’s recent contest.The IU Alumni Association has teamed up with the IU Creative Services Office and launched a new facet of its website, hoping to increase online interaction among Indiana Hoosiers past and present.The site’s title reflects its mission: to provide a social networking community where Hoosier alumni can share their IU pride. “We came up with this idea because we realized people really wanted a way to engage and for the Alumni Association to be relevant in their lives,” said Rebecca Salerno, director of the IU Office of Creative Services.It functions as an interactive game where “Spirit of IU” community members can earn points by engaging within the site. They can redeem their participation points for merchandise or membership fee payments for the IU Alumni Association. There is a community for IU alumni to find fellow tailgaters in Hoosier Village on game days. Salerno said one main goal was to target the younger generation of alumni, those students who graduated within the last 10 years. They plan to achieve this by partnering with notable IU alumni to sponsor interactive online contests, attracting more than 640 Hoosiers to the site since the July launch.The first was a fashion contest where IU alumni and blogosphere fashionista Jessica Quirk of “What I Wore” sought to find the 10 contributors with the best IU style. “It’s a great way to showcase some of the amazing alumni talent we have and tell their IU story in their own words,” said JT Forbes, executive director of the IU Alumni Association. The current contest collaboration was inspired by IU alumna Nancy Uslan, founder of Books and Beyond, a global literacy program that provides reading material for Rwandan children in the wake of genocide. Students living in the Global Village work through Books and Beyond to create an anthology of short stories with students in Newark, N.J., and Rwanda, said Lauren Caldarera, assistant director for the Global Village.Nancy and her husband, Michael, executive producer of the Batman movies, have brought a “Spirit of IU” twist to the Books and Beyond mission; contest participants have to tell their “IU story” in eight words or fewer.“It is an exercise that I hope anyone who attempts to accomplish will enjoy and take time to reflect on their greater experience as a whole,” Nancy Uslan said.This contest will affect both the IU community and the benefactors of the Books and Beyond project.“We are hoping that people will submit stories through IU and they will get to learn more about Books and Beyond,” Caldarera said. The deadline for this contest is Dec. 1.“It’s a quick and easy way to touch base with the IU community,” Forbes said. “It’s the first rung on the ladder of engagement once you graduate from the University.”
(10/27/11 2:38am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Education pays.A recent IU study found that people 25 years and older who continue their education past high school can expect a substantial increase in wages, whether or not they complete or obtain degrees.The study, “The Importance of Being Educated: Wage Benefits for Indiana’s Adult Students,” was conducted by researchers at the Indiana Business Research Center at IU’s Kelley School of Business.“If you look at the population of so-called nontraditional students, relatively little is known of them and their experiences, as compared to the traditional college student,” said Timothy Slaper, director of economic analysis at the IBRC. “There is a bump in wages as a result of pursuing an education, and those are statistically substantial and could be substantiated based on the wage records of the students in our cohort.”IBRC collected data during three years by studying a group of 20,263 college students attending two of Indiana’s public, two-year institutions: Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana and Vincennes University. These students were enrolled between fall 1999 and spring 2002. The researchers then tracked the students’ progress in the work force one and five years later.The IBRC study found students 25 years or older who enroll earned $1,000 more in annual wages after attempting 25 to 36 college credit hours compared to those who attempted fewer than 12 college credit hours. Those who enrolled in 49 to 60 credit hours achieved $2,300 more on average than those enrolled in 12 hours or less.Slaper said the study also found that the benefits of post-secondary education increased for students in certain programs of study.“The field of study is also important,” he said. “Big boosts in wages come from health care-related occupations, industrial arts, business and consumer services.”Students who pursued 25 to 36 credit hours in industrial arts and consumer services majors earned an average of about $5,100 more per year than those who attempted fewer than 12 credit hours.Nontraditional students completing their associate degrees gained an average of $4,100 per year more in wages than those who attempted fewer than 12 credits. Health majors gained an average of $9,900 more per year in wages than those who attempted 12 credits. Industrial arts and consumer services majors gained $7,000 more annually than those who attempted fewer than 12 credits.According to the United States Census Bureau, 55.3 percent of adults in Indiana do not continue their education past high school.Sue Smith, corporate executive for Advanced Manufacturing and Technology with Ivy Tech Corporate College, said research studies like the one conducted by IBRC help her communicate the importance of education to employers and employees.“A study like this is really an eye-opener for employees and employers,” she said. “I hope this a wake-up call. Here is the data, demonstrated proof that there is a return on that investment in the education field.”Slaper said the most important aspect of the study is its conclusion that a little bit of education is better than none at all.“While it’s important to complete or finish your degree, even if you don’t, getting some education will give you an economic benefit,” he said.
(10/20/11 2:47am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>On Oct. 13, the eve of former United States Surgeon General C. Everett Koop’s 95th birthday, the Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention at IU announced plans to honor the doctor’s legacy with the creation of an endowed research grant.The grant will support doctoral student research related to AIDS/HIV prevention, mirroring the work for which Koop is universally recognized. “This is something that will last forever,” said William Yarber, the center’s senior director and a professor in the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation. “It means that doctoral students from across the country will receive financial assistance for their work and will have a sense of pride that it is named in Koop’s honor.” The center decided to create the endowment in Koop’s name for his “courageous” and “heroic” contributions to raising awareness of AIDS and HIV in the 1980s. Doctoral students from across the nation can apply for these $600 grants, which are awarded each spring. Yarber said the center will most likely award three grants in spring 2012, but he hopes the endowment will increase in coming years. Koop was presented the 2010 Ryan White Distinguished Leadership Award by the center and Jeanne White Ginder, mother of the young AIDS activist from Indiana.Yarber said Koop is one of the most heroic and famous surgeon generals in history. “Not everyone was pleased, but all the people of the public health praised him and realized he did a very courageous and heroic thing by providing education about AIDS when people were hesitant to do that and political leaders didn’t want to get involved,” Yarber said. “Dr. Koop put the needs of the nation before any political aspects.”
(10/20/11 2:41am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Kenyan photojournalist Jacob Otieno said it’s bringing people together. Otieno, along with other scholars of African studies, will spend his weekend at IU as a guest of the African Studies Program to celebrate the program’s 50th anniversary.“I’m humbled and feel greatly honored to be on this beautiful campus,” Otieno said. “I have never been to this part of the (United States), but I feel more like a scholar this time. I am learning from students, and they are learning from me.”The program will reflect upon its own history, as well as Africa’s past, as it celebrates its anniversary today through Saturday. “The most important thing is that we know what our mission is and we are fulfilling it: educating Americans about the continent of Africa,” African Studies Program Director Samuel Obeng said. “It’s like a coming of age, if you like.” Obeng said the 50-year celebration this weekend marks a time of reflection on the program’s past accomplishments and future progress.“You ask yourself, ‘What have I done?’ It’s a period of reflection. What is my mission, have I been able to fulfill it, what am I going to do in the next year, 10 or 20 years?’” Obeng said. “The past, as we know, informs the future.”To commemorate its anniversary, the African Studies Program has summoned the work of African photographers and invited distinguished IU alumni to sit on panels and incite public discussion on topics of African history and culture, as well as the struggles the continent faces. Otieno’s contribution to the celebration will be on display at the Ivy Tech John Waldron Arts Center, where his photos tell the story of the Kenyan revolution that brought freedom of expression to the country. Otieno said coverage of the revolution raised awareness among the Kenyan people, pushing the government to revise Section 2A of their constitution to allow freedom of expression.“You’ve got to fight for it if you want change,” Otieno said. “Everyday we reported it, it was turning, it was turning into a revolution.”Obeng used the saying “a traveler educates his kith and kin” to describe the purpose of this weekend’s events, not just for African Studies students and faculty, but for the entire IU campus. “If people go to these lectures and these panels, they will educate themselves and their friends, and I encourage them to ask questions and become involved in the discussion,” he said. “Any program that does not grow or offer room for growth is as good as dead.” Depth and breadth are two goals for the program in the next 25 years as Obeng said he hopes to expand the core of the program and bring African studies to occupations and subjects it hasn’t reached yet, like communication, business and human rights, he said. “Our program is meant to promote culture through all aspects, including musical, scientific, political and other activities that are related to Africa, for the benefit of the community, of the students and of the country,” Obeng said. “We want to contribute toward the enrichment of all people.”
(10/12/11 4:18am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>For about a month, medical information pertaining to the eye health of 757 IU School of Optometry patients was visible on the Internet. The information, which was stored on a teaching server by former faculty member Kevin E. Houston, O.D., was originally secure and available to optometry students for educational purposes, said April Haag, IU School of Optometry compliance and privacy officer. However, when the server was reconfigured Aug. 12, an error exposed the information to the Internet. Because Houston left the school in June and the server was not re-configured until mid-August, no one realized it contained protected medical records.“When Dr. Houston put the information on the teaching server, it wasn’t designed to hold protected health information,” Haag said.The school was notified of the information breach Sept. 9. It shut down the server, and within 24 hours, cached copies indexed by a major computer search engine were removed. Letters were sent to the 757 affected patients Sept. 30.“We don’t know that their information was seen by anyone, just that it could have been seen,” said Mark Land, associate vice president of University Communications. Those affected by the breach came from a specific subset of patients at the school’s low-vision clinics in Carmel, Ind., and Indianapolis who were seen between January 2007 and June 2011. Certain hospital inpatients seen by Houston from August 2007 to August 2008 were also included. The leaked medical history contained only information on the patients’ eye health and did not contain any information that could make a patient susceptible to identity theft, such as addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, social security numbers, credit card numbers, driver’s license numbers or other financial information. Haag said there is a regulatory agency that manages Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act violations, commonly referred to as HIPAA, and the school has fulfilled its legal obligation to file the breach with the Office of Civil Rights with the Department of Health and Human Services.The school is revisiting its policies and procedures about where secure information should and should not be stored, as well as launching an education campaign with all of its faculty, Haag said.“It’s a cascade failure,” she said. “I wouldn’t put it on one person. At the end of the day, it’s the School of Optometry’s responsibility to secure our patients’ information, and we are treating it that way.”
(10/07/11 4:19am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Armed with coupon ammunition, moms on a mission for half-price peanut butter and discount mac and cheese are the usual grocery store scavengers. But IU junior Tyler Cox has a different motivation: bringing a whole new meaning to the title “Super Shopper.” On Oct. 5, Cox was featured as one of two couponers on TLC’s series “Extreme Couponing.” The show profiles individuals who go to extremes to get the most bang for their buck in the grocery store. In May 2011 Cox applied to appear on “Extreme Couponing” and in late June was notified that he would be a featured extreme couponer for the hit show’s second season. “I called my mom and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, oh my gosh. They picked me, they picked me!’” Cox said. But he admits actually getting used to the extreme couponing lifestyle was overwhelming and time-consuming at first. Although his strategy came from watching his extreme couponing idols on the show, he tailored his shopping routine to the needs of an IU college student. Cox said he would rather spend the $100 monthly grocery allowance his mom gives him on more important things. And Cox jokingly admits that party supplies ranks at the top of that list.He is also a self-proclaimed shopaholic, and he said extreme couponing seemed to be a good option to acquire some extra spending money.“I watched the show all the time and just thought to myself, ‘I could do that too.’” he said. In Cox’s episode, he went to Kroger in Bloomington with the intent of purchasing $300 worth of groceries for less than half of his $100 monthly allowance. His former roommate and high school best friend Darrah Saaré, a senior at IU, accompanied him. His total retail value was $293.23 but he only spent $53.11. Cox said that while not every shopping adventure is that extreme, it is always a challenge that gives him an adrenaline rush.“I think some of the people on the show have an addiction where they keep going out and they keep buying laundry detergent,” Cox said. “I’m not going to need laundry detergent for a while. I haven’t bought any more since the show, But it is an adrenaline rush, like when you’re at check-out and you see your total is up to like $200 and you’re sitting there thinking, ‘How low is it gonna go?’ So, it’s kinda fun.”Cox has a very strict routine when it comes to coupon clipping. He collects inserts from family and friends, buys at least two Sunday papers and finds additional deals online through blogs or digital coupons on store websites. He calculates to the penny how much he will spend before he steps foot in the store. “I make an Excel spreadsheet of what the price of the item normally is, what it is on sale, then what my coupon is going to take off and the final price,” he said. “I total it up and get a total without coupons and a total with coupons. Generally, it goes pretty well.”But he said there is always an element of fear as the cashier rings up the final bill. “Sometimes you to sit there and think, ‘What if my coupons don’t scan?’” he said. “You have to rely on those coupons ... That’s my money when I go into the store.”But he doesn’t want any of that to discourage his peers from entering the extreme couponing world themselves. He has tried to rope some of his friends into the fun but said many tell him they don’t have time. For Cox, coupon clipping takes no more than an hour now that he has established a routine. “I will ask my friends how much they spent at the grocery store the last time they went. They will say $75-$100,” Cox said. “I just say, ‘Do you realize you could be using that money on so much other stuff? Gosh, just coupon with me.’”But the one person he wants to impress the most is his mom. “My mom is thrilled,” he said. “She still gives me the money and she just loves that I am going out of my way to save money.”According to Cox, in the end it all comes down to common sense. “I could still get by on a hundred bucks a month for food,” he said. “I could do that going to the grocery store. But it’s just that — Why would I when I don’t have to?”
(10/07/11 2:19am)
Tyler Cox was recently featured on the television show "Extreme Couponing."
(10/06/11 3:22am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The 2011-12 Remak New Knowledge Seminar at IU will explore the paradoxical phenomenon of a nation engaged in war that exhibits no tangible “at war” feeling.The seminar, The In/Visibility of America’s 21st Century Wars, will feature a series of lectures by a variety of speakers as well as discussions facilitated by IU faculty from various disciplines. The seminar is restricted to faculty members in the Department of Communication and Culture, but the lectures given by guest speakers will be open to the public. Participants will have the opportunity to engage in the media that portrays the 21st century war experience for today’s America, including video games, film and photography. Organized by Department of Communication and Culture faculty members John Lucaites and Jon Simons, the seminar compliments the 2011 Fall Themester Making War, Making Peace. The seminar will explore the normalization of war in the 21st century and how it is portrayed in the media. “War has become somewhat invisible to us,” Lucaites said. “We seem to live in the midst of this perpetual war. It is visible to us, but it’s almost like we don’t see it.” Lucaites, a professor, and Simons, an associate professor, have been named Henry H.H. Remak Distinguished Scholars by the IU Institute for Advanced Study for their winning Remak New Knowledge Seminar proposal.The guest lectures, all of which are free and open to the public, will take place at 7 p.m. in the IU Fine Arts Auditorium (FA 015) on their corresponding dates.An additional set of four lectures will be in the spring semester.“We hope (audience members) come away with greater insight,” Simon said. “In particular, with a better understanding of the way that war is normalized in contemporary visual public culture, how it’s made to appear like the normal state of affairs rather than a great exception.”
(10/05/11 2:37am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IU Office of Sustainability marches into a month of conservation and efficiency today as it kicks off the 2011 Fall Energy Challenge with a parade through campus.Students and staff pledging to accept and promote the energy challenge will march through campus at 1:45 p.m. from the Sample gates.Will McHenry, the sustainability intern running this year’s challenge, said the initiative’s goal is to show students the influence small changes can have.“The purpose of the energy challenge in general is to encourage participants to make small behavioral changes and to instill conservation habits,” McHenry said in an email. “Collectively, small changes in energy and water consumption can have a substantial effect on the University’s environmental impact.”The 2011 Fall Energy Challenge will take place from today through Nov. 2.The four-week challenge began in spring 2008, and this fall’s competition is only the second to take place in the fall.“RHA’s goal is to increase energy and water savings in every residence hall as well as to encourage student knowledge about energy usage, participation in the challenge and leadership in center-wide energy challenge events,” Laura Appelt, Residence Halls Association director of environmental affairs, said in an email. “We hope that the motivation to participate comes not only from campus-wide groups and organizations but also from within each community.”Find a photo boothThe Office of Sustainability has invited energy challenge participants to have their photo taken in the traveling photo pledge booth.Participants can show their enthusiasm for the challenge by posing with light bulbs and light switches provided by Habitat Restore.The traveling photo pledge booth will be available throughout the four-week challenge for students to make their pledge. You can schedule to have the booth come to your residence hall or academic building by emailing iuec@indiana.eduThis week the booth will be available at the following locations:Wednesday: 10:45 to 11:45 a.m. outside of Woodburn Hall; 5 to 7 p.m. at Collins Edmondson Dining HallThursday: 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. at the Read Center Lobby; 3 to 4 p.m. at McNutt Residence Center; 5 to 7 p.m. at Collins Edmondson Dining HallTake the pledge“This semester, we’re focusing our efforts on increasing participant enthusiasm and involvement with the competition,” McHenry said. “We’re doing this by implementing a new promotional campaign which focuses on securing public and written commitments from participants to reduce energy and water consumption during the four-week challenge.”Find information on the pledge forms at energychallenge.indiana.edu.Look for energy challenge tables set up across campus where you can receive a “pledge” button signifying your commitment to the challenge.Academic conservationPromotion for the energy challenge is widespread among residence halls. However, Appelt said many students don’t realize the challenge exists within the academic buildings on campus, as well.“Students who don’t live on campus can work with their professors and within their departments to try to reduce energy and water use in those buildings, as well,” Appelt said. “Some of the most spirited teams of students have worked within academic buildings to win energy challenges.”Residence halls tipsShorten the length of your shower.Turn the water off when you are brushing your teeth or soaping up.Use power strips in your dorm rooms.Turn off the lights when leaving a room.Ditch the elevator and take the stairs.Academic buildings tipsTurn off lights in classrooms that aren’t being used.Turn the water off when you are soaping up your hands.Abandon the elevator and take the stairs.The payoffEach year a residence hall, academic building and Greek house win the energy challenge. The winning buildings receive bragging rights and a traveling trophy.Since the initiative began in 2008, academic buildings and residence halls have saved 3,813,600 gallons of water and 2,578,028 kWh of electricity, according to a study conducted by Nolan Hendon, a utility conservation summer intern with the Office of Sustainability. The efforts of participants have resulted in an avoidance of 9,376 metric tons of CO2 emissions and have saved the University $1,090,693 in utility costs.
(09/30/11 4:27am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Michele Bachmann recently reignited the controversy surrounding the human papillomavirus vaccination. During the Republican presidential debate in Tampa, Fla., she said it causes “mental retardation” and is potentially dangerous.But a group of professors and researchers at the IU-Purdue University Indianapolis Kelley School of Business and IU School of Medicine in Indianapolis begs to differ. Dena Cox, a professor of marketing and faculty fellow at Kelley in Indianapolis, has received a $99,600, two-year research grant from Merck pharmaceutical company to study how consumers process information about the HPV vaccine and act on the information they received. Dena Cox, the principal investigator, will be accompanied by her husband, Anthony Cox, chancellor’s faculty fellow and professor of marketing at Kelley, and Gregory Zimet, professor of pediatrics and co-leader of the cancer control program in the School of Medicine. The trio has worked on research projects in the past that analyzed the HPV vaccine.“We were intrigued by it originally because it is something novel in that it was the first vaccine where its sole purpose was to prevent cancer,” Anthony Cox said. He said he and his wife, with backgrounds in consumer marketing and research, wanted to investigate consumer questions that had a purpose.“Why not look at consumer questions that actually matter?” Anthony Cox said. “It might have a positive impact on the consumers.” They chose to look into vaccinations, especially the HPV vaccine, because there is a lot of misinformation that misleads the consumer, he said.“We want to cut through the clutter so parents can make informed decisions about their daughters and so patients can make informed decisions about themselves,” he said. Using a sampling of women aged 18 to 26 who have not yet received all three, if any, of the HPV vaccinations, they will divide the sampling into different groups and present each group with information about the vaccination in different forms.They will look at the relationship between what medium provided them the information, their comprehension of that information and their intention to get vaccinated. Six months later, the researchers will follow up with survey participants. “Vaccinations are the victim of their own success,” Zimet said. In other words, once a vaccination is proven successful, the consumers quit worrying about the disease it cured or prevented and start questioning the side effects of the shot, Zimet said.One issue he said he wants to resolve exists in the tendency of humans to automatically associate negative side effects with vaccines they recently had, which he called a “rational error.”Preventing misinformation means asking questions and becoming educated on the issue at hand, said Darron Brown, professor of medicine, microbiology and immunology in the Division of Infectious Diseases. “The best way is to talk to your own doctor about it,” he said. “Trying to become a scientist yourself if you aren’t one is difficult. Vaccination is the greatest public health achievement the world has ever known.”Zimet and Brown both said the medical community continues to refute claims the vaccine is harmful to those who receive it. “I see the controversy as manufactured,” he said. “There are some people who have strong opinions and believe the vaccine is dangerous. But from a scientific perspective, there is no controversy. This is the first major cancer-preventing vaccination. And ... the fact that there even is any controversy is absurd to me. We should be celebrating.”The researchers’ goal in this two-year project is to eliminate this controversy and discover ways to strengthen communication between the medical and consumer worlds, Anthony Cox said. “We hope to find improved ways to communicate to parents the information, to encourage parents to get their daughters vaccinated and young women to vaccinate themselves as well, and that includes a lot of people in Bloomington,” Zimet said. What is HPV?HPV, or the human papillomavirus, is a sexually transmitted disease that usually goes undetected but can cause genital warts.“HPV is common,” said Diana Ebling, a doctor and medical director at the IU-Bloomington Health Center. “Some studies show that 75 to 80 percent of young adults will contract it at one time or another.”How does HPV relate to cervical cancer?HPV strands 16 and 18 have been proven to cause 70 to 75 percent of cervical cancer.“12,000 women in the U.S. get cervical cancer every year and 4,000 die,” said Anthony Cox, chancellor’s faculty fellow and professor of marketing at the Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis. “If you could prevent 70 percent of those deaths, it would be like preventing a 9/11 every year.” What does the vaccine do?There are two HPV vaccinations that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for women aged nine to 26: Gardasil and Cervarix.The vaccination comes in three rounds, costing about $155 per shot. But women in that age group who have health insurance can get the vaccinations and are usually covered through their insurance plans. “Financial issues shouldn’t stop someone,” Ebling said.Students without insurance can apply through Merck pharmaceutical company to be vaccinated free of charge. “I would encourage all female students to get the vaccine,” Ebling said. “The vaccine covers two types of HPV that could increase a woman’s risk for cervical cancer. “Ideally before someone becomes sexually active, but even if someone is already sexually active we still encourage them to get the vaccine because Gardisil prevents four types of HPV, two of which increase the risk of cervical cancer, and two other strands, 6 and 11, which cause 90 percent of genital warts.”The FDA has also approved males aged nine to 12 to receive Gardasil shots, which prevent penile cancer and genital warts caused by HPV. How to get vaccinated at IU1. Check with your health insurance company to see if it covers the HPV vaccine. 2. If not, come to the IU Health Center and fill out a form for Merck’s free Gardasil vaccine.3. Call 812-855-7688 and make an appointment at the immunization clinic. Both Gardasil and Cervarix are offered at the IU Health Center.How it comparesThe below graph estimates the number of new STD infections each year.
(09/28/11 3:46am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A group of investors, mostly alumni, have pooled their resources to give students with startup ideas a boost — a competition with professional feedback and a $250,000 prize to start their own company. Building Entrepreneurs in Software and Technology is a competition for seniors and graduate students to submit business plans for a student-led company based on Internet and software technology.The prize money for the winning plan — a sum of $100,000 to be put toward the winning students’ or student’s startup company — will be the largest in the world granted to students by a university for a business competition. School of Informatics and Computing Dean Bobby Schnabel, who helped spearhead the formation of the competition, said there are several reasons students should submit their plans. “If they actually dream of being an entrepreneur, then this is an incredible opportunity,” he said. “But also, this is a great experience, not only because they are exposing themselves, but they will be exposed to successful and helpful entrepreneur professionals who are already in the field.”That exposure comes in the form of the 10 investors who created the $1.1 million to fund the competition for four years. Nine of the 10 investors are alumni, and all are leaders or CEOs of their respective companies. Investor Mary Delaney, an IU graduate and CEO of Luceo Solutions LLC, said the value of the competition extends beyond the monetary benefit. “Whether you win or not, you still ‘win,’” Delaney said. “It’s not just the money. They get the funding, but they also get exposure and coaching from multiple levels. I’m just really excited to see the untapped potential of the students.”The competition is in three tiers. The first deadline is Nov. 15, when contestants will submit a conceptual outline for their companies. Initial business plans and presentations of selected teams will be announced by Feb. 3, 2012, and selected finalists will provide a final plan and a public presentation by mid-April 2012. “It’s going to be so helpful, especially if we win,” said Neil Kelty, a senior business major and BEST contestant. “This could be a wonderful way to finance a startup company coming out of college and not having a whole lot of capital.”He said he thinks BEST will give an extra push to entrepreneurial students leery of presenting their ideas.“A lot of these students are the entrepreneurial type and have all these ideas in their mind but have never actually flushed them out,” Kelty said. “You can have the best idea in the world, but it means nothing if you can’t tell other people about it.”
(09/26/11 4:41am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The formula for online success is simple: keep it entertaining, interactive and social. That’s exactly what three groups of IU students have been trying to do, but they have found that success on the web isn’t as easy as it seems. Their websites mimic the witty content and social networks of current Internet superstars, but they are still struggling to break their sites into the “popular crowd” of online hierarchy. Hypehawk.com, whathappensinclass.com and bootydrop.com are websites founded by students and based on user-generated content. Hypehawk, a social networking site with a twist, serves to provide its users with a running tally of local entertainment opportunities. The latter two sites, modeled off popular interactive sites like textsfromlastnight.com and damnyouautocorrect.com, were created specifically for college students to share college humor.“A lot of humor is in the details,” bootydrop.com co-founder and junior Matthew Weaver said. “We wanted somewhere where after a party or the next day, college kids were able to post their stories online.”Weaver’s concept for the site began in the dorms with friend and then-IU student Kevin Lance, who has since transferred to the University of Maryland. After a night out, the two boys would joke around and create witty raps to relive their adventures, Weaver said. They made a rap called “Booty Drop” and thought the name was catchy. Within a week, they had checked the name availability through godaddy.com and bought the URL. Bootydrop.com was born. The site serves the Big Ten, Atlantic Coast Conference and Southeastern Conference, a group of 36 colleges from the Midwest to the East Coast, and has had 40,000 hits since it launched Aug. 8. But with only 20 posts, the duo is realizing that marketing is key. Right now they are relying on word of mouth.“With Facebook and Twitter, it’s a lot easier to spread ideas and sites in today’s world,” Weaver said. Junior and whathappensinclass.com co-founder Sean Fleming agreed.“We did some research on textsfromlastnight.com, and their site took off by word of mouth,” Fleming said. Right now, Fleming and fellow founder Trevor Collins, a junior at Purdue University, are relying only on word of mouth to attract traffic to their site, too. “We know the chances (of success) are slim from the way we are going to market the site,” Fleming said. “It’s going to be all luck.”Christian Briggs, a Ph.D. student in the School of Informatics and Computing, said it takes a combination of several factors, such as how witty the content is, reader community and site design, as well as luck, to launch a successful website. “It is important to note that it is not just one of these factors, but the combination of them, that causes outcomes,” said Briggs, whose concentrations are websites and social media.Griffin Anderson, one of the founders of hypehawk.com, said he thinks luck has a lot to do with online success too. But the site’s founding group are relying on more than luck to bring success to their site.Hypehawk.com, a different type of user-generated content site, is modeled from popular social networking sites like foursquare and Gowalla and serves as an online platform to find local entertainment tailored to the user. Although it is still in the beta stage, which means its creators are in the process of working out the kinks, the website contains features intended to draw in the user and the user’s friends. The idea developed during spring 2011 when Anderson was studying abroad with fellow Kelley School of Business senior Michael Mulica, one of the site founders. They were in Stockholm, Sweden, and grew frustrated trying to find social events in an unfamiliar place. “We started to analyze different moments in our lives where we didn’t know what to do or where to go,” Anderson said. “We decided to build a platform where people can share events and try to solve a problem a lot of us have.”The problem is either having no entertainment choices or not knowing which choice is the best, Anderson said. He said in technology, success is all about speed and timing. For their site to be successful, they need the entire IU community to get plugged in.Several factors go into creating a successful site, especially a user-content generated one, Anderson said. “You need a good idea, something that is going to provide value and is attainable, and you need to find good quality people who know what they’re doing and a good team,” he said. All three students and all three sites have one commonality: they rely on fellow Hoosiers to generate content that will draw in the college audience. “It might sound really cliche, but if you’re passionate about it, you just gotta take risks and go with it,” Weaver said. “If this thing doesn’t go anywhere then I am perfectly OK with that. If you are having fun, then you should go with it. More people should do that.”
(09/16/11 4:21am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>In 2002, they had the weight of history on their shoulders.In 2004, they passed that weight to Congress.Six-hundred-and-twenty-four pages of answers and a decade of questions later, the members of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, better known as the 9/11 Commission, reunited yesterday at IU to reflect upon their findings and evaluate Congress’ response to their advice. Welcomed by IU President Michael McRobbie and introduced by moderator and journalist Ken Bode, the commissioners found their respective seats center stage in the IU Auditorium. It was the first time the commissioners had reunited since the commission report was released in 2004. The applause subsided as Lee Hamilton, former congressman for Indiana’s 9th District and vice chairman of the commission, thanked the University for its hospitality. He casually spoke of the need for a public officials hall of fame, where he would induct Thomas Kean, chairman of the commission. Kean spoke admirably of Hamilton as “one of the most extraordinary public servants I know.” Former Indiana Congressman Timothy Roemer summarized the introductions in a light-hearted manner, boasting about meeting IU mens’ basketball coach Tom Crean earlier in their visit.But the tone swiftly shifted to that of a more serious note as Kean, Hamilton and Roemer spoke of the extraordinary significance of the commission’s bipartisan efforts. “This is the first time we have been together since we wrote the report, but when I read the report now I can still hear your voices,” Kean said. Moderator Bode noted that the commission was created to fail based on its combination of five Democrats and five Republicans, a bipartisan effort many doubted could succeed. The commission exceeded expectations.“The country saw for the first time in a long time a group of Republicans and Democrats working together in the interest of the American people,” Kean said.Roemer was quick to clarify that their success need not be credited to the commissioners’ ability to set aside their own political interests. Rather, he said it was the resolve of the 9/11 families, which had lost so much and craved the truth, that propelled the commissioners to investigate the attacks for the American people.“They put America first. Unity, flying flags, giving blood ... The American people rallied, and they weren’t going to be terrorized,” he said.Challenging their findings and demanding accountability, the 9/11 families served as some of the commission’s toughest critics. But the commissioners said their responsibility to the American people diminished any natural tendency they had to be partisan.“I recall vividly the day we released the report,” Commissioner Fred Fielding said. “I think we were more nervous than anything, because we met with the families before we had the public hearings and the release. We were so nervous they would turn on us or wouldn’t be happy, and it was the greatest relief to all of us when they walked up and asked us to sign their books. “The bipartisan strategy and genuine inspiration allowed the 9/11 Commission to meticulously comb through the events leading up to the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2011, and formulate a plan to prevent such acts from occurring ever again. But Commissioner Slade Gorton said their’s was merely a procedural success.“We started something,” he said. “We didn’t finish it. We showed that different parties and administrations can work together.”And they expect Congress to follow their example. Commissioner Jamie Gorelick said Congress’ response to the 9/11 Commission’s report was one of the quickest in U.S. history. The administration implemented national security policies that prevented another attack on the United States over the last decade, and they took down Osama Bin Laden. The only thing Congress didn’t react to, however, was itself, she said. “I don’t think we can be safe if we are as divided as we are now as a country,” Gorelick said. “You cannot look at New York and not see that resilience ... We need that sense that together we can prevail against almost anything.” The commissioners listed several security measures they say Congress has yet to act upon, including reorganizing and enhancing a communication network amongst the intelligence agencies.“The 9/11 Commission is a high point of public life,” Commissioner James Thompson said. “There are key areas left undone. Lives were lost on 9/11 because police and firemen were not able to talk to each other properly.”Hamilton said the commissioners still fear complacency throughout the government and the nation 10 years after the attacks.“I think we learned an awful lot about America,” Hamilton said. “Where else in the world can we sit down with the President and Vice President? I came out of it all with a whole lot more faith in our government.”
(09/14/11 2:21am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>College students may not be able to control the job market, but some degrees could give graduates a competitive edge, according to a recent report. The Best Degrees, a web-based higher education resource that provides valuable information to help those entering or returning to college, has compiled a list that just might save some career lives.The website recently published a report of the top 51 degrees based on job potential in the current U.S. economy. The study set out to identify the best degrees for students seeking strong job opportunities and high earnings.“The reason we created this report was because we realized that the unemployment rate is high and the economy is down, and many students are told how much money you make at a certain job, but they aren’t told how likely it is they will actually get a job,” The Best Degrees Editor Dee Barizo said. Data was compiled from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, and the report revealed a high demand for technology based-jobs. Seven of the top 10 degrees were related to the study of computers, software or databases. Barizo said the report can be broken down to basic supply and demand. “As technology and the Internet have improved, society continually demands a higher supply of tech-based products,” Barizo said. “People who have expertise in those areas are going to be more likely to get a job.”Writing HTML code may not be everyone’s idea of fun, but Barizo said even students who aren’t technology-minded can be.“Every discipline uses technology. Even if you don’t work for an IT company, every organization needs IT people,” senior computer science major June Clark said. “I always encourage my friends to take IT classes and to have a good understanding of some technology because having the IT background is always a plus.”She explained that all careers demand a basic understanding of today’s technology, and any major can be paired with an IT degree. Although the job market is intimidating for many students entering the real world, junior Kevin Phillips, an information process management major, said he isn’t concerned about finding a job because he feels his strong technology background gives him an edge.“The technology field is ever-changing, and there is a huge demand for it,” he said. “If you are a personable person who knows what they are doing in technology, there is no way you won’t get a job.”Phillips is the vice president of the Technology Management Club at IU, and he said they are always welcoming new members who are interested in improving their technology skills. “Anyone is welcome to join. If you have an interest and want to learn more for your specific major, we’ll make it happen,” he said.