National Middle School Green Competition Urges Kids to Change Their Communities In 2009

/PRNewswire/ -- Now in the final months for entries, the Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge is encouraging middle school students across the United States to kick off 2009 by "going green" and implementing environmental change in their local communities. The website for this entirely web-based challenge, http://www.wecanchange.com/, is host to lots of kid-friendly activities such as virtual interactive labs, an eco-footprint game, an environmental IQ quiz, online journals, video clips-plus many more resources for both students and adult advisers.

Teams of two to three students in sixth through eighth grade, under the mentorship of a teacher or adult supervisor, will identify an environmental issue in their community, research the issue using scientific investigation, and create a replicable green solution using web-based curriculum tools powered by Discovery Education.

Teachers and adult supervisors are invited to participate in any of Discovery Education's January online webinars, which will provide additional information about the Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge. Webinars will be offered Tuesday, January 13, at 4:30 PM (ET); Wednesday, January 14, at 5:30 and 6:45 PM (ET); and Thursday, January 15, at 5:30 PM (ET). To register, go to https://discoveryed.webex.com/ and click on "Events Center" at the top, then click on "List of Events" at the left and scroll down to "Other Events." Lastly, click on a "Register" link for your preferred webinar.

Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge submissions from middle school students will be accepted through March 15, 2009. A total of 51 teams representing each state and the District of Columbia will be selected as state finalists and an additional 50 teams will be eligible for honorable mention awards. Three of the state finalist teams will be selected as national finalists, and one of those will be named the inaugural grand prize-winner. State finalist and national finalist teams will be announced in Spring 2009.

All student teams entering the Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge will receive prizes for their participation. Top-performing teams, as judged by a panel of environmental experts and science educators, will earn cash, teacher education materials and unique "Discovery Experience" trips. The grand prize-winning team will receive a comprehensive prize package, which includes an appearance on Planet Green, Discovery's 24-hour eco-lifestyle network and a once-in-a-lifetime Discovery Adventure Trip, accompanied by a Discovery TV personality.

The Siemens Foundation, Discovery Education and the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) have partnered on the Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge to educate, empower and engage students, teachers and communities to become "Agents of Change" in improving their communities nationwide. The initiative expands to elementary schools in 2009 and to high schools in 2010.

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State of Georgia Approves First IE2 Contract

Yesterday, the State Board of Education (SBOE) approved a five-year contract with Gwinnett County Public Schools that grants the school district greater flexibility in exchange for increased accountability. The contract was made possible by Governor Sonny Perdue’s Investing in Educational Excellence (IE2) legislation, which was passed and signed into law last year. IE2 allows for balanced local control, allowing officials closest to the students to make important decisions concerning their schools. Gwinnett, which educates 10 percent of the state’s students, is the first school system to accept the challenge of linking accountability with increased flexibility.

“I commend Superintendent Wilbanks and the Gwinnett County Board of Education for their willingness and courage to be held to a higher standard,” said Governor Perdue. “This contract fundamentally shifts the state-local relationship from being based on compliance to a true partnership focused on performance. IE2 is about increasing student achievement, and I am confident that Gwinnett will use its flexibility to deliver superior results and be a model district for the state.”

Under IE2 local school districts work with the Georgia Department of Education and the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement to create a strategic plan that clearly identifies the flexibility sought from Georgia education laws, the accountability goals in addition to federal NCLB requirements the district is willing to accept at the school level in exchange for the flexibility, and the consequences that will be imposed upon the district for schools that do not reach their accountability goals.

The Governor’s Office of Student Achievement will monitor Gwinnett County’s progress towards meeting annual goals and will report these findings to the SBOE each fall. In addition, Gwinnett will provide interventions and sanctions throughout the contract period to those schools that do not meet their annual IE2 accountability goals. Those schools that do not meet their IE2 accountability goals by the end of the contract period will be converted to charter schools.

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The Princeton Review Ranks Agnes Scott One of the Nation's 50 "Best Value" Colleges

Agnes Scott College has been ranked among the 50 "Best Value" private colleges and universities in America for 2009 by The Princeton Review, publisher of college guidebooks and provider of other education services.

The Best Value Colleges were selected on the basis of surveys conducted with administrators and students at more than 650 public and private schools. The list features a total of 100 schools: 50 public and 50 private colleges and universities. The selection criteria covered more than 30 factors in three areas: academics, cost of attendance and financial aid.

"In these tough economic times, students and families are looking for schools that combine academic quality with reasonable cost. So it’s especially gratifying that Agnes Scott has been recognized as one of the best college values in America," said Elizabeth Kiss, president of Agnes Scott College.

"Those who know Agnes Scott cite its stellar academic quality, lively classrooms, the warmth of our campus community and generous financial aid – and we still cost less than many of our peers. I’m also very proud that Agnes Scott is one of only four women’s colleges to make the list," Kiss said.

Agnes Scott is the only women’s college in the Southeast and the only private college in Georgia on the list. It joins Barnard, Smith and Bryn Mawr among women’s colleges nationwide and Emory, UGA, Georgia Tech and Georgia State College & University among institutions in Georgia.

In its profile of Agnes Scott on USA Today’s website, the editors of The Princeton Review emphasized the strength of Agnes Scott’s academic offerings and the ability of professors to make topics “accessible and interesting,” as well as the school’s “exceptionally beautiful campus,” diverse student body and “bustling vibe.”

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Kiplinger's Names Emory a Top 10 Best Value

Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine has ranked Emory University ninth among the 100 best values in private universities that exemplify excellent academics while keeping costs to a minimum. See Kiplinger's 2009 Best Values: Private Colleges & Universities.

Selected from a pool of more than 600 private institutions provided by Peterson's, schools in the Kiplinger 100 are ranked according to academic quality and affordability, with quality accounting for two-thirds of the total.

Resources Remain Strong for Financial Aid

The Princeton Review also named Emory among its best values in private schools this week. The rankings reflect Emory's continuing commitment to “need blind” admissions and to meeting the full, demonstrated financial need for dependent, traditional undergraduate students. Emory also is working to increase accessibility for low- and middle-income students through the Emory Advantage grant and loan relief program and other financial aid.

"Emory, like all institutions and businesses, is having to adjust to a new economic reality and this will impact the budget in a variety of ways. However, financial aid is among our top priorities and we expect to devote more – not fewer – resources to financial aid in the coming years to ensure that all students who are admitted can attend independent of economic background," says Santa Ono, senior vice provost for undergraduate education.


Kiplinger's 2009 Top 10

The annual private school rankings appear in Kiplinger's February 2009 issue and at www.kiplinger.com.

California Institute of Technology
Yale
Princeton
Rice
Duke
Harvard
Dartmouth College
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Emory
Stanford

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Princeton Review Names Georgia Tech One of Best Values

Georgia Tech was named one of top 50 best values for public colleges in 2009. The top ten public colleges were ranked, followed by an alphabetical listing of the remaining 40 school who made the list.

The Princeton Review selected these institutions as its “best value” choices for 2009 based on its surveys of administrators and students at more than 650 public and private colleges and universities. The selection criteria covered more than 30 factors in three areas: academics, costs of attendance, and financial aid, using the most recently reported data from each institution for its 2007-08 academic year.

Princeton Review ranks University of Virginia, New College of Florida and the College of William and Mary as the top three best values.

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UGA’s Organic Program Graduates First Students

Kate Smith has had lots of dirt under her fingernails as a horticulture graduate from the University of Georgia. And some of that soil has been certified organic.

She and Kelly Broderick stepped across UGA’s graduation stage in December as the first students to complete UGA’s new certificate program in organic agriculture.

“It’s made me realize that having my hands in the dirt is something I need in life,” Smith said of the program. “It was an incredibly rewarding experience.”

Smith graduated with a bachelor’s degree in horticulture in December. She’s moving to Washington, D.C. this month to hunt for a job in agriculture policy.

Broderick, an ecology graduate, plans to get a master’s degree that focuses on sustainable agriculture. But right now she’d really “love to get a job on a farm working,” she said. Broderick eventually wants to go into education and develop a science curriculum based around agriculture.

Organic at UGA

Organic agriculture is farming with minimal chemical inputs. It emphasizes management practices that restore, maintain or enhance farmland. And before UGA’s program started a year and a half ago, the scientific study of organic agriculture was something missing from Georgia’s college curriculum. The program has grown to include 20 students, approved classes and an organic farm and greenhouses.

Smith said the program helped her “see through the romanticism of agriculture.” And that’s one of UGA horticulture professor Marc van Iersel’s goals in teaching organic agriculture.

“There are a lot of myths surrounding organic agriculture. I hope this program gives them a more science-based approach,” said van Iersel, who is based in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

One of his students is already testing his organic agriculture knowledge. Economics major James Hamilton is starting a two-acre organic farm in Cleveland, Ga. This year, he’ll set up a small CSA – community supported agriculture – and provide produce to paying subscribers.

“Hopefully what I’ll grow will be a lot of heirloom” plants, he said. “They taste better, and they’re more interesting to grow. I’m not so concerned with yields. I’m just seeing what will grow.”

UGA’s certificate program in organic agriculture has four required courses and six hours of electives. The certificate is similar to a minor for undergraduates, with faculty from various departments and colleges teaching in the program.

Van Iersel would like to see 25 to 30 students enroll in the program each year or a total of 50 students in the program. “If we consistently attract that many students, it would be time to start thinking about an organic major,” he said. He’d like to see the program springboard into both a minor and a major in organic agriculture.

Using the program

UGA students in the organic certificate program apply their knowledge in a variety of ways. “This program could benefit anybody who has an interest in growing of any kind,” said Dain Goedeke, a UGA landscape architecture major. He plans to apply the soils knowledge he gained in his future design projects. “I don’t think a lot of landscape architects do that.”

Horticulture major Jacob Adams’ master plan is to have “a micro farm with my family and an integrated restaurant and grocery store.”

But not all of van Iersel’s students are pursing careers in organic agriculture.

French graduate Rick Power took a job with a charitable organization. He took several organic classes but didn’t formally complete the certificate program. Now living in Massachusetts, Power works for Heifer International, a non-profit organization that’s goal is to help end world hunger and poverty through self-reliance and sustainability.

For more information on UGA’s organic certificate program, visit www.uga.edu/organic.

By Stephanie Schupska
University of Georgia

Stephanie Schupska is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.


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Fayette County Musical Groups Receive Highest State Honor

Fayette County will dominate performances at the 2009 Georgia Music Educators Association Conference this month in Savannah. A total of three chorals, one symphonic band and two wind ensembles will perform for conference attendees.

Performances will be given by the Fayette Middle Symphonic Band, Fayette County High Wind Ensemble, Rising Starr Middle 7th and 8th Grade Boys Choral, Sandy Creek High Men’s Choral, Whitewater High Choral and Whitewater High Wind Ensemble.

Each spring, schools across the state submit audio recordings in the hopes of getting an invitation to perform at the annual conference. The event not only gives students statewide exposure of their musical talents but also provides additional learning opportunities.

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Now Debate This Announces 'The 100-Day Presidential Challenge'

/PRNewswire/ -- Now Debate This, America's only national online educational debate and $250,000 high school scholarship contest, announced a new, exciting competition to the 2009 program year to coincide with President-Elect Obama's first 100 days in the White House: "The 100-Day Presidential Challenge." This competition will ask high school students from across America to research their communities' biggest energy problems, and develop Energy Solution Proposals they can implement at the local level. The winners will earn a $5,000 clean technology prize for their school or organization, and an opportunity to share ideas with national experts, such as members of President Obama's cabinet, Congress, and the energy industry.

"In selecting the 2009 Now Debate This topic, 'U.S. Energy Independence,' we see a new opportunity to galvanize the power of America's youth to solve the country's most pressing problems," said Mary L. Hagy, Founder and Executive Producer of Now Debate This, based in Philadelphia. "We challenge all high school students to first, understand the history and context of their community's energy issues, and second, to propose viable solutions to their local problems."

Now Debate This (www.nowdebatethis.com), in partnership with the National Forensic League Speech and Debate Honor Society (NFL), presents "The 100-Day Presidential Challenge" as part of its 2009 program theme, "How can the U.S. achieve energy independence?"

"The timing of the 100-Day Presidential Challenge could not be better," said J. Scott Wunn, Executive Director of the NFL, based in Ripon, WI. Established in 1925, NFL is the nation's oldest and largest high school speech and debate organization. "The 2009 national tournament topic is alternative energy, so students, teachers and coaches are already studying and debating the issue all over the country. The 100-Day Challenge focuses that existing effort on creating viable solutions."

Students will identify and research their communities' most pressing energy problems through the creation of a timeline with background information and develop actionable plans to resolve the problems, including an economic and feasibility assessment. The contest will begin at 12:00:01 Eastern Standard Time on January 20, 2009 and close at 12:00:01 Eastern Standard Time, April 30, 2009.

Entries will be judged on creativity, historical research and analysis, the written proposal and accompanying video, documentation and feasibility. Judging panels will be convened by Now Debate This, comprised of representatives from education, non-profit, business, industry, technology and/or government sectors. Winners will be announced in May 2009.

In order to be eligible for "The 100-Day Presidential Challenge," high school student groups must:

-- Create a project web page on the Now Debate This Confab site. The
students will use this page to communicate their work through blog
entries, photos, videos, news articles and other appropriate
presentations. Judging will include evaluation of the content
generated on the group's page.
-- Research the history of energy usage in their communities, and develop
a timeline that includes the key actors and actions in their
community's energy use, as well as an explanation of the scope of the
problem today. Students must upload the timeline on their Now Debate
This Confab web page.
-- Create a SMART Energy Solution Proposal detailing the project and how
it will be accomplished. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable,
Attainable, Results-oriented, and Time frame. Student groups will use
these five categories to analyze the feasibility and economic efficacy
of the Energy Solution Proposal. The written proposal should be
accompanied by a video presentation of no more than 90 seconds, which
describes the problem and demonstrates why the students' idea poses
the best solution. Video presentations will be uploaded to YouTube.com
and SchoolTube.com.


Now Debate This launched its 2009 program on November 14, 2008 at the National Social Studies Conference in Houston. The 2009 program will consist of three competitions: "The 100-Day Presidential Challenge," "President Prep Time Essay Contest," which prompts students to write the new President about the issues they consider most important, and the "Now Debate This Scholarship Program" for high school juniors to compete for $250,000 in college scholarship money. The scholarship program will issue a call for video entry submissions to be posted to YouTube.com and SchoolTube.com in late February, 2009. The 16 semi-finalists are scheduled to be announced in May, with a summer travel study program beginning in late June, ending with the debate tournament in August.

Now Debate This is made possible through the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Forensic League, National History Day, the National Park Service and institutional and private partners including the United Nations Foundation.

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MCG Camp Gives College Students Head Start for Nursing School

College freshmen and sophomores interested in nursing can get a head start on their careers at the Medical College of Georgia School of Nursing this summer.

The second annual Nursing Career Summer Camp is a five-week program designed to prepare undergraduates for the challenges of nursing school, while also increasing diversity in the school's applicant pool.

"We've found that students over the years are surprised when they begin nursing school," said Dr. Deborah Smith, project director of the school's Nursing Workforce Diversity Project, which encompasses the camp. "They still think they can memorize information and make it through, but nursing students must understand and apply information, and that's a shocker to some."

Jan. 30 is the application deadline for the camp, which begins May 16.

The Nursing Workforce Diversity Project, funded by a three-year, $742,000 Health Resources and Services Administration grant, also provides scholarships, loaner laptops and peer tutoring for MCG nursing students. The grant covers all expenses for camp participants, including housing, tuition and a $250 monthly stipend.

The camp includes an introductory pathophysiology course and enrichment courses on reading comprehension, writing and general mathematics.

"Pathophysiology, which looks at how disease processes affect the different body systems, seems to be one of the more difficult courses for nursing students, so we wanted to give camp participants an introduction to the course," said Dr. Smith, assistant chair of the Department of Health Environments and Systems.

Participants also will spend time in the MCG Interdisciplinary Simulation Center and shadow MCGHealth Inc. nurses.

This summer's camp is expanding to accept 15 participants from across Georgia. Last year, there were six local participants. Special consideration is given to applicants who are under-represented in nursing, which includes minorities, males and students from educationally or economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

"The community we serve is very diverse, and traditionally we haven't had a large number of diverse students from under-represented backgrounds entering any of the health professions," said Dr. Smith. "When you have health care professionals from various perspectives and backgrounds, you have better outreach to everyone in the community."

"Two students from last year's program are now enrolled and successfully advancing in our nursing program," said Dr. Shirley Quarles, co-director of the Nursing Workforce Diversity Project and interim chair of the Department of Physiological and Technological Nursing. "We look forward to continued successful matriculation of students from diverse backgrounds."

For more information or to apply, visit www.mcg.edu/son/initiatives/diversity.htm.

By Paula Hinely
MCG

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Shorter Establishes Military Discount For Professional Studies Students

Shorter College is now offering tuition discounts for students enrolled in the Professional Studies Program who have served the United States through military duty.

The scholarship, which applies to active and retired military personnel and their spouses, will give a 20-percent discount on tuition for students enrolling in Shorter's Professional Studies Program. Geared towards working professionals in Greater Rome and the Atlanta area, the college's Professional Studies Program offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in many courses of study.

More information on Shorter's professional programs can be found at www.shorterdegree.com.

Questions about the Military Scholarship Tuition Discount should be directed to Frances Tamboli at frances.tamboli@apollogrp.edu.

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FedEx Invests $352,500 in Hispanic Scholarship Fund Scholarships and Outreach Programs

/PRNewswire/ -- The Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF), the nation's leading Latino scholarship organization supporting Hispanic higher education, will receive $352,500 over the next three years from FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDX) . This funding from FedEx will provide scholarships for deserving students and support for four community education programs in local markets.

FedEx recently completed a previous three-year, $332,500 commitment that provided 15 four-year scholarships to deserving students. This renewal will fund five, four-year scholarships for each of the 2009, 2010 and 2011 academic years. This funding will impact HSF's ability to continue the current level of support to Latino students and help HSF work toward its mission of doubling the rate of Hispanics earning college degrees, to 18 percent.

"FedEx believes that educating and inspiring leaders is vital to our future," said Juan N. Cento, president, FedEx Express Latin America and Caribbean Division (LAC), and the Corporation's highest-ranking Hispanic executive. "Education has always been key to unlocking potential in people, and that is why we are committed to providing minority students with the scholarship funds they need to obtain a higher education."

Funding from FedEx Corp. will also provide support for four HSF Town Hall Meetings across the U.S. -- in San Francisco, Dallas, Miami and Indianapolis -- in 2008-2009. These bilingual, multi-media sessions cover the essentials of college preparation and financial aid for students and their families.

"We are delighted that FedEx has invested in the youth who will become tomorrow's leaders in their communities and in corporations across America," said Frank D. Alvarez, HSF President & CEO. "We very much value our relationship with FedEx Corp., and this additional investment further enables HSF to support the growing number of Hispanic students seeking access to higher education."

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UGA College of Environment and Design Receives Top Rankings in 2009

The University of Georgia College of Environment and Design's landscape architecture programs again received top national rankings. The bachelor's program was ranked first in the nation, and the master's program was ranked second in the 2009 edition of America's Best Architecture & Design Schools.

This continues a history of high ratings for the programs, which have both placed in the top five for the past five years - as long as landscape architecture programs have been nationally ranked. This is the second time that the bachelor's program has been ranked the best in the country.

Graduates of the College of Environment and Design also placed first in three of seven skill assessments considered in the ranking: sustainable design, security design and computer applications. CED graduates ranked second in two other assessments-analysis and planning and construction methods and materials.

Both the graduate and undergraduate programs offer Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification as part of the curriculum. Only 14 percent of the programs surveyed nationally can match that claim, putting the UGA programs on the cutting edge of sustainable design.

The America's Best Architecture & Design Schools rankings are the design industry equivalent of the U.S .News and World Report college rankings. To produce the rankings, trade publication DesignIntelligence asks employers which schools' recent graduates are best prepared to face the demands of the profession. This means that the high rankings will not only attract students to the college, but also serve as an endorsement for graduating students seeking employment.

UGA's College of Environment and Design is the only college in the United States dedicated specifically to landscape architecture and historic preservation, and features the largest landscape architecture faculty anywhere.

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