According to terms negotiated by teachers themselves, teachers get raises two ways.  Years of teaching and credits earned beyond a bachelors degree and beyond a masters degree.  If you choose not to get a masters degree, you may keep on pace with inflation and essentially stay at the same salary as the first year you were hired.  (Not very optimum for teachers who are supporting a growing family)  If you want to get raises that outpace inflation, you have to get your masters degree.

Colleges and universities have caught onto this, and compete with each other for teacher tuition dollars.  They know teachers haveto get their master's degree.  Teachers are essentially a  cash cow in terms of tuition because of their stable, government income that banks love to lend to.  So, teachers are constantly getting ads, fliers, emails, and phone calls from colleges trying to lure them into their programs.  They promise online courses, only evening courses, weekend courses, and "build your own curriculum" courses.  There are no tests, no homework, minimal reading, and, in some cases, no thesis.  They will come to your school if you get enough teachers together to pay them the money.  They will stand on their head to get your money. 

They will do everything, that is, except teach you something new.  All they want is your money and a larger profit margin.  So, instead of hiring actually professors of education, (people who are energetic and actually know something) they hire old, retired administrators and former teachers who just want to keep busy in their golden years.  They aren't up on the latest trends in eduction, but they have a degree and some experience.  These guys are ideal for colleges because they don't need benefits and they don't care about the money.  They just want to get out of the house a couple of days a week.  So, people like me end up sitting hour after hour in a class talking about nothing and learning nothing.  I'm not challenged nor am I expected to challenge.  I'm just another teacher trying to get a raise!

Colleges know teachers don't want to get their master's.  They know their clientele.  They are just playing the system set up by teachers and their unions.  The system that is set up is extortion!  Teachers would be much better served to just hand over their money and skip all the legwork and class time.  Especially since the masters of education degree can be used for NOTHING except getting a raise at the school district you already work at.  Good luck getting hired in any other school district with your masters.  (Then they would have to pay you more)

So, here is a word of advice for all of you going to college or thinking of going back to college for any sort of degree.  Check your professor out!  Get to know their background.  Remember that you are paying them to teach you something so expect them to challenge you!  Challenge them right back - they will respect you more because of it.  People tend to forget that college professors work for you! 

Disclaimer:  For all of my students reading this, don't think it means that I work for you.  I actually work for your parents and people who actually pay taxes to make sure that you young people are properly educated.  Since you don't know what's good for you yet, that's my job.  But take heart, when you get that great paying job, you can start paying my salary!

States like Washington and Missouri reflect the nationwide enrollment growth at community colleges. 11.5 million were enrolled in community colleges last year, and according to the American Association of Community Colleges, the number rose during the summer and is likely to rise again during the fall. Charles Earl, executive director of the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, noted that during times of economic stress, enrollment rates at colleges historically increase.

For many, the economic crisis is a valuable moment to learn for business students and anyone taking economics-related courses. Professors are visibly taking advantage of the educational opportunity, pulling up financial headlines at the beginning of class and discussing the recent stories with students. For a subject that's usually painted in the abstract, this shows how powerful the crisis has grown. It has become so endemic that we, as Americans, are nearly all personally affected in one way our another, recognizing friends and family who have been dragged beneath the undertow of the current of the crisis.

Included in the bailout package is now a provision for student loan assets in financial institutions to be bought off by the federal government. However, similarly to the justified skepticism of the impacts of the rest of the bailout package's provisions on mortgages and credit, students should not depend on the federal government to pay for college. Unfortunately, private loans are growing more and more scarce, so students need to look to other options.

Conservation is probably key. Students are doing a great job of adapting to the circumstances by taking fewer trips home, eating out less, and shopping at used clothing stores instead of brand-name fashion boutiques, just to name a few methods. Campuses are great places to live at an affordable cost because of the centralized resources--where stores, libraries, entertainment and so forth are all just a few blocks down--so students are in a wonderful position to start off with.

However, economic times do not seem to be lightening up anytime in the near future, so students are going to have to dig in for more to come. But they'll be the most ready for economic hardship out of anyone. School is, no doubt, one of the best places to be during times like these.

 
Also, if you read Whitney Kestner's recent post about the Darden Market and you're interested in learning more, here is a short video from the event:

-Arielle

It turns out that not only are professors people, but they too use crappy grammar in IMs. [a type of reality]

Karma + hardcore punnage = excellent post. [Tales From Your Favorite Resident Assistant]

A class whose total grade is two questions? No thanks. [..c'est la vie..]

Tip link:

• College student's guide to Roth IRAs [Broke Grad Student]

Only 2 days until the SB launch of the Freshman 15 laptop giveaway!

Overheard in Sondheim
by Alex

When I went to the professor earlier in the semester (first week) I asked if the texts will be on the library's reserve and he assured me that they would be and he didn't disappoint. But he did say to me that he tries to pick books that would be a substantive addition to students libraries. Furthermore, he told us that he discourages taking books off of course reserve, because "you won't want to be doing much reading in the library."  Up until I went to the library to survey what was required for the mid-term tomorrow, did I realize how hard he must have tried to keep himself from laughing. The one textbook is simply a survey book of  different political ideologies, full of the typical 'history of thought formation' that fills almost any introductory political science course, it does have a few notable additions, but nothing I would consider a staple addition to my library especially at $156. The reader also, is just chalk full of excerpts from some of the greatest political minds of the past 5 centuries, however, like I mention before - all of these readings are simply found online or could all be purchased for half the price probably used, and you would get the entire thing not just the 5-10 pages that deal specifically with one issue/thought.

What bugs me particularly about this is not the waste of new material that is constantly required to print these books, although that does bug me, but the mentality of the professor. I feel offended that he/she can put these expensive textbooks on a syallabus and justfiy (knowing their real worth) that students should buy them. To just assume really that I must $156 lying around and would just love to blow it on a few textbooks that will be obsolete after the course is finished. Furthermore, this is a larger insult for all of us who work to go to university, and work to stay in university only to have it reduced to an accessibility of elitist ownernship of required textbooks. Professors certainly do not encourage course materials to be made reserve at the library, for a class of 80+ students they only have usually one copy of the book on reserve.  While I am managing fine by pulling materials from the library, is it right for those who cannot afford textbooks to be fighting over the one or two copies that do exist? Furthermore, libraries are no longer what they used to be in terms of use and I wonder if the attitude of consuming and "just buy the book" contribute to its demise. Really the elitism of knowledge killing the very institution that universalizes it, here in Southern Ontario.

www.mediapitch.ning.com and www.propenmic.org.

The last site, PR Open Mic, is a great resource for students and professors. The site has 2,450 members and growing.

Then there's this post at VR3, a blog by Nick Vehr, that points out a new PR campaign by the Independent Community Bankers of America to help their members explain how community banks are faring in the current economic crisis:

"Despite the current market turmoil, community banks are in solid shape: They have plenty of liquidity, sensible underwriting standards, and are ready to lend – factors essential to keeping your community strong and families secure in their homes. Spread the word in your community by downloading various public relations materials to tell your customers that you did not create the subprime mortgage crisis."

The site has 25 items, including ads, posters, and a FAQ, that banks can download and customize to give to their customers.  

By Dana Milbank CLEARWATER, Fla. -- "Okay, so Florida, you know that you're going to have to hang onto your hats," Sarah Palin told a rally of a few thousand here this morning, "because from now until Election Day it may get kind of rough."

You betcha. And the person dishing out the roughest stuff at the moment is Sarah Palin.

"I was reading my copy of the New York Times the other day," she said.

"Booooo!" replied the crowd.

"I knew you guys would react that way, okay," she continued. "So I was reading the New York Times and I was really interested to read about Barack's friends from Chicago."

It was time to revive the allegation, made over the weekend, that Obama "pals around" with terrorists, in this case Bill Ayers, late of the Weather Underground. Many independent observers say Palin's allegations are a stretch; Obama served on a Chicago charitable board with Ayers, now an education professor, and has condemned his past activities.

"Now it turns out, one of his earliest supporters is a man named Bill Ayers," Palin said.

"Boooo!" said the crowd.

"And, according to the New York Times, he was a domestic terrorist and part of a group that, quote, 'launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and our U.S. Capitol,'" she continued.

"Boooo!" the crowd repeated.

"Kill him!" proposed one man in the audience.

Palin went on to say that "Obama held one of the first meetings of his political career in Bill Ayers's living room, and they've worked together on various projects in Chicago." Here, Palin began to connect the dots. "These are the same guys who think that patriotism is paying higher taxes -- remember that's what Joe Biden had said. "And" -- she paused and sighed -- "I am just so fearful that this is not a man who sees America the way you and I see America, as the greatest force for good in the world. I'm afraid this is someone who sees America as 'imperfect enough' to work with a former domestic terrorist who had targeted his own country."

What's chilling is this republican campaign stirs up hate and racism and incites violence, nay, murder: and then does not condemn the behavior of their constituents.

I am embarrassed and frightened for Florida, for the republicans and for America.  I can see why the world thinks badly of us at this point.

Go to the polls and vote for America, Vote Obama.

Richard Alderman is a faculty member at the University of Houston's law school. For many years Mr. Alderman has been pushing a populist image of himself as the "People's Lawyer." He writes a weekly column for the Houston Chronicle, the only daily paper in the fourth largest city in the country. He also appears on channel 13 Houston's ABC affiliate.

Earlier this summer Mr. Alderman took part in a scam on the University community and all taxpayers that was known as the "Apparel Task Force."

Here's a quick history: Back in January we got our student government to unanimously pass a bill  to join the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC, a third party non-profit labor monitor made up of students, college administrators and labor rights experts with 181 university affliates: WRC ) and to sign the Designated Supplier's Program, (DSP a proposed solution that would designate factories who meet basic labor conditions the right to make university licensed apparel) our president / chancellor Renu Khator set up an appointed "apparel task force" with 5 profs (none of whom ever published on labor rights, sweatshops, corporate responsibility or other related field) 1 staffer and 1 student. We gave a presentation to the "task force" (which they conveniently scheduled at the end of the semester when our college paper stopped publishing) where we laid out the facts and messaged DSP as the solution. We of course video taped our entire presentation and you tubed it.

In the apparel task force's "report" which documents we obtained revealed Alderman drafted, the task force members claimed "Students Against Sweatshops said that the there likely will be little impact from joining WRC or the DSP."  We of course took issue with their blatant lies and asked 3 times in writing for them to retract and correct their falsehoods. They refused. Read their "report" Task Force report

So this morning we passed out over 300 flyers to attendees of Alderman's "People's Law School," at the U of H law center. Read the flyer: alderman-flier-revised

Well Mr. Alderman and one of his associates were none to happy that we would stand on a public sidewalk and exercise our first amendment rights. Here's what happened:

Bright and early a couple of us stood outside the law school and handed out the flyers. Everybody thought we were part of the program and gladly took a flyer. One campus cop was sitting in his car nearby. After about 10 minutes a well dressed middle aged man confronted one of our members (we think he was a law professor too) and said what we were was doing was "wrong," and that our member was "insane." We just replied we're standing up for workers rights. He took issue with that and said that we were "vilifying" the people's lawyer who does so much to "help people." We replied yeah unless they are garment workers or students working to improve labor conditions. The unknown white male asked what the size of the lawyers house had to do with anything and we said we thought it demonstrated how the people's lawyer was all about taking for himself and not giving back. Then the unknown white male stomped off in a huff. We thought our flyer comparing wages and living conditions of the People's Lawyer and UH garment workers in Bangladesh would make these white males more aware of their privilege. It certainly got their attention. Interestingly enough one attendee later told me that us she asked if they would help her fill out a complaint for small claims court and they told her no they didn't do that. So it seems that the whole event is just an opportunity for lawyers to troll for clients.

A few minutes later the "people's lawyer" himself came up to us with the campus cop (who of course knows us well) in tow. About that time two more cop cars rolled up. Then Mr. People's Lawyer claimed he tried to help us. We said lying about our campaign and the DSP doesn't help anyone. Then he trotted out the tired excuse that no one signed the DSP! We said 45 schools have and that he could look at the WRC's website and see for himself. Then he slipped up and said that he was "Trying to stop the school from signing the DSP," he had read the DSP letters from other schools!  In a polite as tone as possible we said "We don't have to listen to you and please get away from us," and continued to hand out fliers. Mr. People's Lawyer didn't know what to do and then the cop said to him "What do you want to do?" Mr. People's Lawyer said its OK. I guess ordering a cop to arrest students for passing out fliers would have been too much for the people's lawyer to live down later. Then we told him if he wanted to speak to us he could make an appointment. He didn't like that too much and stomped off.

Tell the People's Lawyer to stop fronting for a corrupt UH adminstration and tell the truth about the university and their oppression of garment workers: You can email him here: alderman@uh.edu or call him at his office: 713.743.2227.

Christine Rogers discusses her photographs which are based on a three week family road trip that she took by herself.

David Olsen discusses his enamel painting installations painted on cut plywood, inspired by childhood memories.

Andrew Mowbray discusses his "quilts" constructed from Tyvek home wrap.

Well, first of all, what a cool experience to have hosted the VP debate here at WashU!  I even forgive those circling helicopters for waking me up in the mornings and those satellite dishes for invading our athletics field.

So the debate...

This was actually the first time I'd heard Biden give a whole speech, and I was impressed.

Friday was much better than the rest of the week had been. I spent the day with Kara and the kids, ending with the first meeting of the Girl Scout troop i am now co-leader of with Kara.

Also a shout out to mom for the super sweet Mini Fridge! =D

<3

The grass is greener on the other side.

But is it really always that way? The grass might appear greener, but it might have its own shades of black, grey, or other colours you might not have foreseen. You often see that which you desire rather than what the actual ground reality is. An optical illusion, should I say? Mental illusion? Take your pick. It's just like those mirages, which you see in cartoons, where the oases are always filled with beautiful, semi-clad women and delicious food and drink, and which always disappear when the character approaches them.

I have always tried to put myself in someone else's shoes (not literally, of course :P), and imagined life in their own terms. Never has it been to my liking. Obviously, I do admire a few of my friends' qualities, the amount of freedom they get, or just their devilishly handsome looks :P. But there are many negative points which I would have never liked in my own life. There is always something negative along with the positive. Justifies the old sayings and theories of the balance in nature. ;) It also makes you look at life in a different way, be it good or bad. So enjoy life while you're still in it. Cheerio!

====================================================================

I've also often wondered how a teacher still loves to teach inspite of the deteriorating condition of the teaching staff in our country. Barring some incompetent teachers, students should not have any complaints about the quality of teaching. However, that is not what is observed in most of the schools or colleges I have been in. This has been synonymous with the advent of coaching classes, sounding the death knell for most of these government-paid, government-fed teachers. Coaching classes pay more, and get more out of their teachers, causing the scales of the students' barometer of preference to tip the wrong way.

This makes the college professors feel small, and maligned. Which is very much true, considering the rowdy behaviour these teachers have to face. Sometimes, I do feel frustrated with some of my "supposed" teachers. But I do not blame them for whatever is going on now.

Indeed, teaching IS a noble profession in this brave, new world.

Ain't no party like an engineer party cuz an engineer party don't stop. [Coffee_girl]

An argument against academic transparency... and volunteering in class. [Home of a future Starving Artist]

The Dark Knight* of the weekend: The loss of Paul Newman, aka Butch Cassidy aka Cool Hand Luke aka The salad dressing guy .

• Jess and Josh Talk About Stuff
• Wesleying
• Ephblog
• The Desert Mermaid
• Memories Left in Whispers
• College Candy

Excited for the upcoming laptop giveaway? Paul Stamatiou (one of the Freshman 15ers) reviews the one SB is giving away. [PaulStamatiou.com]

Tip link:

• Things politicians do in debates that you should avoid when writing. [School is Hard]

New blogs added: Jess and Josh Talk About Stuff (NYU), Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman., Coffee_girl, Some Assembly Required (U of Southern Carolina)

*what everyone is blogging about lately