(1995). CNN Newsroom Classroom Guides. June 1-30, 1995. These classroom guides for the daily CNN (Cable News Network) Newsroom broadcasts for the month of June provide program rundowns, suggestions for class activities and discussions, student handouts, and a list of related news terms. Topics covered by the guides include: (1) amusement park physics, media resources and literacy, and the war in Bosnia (June 1-2); (2) the war in Bosnia, hurricanes, the new Russia, newspaper closings, South Korea, Indianapolis 500 technology, and forces of the earth (June 5-9); (3) future fabrics, clashing ideologies of Clinton and Gingrich, Iran's nuclear future, affirmative action, California caviar, marketing strategy and target markets, and aircraft and founders of flight (June 12-16); (4) defining art, ancient customs and modern marriage, Thailand elections, worldwide voting qualifications, Kenya's economy, language of international business, charting the stars, advise and consent of presidential appointments, and democracy and media (June 19-23);…
(1994). Prescription for Failure: Race Relations in the Age of Social Science. Studies in Social Philosophy. No. 18. Progress in civil rights for black Americans does not appear to have been matched, at least in recent years, by equal progress in social harmony. It is argued that a considerable part of present racial difficulties are the result of commonly expressed understandings that are deeply flawed and that these flaws can be corrected only if social scientists are more forthright in their reporting of social science research. The growth of the black underclass represents the greatest impediment to black progress and racial harmony today. The extent to which the growth of the underclass is related to civil rights policies is explored, recognizing that these policies were based on popular understanding rather than social science research. The importance of education is explored in Chapter 9 of Part IV, \The Debilitating Triad: Crime, Illegitimacy, and Inadequate Education.\ Academic achievement, school funding, affirmative action, school effectiveness, and Afrocentric education are among the…
(1986). Comparable Worth and the Office of Institutional Research. AIR 1986 Annual Forum Paper. Comparable worth and pay equity issues are considered, along with implications for college institutional researchers. Comparable worth is generally defined as a policy of paying equal pay for work of comparable value. After discussing the issues and tracing relevant legislation, attention is directed to ways that the institutional research office can work with the personnel director, affirmative action officer, recruitment staff, and legal staff. Included are data on average earnings of men and women by age, salary differences for working women and men based on marital status, and women's and men's earnings for different occupations. Advantages of comparable worth include elimination of alleged wage discrimination, reversal of historical stereotypes that have undervalued women's jobs, while disadvantages include the fact that there is no universal standard of how to measure comparable worth and that implementation costs are high. A faculty member alleging a violation of the Equal…
(1985). Summer Bridge: A Residential Learning Experience for High Risk Freshmen at the University of California, San Diego. The University of California, San Diego (UCSD) has developed and implemented a special program called Summer Bridge, designed to assist targeted incoming freshmen in the transition from high school to university life. The goals of the program are to improve the students' college experiences and raise retention rates. Targeted students are low-income, educationally or culturally disadvantaged, or from five minority ethnic groups, who have had poorer academic performance and retention rates than traditional students in the past. Because of affirmative action programs at UCSD, greater numbers of these high-risk students are enrolling. Summer Bridge is a 4-week summer residential program designed to improve students' academic performance and to integrate them into university life. The academic components of the program include writing, math, and science skills. Time management and communication skills sessions are also held. The peer network available to students is strongly emphasized… [PDF]
(1986). Teacher Testing: I'm O.K., You're O.K., But Somebody's Not!. Concern about the preparation and competence of teachers has brought about a rapid spread of teacher competency assessment programs. Currently, 36 states test or plan to test teachers prior to certification. Two states, Arkansas and Texas, are already involved with testing teachers in service. Teacher competency testing has become embroiled in state and national politics, and has also become involved in charges of racism and anti-affirmative action. Even though teacher shortages promise to become more severe in the future, several states have exacerbated these shortages by requiring competency tests for teacher certification. Furthermore, while the competency tests produce shortages that result in suboptional instruction for pupils, they provide no incentive for highly qualified people to enter or stay in the teaching profession. While the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the National Education Association (NEA) support, to varying degrees, teacher competency testing prior…
(1980). Linking Faculty Evaluation and Faculty Rewards in the University. Issues in Higher Education, Number 16, 1980. The way in which faculty reward is linked to faculty evaluation is examined. It is contended that faculty reputations continue to be important to instructional images and professional advancement of the individual and are dominant in many systems of faculty evaluation. The contradiction when faculty are evaluated on the basis of performance and then rewarded on the basis of reputation is noted. The determinants of faculty salaries appear to be a complex mixture of status or rank, preparation or background, research or scholarly achievement, and professional reputation. Additional trends and factors that must be considered in planning for effective reward systems include inflation, the changing missions of many institutions, and affirmative action and other efforts to reduce discriminatory practices in higher education. One weakness of current faculty development programs is their lack of firm linkage to institutional incentives and rewards. Among the possible approaches that might… [PDF]
(1972). Black Managers in White Corporations. The study examines the major determinants of the career patterns of black managers in white businesses and the effects of corporations on their black managers' identities and relationships to the black community. Analyzed were occupational mobility theories; white and black managers' career patterns, goals, and related factors; company employment policies and Affirmative Action Programs; managers' understanding of the companies' hiring and promoting policies and their influence on and agreement with those policies; racial attitudes; effects of social protest on black managers' career patterns; and the effect of black managers' position in white corporations on their relationship to their communities. One hundred fifty-six white managers and 116 black managers in eight firms were studied using a seven-part questionnaire. All the data indicate that racial discrimination is the major factor explaining the situation of blacks in the corporate world (only 1.9 per cent of the managers of… [PDF]
(1973). Institutional Analysis of Sex Discrimination: A Review and Annotated Bibliography. Several conditions contribute to the need for information about women's standing in the academic community. Women's groups and individuals continue to file complaints of sex discrimination against colleges and universities with federal agencies who have enforcement responsibilities in this area. In addition, civil suits have arisen, and institutions are faced with developing affirmative action plans that include women in their focus. While some schools have already completed one or more studies of the status of women on campus, others have yet to undertake this task. This report is designed for those embarking on such studies in the near future. The bibliography was designed to facilitate information gathering and utilization in 3 ways: to aid cross comparisons between institutions; to help locate useful analytical approaches; and to highlight the variety of concerns that have received attention. The bibliographical entries are listed alphabetically by institution and contain brief… [PDF]
(2001). Community Voice or Captive of the Right? A Closer Look at the Black Alliance for Educational Options. This report examines the activities, funding, and affiliations of the Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO), highlighting its promotion of school vouchers, affiliations of its leaders and board of directors, and history of its funders. The BAEO bills itself as a grassroots coalition of African American leaders, though it is bankrolled by several small foundations known better for supporting school privatization schemes and affirmative action rollbacks than empowering African Americans (the John Walton and the Walton Family Foundation, Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, American Education Reform Council, and Milton and Rose D. Friedman Foundation). The BAEO board includes primarily African American voucher supporters, many of whom are high-profile advocates, such as Former Rep. Floyd Flake and right-wing radio host Armstrong Williams. The BAEO's recent powerful advertising campaign, which uses the language of the civil rights movement, appears to be part of the Right's… [PDF]
(1996). The Current Status of Women's Employment in Outdoor Leadership. A common assumption in the outdoor field has been that women's development as outdoor leaders has not kept pace with their participation in outdoor adventure activities. A survey about women's employment was mailed to 103 outdoor education programs with an adventure component; 62 responded. The programs served 160,585 participants in 1994, of which 41 percent were female. The programs employed 3,401 staff, of which 45 percent were female. However, women made up only 38 percent of executive staff and 38 percent of governing board members. However, organizations that specifically recruited women did not have higher percentages of women employees. Organizations with an affirmative action hiring policy tended to have higher percentages of women employees overall, but not in the executive category. Among administrators responding to the survey, women had significantly lower salaries than men, and this salary gap was not related to educational level or experience. Female administrators… [PDF]
(1995). First Year District Superintendents: Women Reflect on Contradictions between Education and Politics. Despite passage of affirmative-action legislation in the United States, the percentage of women school superintendents has increased at a very slow pace. This paper identifies the major challenges faced by four female entry-level superintendents and the strategies they used to deal with them. Data were collected during a group interview with the four superintendents at the end of their first year on the job. All had entered new school districts after gaining experience as assistant superintendents. The superintendents, three white and one African-American, utilized some similar strategies to handle issues. During their first year on the job, the women: (1) learned to recognize and accept politics as a reality; (2) entered the job with a formal entry plan and later developed a district plan; (3) engaged in learning and open communication with all stakeholders; (4) studied past practices; (5) practiced creative problem solving rather than confrontation; (6) protected their… [PDF]
(1998). The 4 P's of Accessibility in Post-Secondary Education: Philosophy, Policy, Procedures and Programs. This paper describes how Ball State University in Indiana provides accommodations for individuals with disabilities, including faculty, staff and students. The university's history of providing accommodations is traced from the 1920s, when members of the football team carried a student using a wheelchair up stairways to attend classes, through the 1960s when curb cuts on campus sidewalks were made, followed by the 1970s building renovation and program accessibility, and the 1980s, when intramural sports were modified so that students with disabilities were able to participate fully. The introduction of an infrared sound system in the main university performing arts auditorium when the national touring company of "Children of A Lesser God" came to campus is also highlighted, along with the development of a computer literacy curriculum for students with vision impairment. The coordination of the offices of Affirmative Action and Human Resources with the Coordinator of… [PDF]
(1986). Legal Issues. Syllabi and texts used in courses on higher education law are reviewed. These courses are offered as part of graduate level studies in the field of higher education administration. A major gap appears to be the need for a current and frequently revised casebook. Four major topics that higher education law courses emphasize are as follows: the legal underpinnings of colleges, faculty legal issues, students and the law, and regulation of higher education. Of concern were: the relationship of private institutions to the states and the status of public institutions with varying amounts of autonomy; issues concerning academic freedom, collective bargaining, affirmative action, and tenure; matters of research and the legal implications for faculty; the demise of in loco parentis and the rise of a contractual relationship between students and colleges; the increasing role of the federal government in financing and regulating colleges and universities; and the increasing role of states and… [PDF]
(1978). Informal Comments on Critical Issues in Higher Education. Information based on a longitudinal study indicates that white high school and college graduates earn more than white high school dropouts and that black high school graduates earn more than black high school dropouts. However, the base for the two groups is not the same and the prestige jobs available to each is different. Also, the long-run advantages of a college education have decreased significantly. The implications of these statistics are more related to the labor market than they are to the educational establishment. The number of low-paying, dead-end, low-skill jobs are increasing at a much faster rate than high-prestige, high-paying jobs. This has resulted in an oversupply of workers qualified for professional and technical occupations. A three-pronged policy thrust is needed if job opportunities are to be opened for black youth: instruction in the public schools must be upgraded, affirmative action minority hiring programs and public policy must be developed, and the…
(1979). The Necessity of Achieving a Balanced Ratio Between Minority Faculty and Minority Students. The problem of achieving a balanced ratio between minority faculty and minority students is discussed. Among the five difficulties seen as a result of failure to achieve a balanced faculty/student ratio are that minority students will suffer from lack of role models, counseling of minority students by sympathetic minority faculty will be more difficult to achieve, and innovation and the breaking of stereotypes will be hampered. It is contended that federally mandated affirmative action programs have largely failed to produce any of the desired results. An appeal to institutional and individual self-interest is proposed as a means to achieve a balanced minority ratio. It is suggested that once faculty members understand that the future of the programs and college units in which they work are threatened by failure to achieve a balanced ratio, motivation to bring about the necessary changes will emerge. The legitimacy of the minority status of a candidate as a factor in selection is… [PDF]