Jackson urges students to defy Prop 209
By Derek Walter
California State University-Fresno
Daily Collegian
The Rev. Jesse Jackson's crusade
against Prop. 209 made its way to
the Fresno State campus Tuesday as
"English is a great
language, but it's not
the only way to get to
heaven. Jesus didn't
speak English."
-Rev. Jesse Jackson
the civil-rights leader challenged
students to defy the measure and join
his march on Sacramento Oct. 27.
"It's your generation, what are you
going to do about it?" he said.
The stop was part of Jackson's
Student debt
affecting major
life decisions
By Colleen De Baise
CPS
BOSTON--The average student's
debt is $lO,OOO more than it was six
years ago, and the heavy burden of
payback affects major life decisions,
such as when to marry or have kids, a
survey says.
After graduation, the average student
is faced with a pile of debt totaling
$lB,BOO, according to Nellie Mae, the
largest non-profit provider of student
lci the country, which conducted
the study. That figure hai more than
doubled since 1991, when the average
debt was $8,200.
The fact that college tuition has risen
at twice the rate of inflation is one
reason for the explosive growth in
borrowing, the study found. Another
factor is that more loans and less
grants are available to students. Also,
there's a growing number of older
students who don't get as much
financial help from their parents, the
survey found.
Most of the 1,098 students
interviewed as part of Nellie Mae's
National Student Loan Survey
described their debt as a necessary
evil. Even though monthly payments
take a huge bite from their paychecks,
grads said a college diploma would
have been nearly impossible without
loans.
About three-quarters said the
investment they made in their
education was worth it for personal
growth, and 64 percent said it was
worth it for career opportunities.
"For today's job seeker, a college
education is just as important as a high
school diploma was a generation
ago," said Lawrence O'Toole, Nellie
Mae president. "While a majority of
borrowers earn enough to offset their
debt without too much of an impact,
Two men shot at West
Virginia University
Reuter
MORGANTOWN, W.Va.-- A man
shot a West Virginia University
student three times and then turned
the gun on himself, leaving them
both critically wounded, school
officials said Friday.
Andrew Willis, 20, of Wellsburg,
West Virginia, allegedly entered the
dorm room of Nicholas Thompson,
a 20-year-old sophomore from
Matewan, West Virginia, late
Thursday night and shot him three
times with a revolver, striking his
chest, abdomen and leg, said Becky
Lofstead, a university
spokeswoman.
"He then turned the revolver on
himself and shot himself in the
whirlwind tour of California, which
culminates with a "Save the Dream"
rally on the capital steps in
Sacramento.
Prop. 209 was passed by California
voters last year. It was recently
upheld by the California Supreme
Court.
Along with Prop. 209, Jackson used
his time to denounce Prop. 187 and
a measure that would eliminate
bilingual education in California
schools. He said those measures
went against the "American dream,"
as well as the principles of Martin
Luther King, Jr.
"There's always been the dream
busters who act as if they're on the
dream," he said. "But the dream
keeps on going."
Jackson compared Gov. Pete
Wilson to Alabama Gov. George
Wallace and the other Southern
senators who opposed integration in
there are pockets of burden among
some, such as those who have high
debt and low salaries."
In fact, 36 percent of grads said
payback was much harder than
anticipated, the survey found.
Many borrowers report that their
debt load is causing them to put off
major life decisions, such as when to
start a family, purchase a new home
or attend graduate school.
Amanda Finfrock, a first-year law
school student at the University of
Toledo, said the fear of loan payback
influenced her choice of law schools.
"[That's] one reason I came to
Toledo and didn't go to private school
for law school," she said. "I am
worried about paying back the
money."
A growing number of students said
they have delayed getting married (15
percent) and buying a car (31 percent)
because of their student loans.
The average debt for borrowers who
attended private four-year colleges
was $17,500; for public colleges it
was $13,000. Graduate school
students had an average debt of
$24,500, and professional school
students (law, medical) had an
average debt of $50,000.
As much as student loan debt is
increasing, so are credit card balances.
According to Nellie Mae, college
students who have applied for loans
have an average credit card balance
of $2,226. Graduate students have on
average seven cards and an average
balance of $5,800.
"Clearly, students need to be
cautious about credit card borrowing
in college," O'Toole said. "It's very
easy to over-extend, especially for
'virgin' credit consumers."
The survey showed that 26 percent
of all students surveyed used credit
cards to help finance their education.
head," she said. "We're all
shocked...we live in a safe
community, a safe campus. Things
like this don't happen here."
Lofstead said Willis, who was not
a student at the university, was
apparently upset because his
relationship with a female freshman
student had ended. The woman was
visiting Thompson in his dorm room
at the time of the shooting and
witnessed the attack, Lofstead said.
The two men were listed in critical
condition at Ruby Memorial
Hospital.
West Virginia University in
Morgantown has about 22,000
students.
National Campus News Thursday, October 30, 1997 The Behrend College Collegian - Page
the 1960's
He said Propositions 187, 209 and
the proposed bilingual education ban
all violate the federal government's
protections and freedoms.
Jackson cited the proposal to ban
bilingual education as another threat
to "the American dream." He said
Americans need to realize that
English isn't the only language
around.
"We must build bridges," he said.
"English is a great language, but it's
not the only way to get to heaven.
Jesus didn't speak English."
Along with language, Jackson spent
a considerable amount of time
talking about race.
He said people should not strive to
be "color blind," but instead be more
tolerant and compassionate to other
races.
"No one wants to be blind," he said
"Blind people don't want to be blind
Colleges to seek more diversity
AUSTIN, Texas -- Greater student
diversity is the goal of a new
statewide commission formed by a
coalition of Texas' colleges and
universities.
The Texas Higher Education
Coalition today announced the
formation of the 24-member Texas
Commission on a Representative
Student Body. The panel will focus
on how institutions can raise
minority enrollment without
affirmative action programs, which
have been outlawed in Texas by the
U.S. Supreme Court.
University leaders said in a joint
statement that the future economic
Admission standatdt rising
at Florida universities
By Joni James
The Orlando Sentinel
Knight-Ridder /Tribune News
Services •
High school students looking to
apply to a state university take heed:
Despite that universities are
accepting more freshmen,
admissions standards are climbing,
even at the state's younger
institutions.
Test scores and high school grade
point averages from this fall's
freshman class show that the
University of Florida, as usual, was
the hardest state university to get into.
But what's more surprising is how
some of the state's youngest
it's just not quite
as easy as it was
before."
-Tom Johnston
Guidance Counselor
institutions including the University
of Central Florida and Florida
International University in Miami are
becoming as selective as longtime
second-place Florida State
University.
That's good news for students and
faculty members at those institutions,
who hope increased admissions
standards will improve academic
stature.
But for high school students
throughout Florida, there is a
different message: Don't expect
automatic admission into the
university of your choice as a
freshman if all you post is a 3.0 high
school grade-point average, the
state's minimum standard.
Students with lower GPAs also may
qualify for enrollment, but only if
We need to be color sensitive."
He said that compassion should be
used to help people less fortunate.
He said that's why he continues to
march for such causes as minimum
wage, health care, workers' rights
and Affirmative Action.
One area of concern for Jackson
was schools. He said since the youth
would determine the future of the
country, America's schools need to
be in top shape.
"It's not right to have first-class jails
and second class schools," hesaid.
Heath Kishpagh, a junior majoring
in speech communication, agreed.
He echoed Jackson's sentiments
about trying to better the situation of
the poor.
"I like what he said about the
schools," he said. "We need to give
more money to people who in
society instead of those who can't be
in it."
and social vitality of Texas depends
on accessible and affordable higher
education that extends opportunity
to all members of society.
The statement said, "The fastest
growing segments of our population
are also those segments that,
historically, have been the least well
served by educational institutions at
all levels. Based on current
demographic and educational
trends, Texas will, within one
generation, have a work force that
is less well educated than today's
population."
Since the Hopwood decision
against the University of Texas law
they score well on the SAT.
"It's just not quite as easy as it was
before," said Tom Johnston,
guidance director at Boone High
School. "I think a lot of our students
are surprised."
Sitting outside last week at UCF,
freshman honor students Kristin
Gillenwater of Boynton Beach and
Adam Bojanowski of Lake Mary said
they're not surprised it's getting
harder to get in. Each had friends who
ended up at a community college
when they couldn't get into UCF.
"I think people are starting to see
what UCF has to offer," Gillenwater
said. "For me, OF was just so
massive. I really liked the size of
UCF."
Making it tougher to get into
universities wasn't what the state
Board of Regents had in mind four
years ago when it decided the state's
universities should enroll a bigger
percentage of Florida's high school
graduates as freshmen.
Then at 15 percent, the board voted
to eventually increase freshman
capacity so that up to 20 percent of
recent high school graduates could
enroll. The consensus was that the
increased capacity would allow the
universities to be less selective.
In fact, the opposite has happened.
Test scores and high school GPAs of
freshmen continue to climb even
though now 18 percent of last year's
high school graduates enrolled in a
state university.
Administrators discount the idea
that grade inflation is responsible
because scores on standardized tests
SAT and ACT also have increased.
Instead, they think more of Florida's
top high school graduates such as
Gillenwater and Bojanowski are
choosing a state university instead of
a private college or out-of-state
school. Why? Florida's younger
institutions are starting to cater more
to freshmen by, among other things,
building dormitories and adding
Shalandra Davis, a senior majoring
in mechanical engineering, said she
hoped Jackson's speech would bring
some racial harmony to the campus.
"It's pretty brave for him to come
on campus with all things that have
happened in the last few weeks," she
said. "It's a good time for him to
come on campus and speak at a time
like this. I hope it did some good."
Theater arts professor Thomas Ellis
believes that Jackson's crusade is
needed to destroy what he sees as a
damaging way of thinking.
"We need to fight against 209," he
said. "But it's not the initiative that's
the issue, it's the thought process that
created it."
Ellis said affirmative action is
needed, and doesn't hurt anybody.
"I'm an affirmative action hire, and
I haven't taken any jobs away from
whites," he said.
Tim Bragg contributed to this story
school last year, Texas universities
have been barred from using
affirmative action programs to
attract minority students.
The commission will assess
current university programs, make
short- and long-term
recommendations for additional
programs and strategies in four
areas: recruitment, admissions,
retention and financial aid.
University of Texas Chancellor
William Cunningham said, "We
must do more to ensure that the
student populations of colleges and
universities reflect the full richness
of our state's diversity."
football teams. And a state university
means cheap tuition and access to
Florida's new Bright Futures lottery
scholarships.
"My tuition is almost all paid for,"
Bojanowski said. Both he and
Gillenwater received both lottery and
UCF scholarships. "It's a great deal."
"We're not the only state to see this
happen," said OF Registrar Barbara
Talmadge. "Georgia, with its Hope
Scholarship, has seen it, too. The
economy is good, but parents still
want to get the best bang for their
buck."
System-wide last year, officials
estimate 900 applicants who met
minimum requirements did not find
a spot at a state university. Those
students had the option of enrolling
at one of Florida's 28 community
colleges, which admit anyone who
has a high school diploma, and
automatically transferring to a
university after obtaining an
associate's degree.
But officials worry that the number
will increase significantly in coming
years because of an increase in the
number of high school graduates.
The state has estimated up to 120,000
more people will attempt to enroll in
the state's universities in the next
dozen years, nearly a 50 percent
increase over current enrollment.
Higher education officials are
making plans to deal with the
increase. But until access improves,
officials warn it's more important
than ever that applicants make
backup plans in case they're not
admitted to the university of their
choice.
"In reality, we simply do not have
enough space to take all students who
want to come as freshmen or who
meet the minimum requirements,"
said Michael Armstrong, director of
planning, analysis and research for
the state's universities. "That's not
likely to change in the near future."
Survey finds
education -
profs doubt
their students
By Philip Walzer
Knight-Ridder/Tribune News
Services
NORFOLK, Va.--Roughly
three-quarters of education
professors harbor serious doubts
about the capabilities of some of
their students, the future
teachers of America, according
to a report.
In the Public Agenda survey of
900 professors, 75 percent said
too many prospective teachers
have trouble writing essays free
of mistakes in grammar and
spelling:
In addition, 72 percent said they
often or sometimes have a
student they doubt will become
a good teacher.
And 86 percent think college
education programs need to do
a better job of weeding out
students.
The report, released Tuesday,
raises questions about the quality
of teachers at a time when the
public and politicians are
increasingly worried about the
quality of education youngsters
are receiving.
The professors' viewpoints are
"a signal that they don't have the
confidence that their goals will be
realized in the real world, given
the corps of recruits that they
"They shoudn't be
graduating from an
institution of higher
education if they have
those problems."
-Marian Flickinger
Pres. The Norii)lk Federsitionof Teache
work with," said Steve Farkas,
co-author of the report and vice
president of Public Agenda. The
organization is a nonprofit,
nonpartisan group aimed at
helping citizens understand
policy issues and helping leaders
understand the public's point of
view.
Marlanifinddnitii
the Norfolk Federation of
Teachers, said Wednesday that
she believes most teachers are
"outstanding," but "I still think
there's a portion that need to
improve their skills."
She thinks both universities and
school systems should work
harder to ensure that youngsters
get top-notch teachers.
"They shouldn't be graduating
from an Institution of higher
education if they have those
problems-unless there are no
standards," she said.
At Norfolk State University,
education professors say that
they sometimes encounter
students with problems but that
there are enough safeguards to
ensure that only well-qualitled
students graduate.
"Some of the teachers that we
have often make mistakes in
spelling and sometimes
grammar, but it doesn't mean
they will not become good
teachers," said Shirley S.
Winstead, director of student
teaching at Norfolk State
University. Those students, she
said, are referred to the
university's language laboratory
and often tutored by their peers.
At Virginia Wesleyan College,
students must pass such an exam
generally in their junior year or
they cannot continue in the
program, said Lin Logan, an
associate professor of education.
Alan Arroyo, Regent
University's dean of the School
of Education, said good grades
aren't the only foundation of a
good teacher. "Does this person
have a heart for teaching?"
Arroyo asked, "If you can't build
a relationship with a student,
they can have a 4.0 from
Harvard and not be good
teachers."