Newspapers / The Carolina Times (Durham, … / Jan. 8, 2005, edition 1 / Page 15
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SATURDAY, JANUARY 8, 2005—THE bAROLINATIMES-lt John Avery Boys and Girls Clubs, Inc. gave away toys be fore Christmas to area children. Some club members show off some the toys that were given away. From left to right are: Eric Allen, Jeffrey Price, Sean Laisure, Halle Hall, Hali Price, Kaila Rice and Latasha Garrett. Student Rights Advocates Say New Database Violates Rights Ideas CContinued From Page \4) By. Makebra M. Anderson NNPA National Correspondent WASHINGTON (NNPAi - The 'ederal go\ernment's proposed )lan to create a national registr) hat would track every college siu- .. lent is. dra.win^ fire .from siudt^npA ights advocates concerned about he possible violation of students' irivacy, "The Unitecf States Student Asso- iaiion (USSA) opposes the crea- ion of this new database because it nfringes upon student privacy ights," says Jasmine Harris. Legis- ative Director for USSA. "There ;re few protections offered for siu- lents under this proposal. They lon't have the opportunity to opt )Ut - even students who don’t eceive federal student aid.” Under the proposal, all colleges .nd universities would be required 0 provide data on all of its stu- lents, even those not receiving fed- ral financial aid. The information :athered would include each stu- lent’s Social Security number. "There is already a tremendous mount of information out there hat doesn’t violate students rights lolicies,” says Mike Bowler, direc- or of Outreach and Communica- ions for the Institute of Education Iciences, the research arm of the )epartment of Education. "If this omes to pass, there are going to be nany safeguards to ensure that stu- lents’ information is safe. For ex- mple, there will be no one person hat will have access to the entire atabase.” The United States Education De- •artment says this system would lake it easier for the National Cen- 2r for Education Statistics (NCES) 3 measure college’s performance nd would provide more accurate tatistics about retention and gradu- tion rates. "Right now all the states do it dif- ^rently and there is a need for a nified system of data collecting," iys Bowler. "With this database, 'e would know really for the first me exactly what graduation rates re. It would give policymakers in- )rmation about higher education lat is more accurate and make it asier for colleges to report data be- ause they will have better in- armation." An estimated 15.9 million people 'ere registered college students in 002, according to the United tales Census Bureau. The Bureau Iso reports that roughly 7.1 million ill-time college students received ome form of financial aid to help ay for their education that same ear. The USSA, a grassroots organiza- > on that tracks and lobbies for fed- ral legislation and fights for stu- ent rights, agrees that the NCES | needs a belter way of tracking stu dent progress, but doesn't feel a federal registry 'is the best way to do it. ^ "NCES claims they would belter • :be- able .to,track students and w'hat •,-we're; saving is- that we know the graduation rates are inaccurate, but there are other ways to gain better information." says Harris. "They can't guarantee the information wouldn't be used for any other pur pose than statistical analysis." NCES is the primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing educational data. The center col lects, analyzes, and reports .statistics on the condition of Amer ican education and claims it has never been required to share stu dent information with , other agen cies. At present, colleges and univer sities are required to report tuition, faculty salary averages, enrollment statistics and other data for the In tegrated Poslsecondary Education Data System HPEDS) established by the NCES. This is the core data base used by the federal govern ment to track trends in higher edu cation. The American Association of Slate Colleges and Universities (AASCU) feels the current data system limits the ability to hold colleges accountable. In a letter to Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio), chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Com mittee and Howard McKeon (R- Calif.), chairman of the Sub committee on 21st Century Compe titiveness, Edward Elmendorf, senior vice president of Govern ment Relations and Policy Analysis for AASCU writes. "We believe, however, that the limitations of existing data systems prevent institutions from fully ex amining the progress of their stu dents through the higher education system, and that current accoun tability systems fail to capture the full measure of student progress and success on our campuses. We further believe that if institutions are to be held truly accountable, better data are needed, and that the best way to accomplish this is through the development of a com prehensive national data collection strategy." Changes to the current system would allow the Education Depart ment to calculate the net price of tuition instead of relying on the price that colleges report. For the first time, it would also allow the department to track students who transfer from one college to anoth er. Although the NCES promises that sensitive information will be pro- • tected. the National Association of Independent Colleges & Univer sities (NAICU) still objects to its creation. "Right now students have to give written consent for educational and personally identifiable data to be transferred out of the college. With this new proposal, most of that power is given to the federal gov ernment," explains Sarah Flanagan, the group’s vice president for gov ernment relations. "It is a private action to enroll in college, especial ly if you don’t get federal as sistance, and a database like this could discourage college enroll ment. Researchers are always going to want to know more. When does it stop?" To put this new system in place, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which pro tects the privacy of student educa tion records, would have to be amended. . Under FERPA, established in 1974, parents and students "have the right to inspect and review the student’s education records maintained by the school and generally, schools must have writ ten permission from the parents or eligible students in order to release any information from a .student's education record." Harris said, "It’s hard to support this with all of the issues surround ing identity theft. Our biggest fear is that later down the road this data base will be misused. North Carolina Police Corps Holds Graduation Ceremony for 15 Officers .SAUEMBURG — The North Carolina Police Corps graduated P'S trained police cadets on Dec. 17 at the North Carolina Justice Acad emy in .Salcmburg. Michael Cosligan, director of the Office of Police Corps and Paw Enforcement Education, Washing ton, D.C. will deliver the keynote address. Upon graduation, these new of ficers will perform community patrol for various law enforcement agencies throughout North Carolina and Virginia. North Carolina is one of 24 states and territories that recruit and train college graduates to serve four years as community police ofUcers through a program funded by the Department of Jus tice’s Office of Justice Programs. "This graduation is the culmina tion of a rigorous 24-wcck training program that teaches the knowl edge, skills and professional stan dards police officers need to serve on community patrol," said Bryan Beatty, secretary of the Dept, of Crime Control and Public Safety. "The.se outstanding young men and women have met high performance standards for physical, mental and emotional fitness, and 1 congratu late each of them on their achieve ment." The Police Corps has a competi tive college scholarship program for students who agree to work in a Mixing Politics (Continued From Page 14) (The Louisiana Supreme Coun vo,Ad tcsu.spend the tudge for six months and dock him S50,0(J0 jn pay.g Some seem to feel that issues of race and a commitment to tolerance and inclusion now can be pushed lower on he pecking order of the pub lic agenda. Certainly, the most bizarre example of this was the astonishing vote in November of a majority of .Alabama's white electorate to keep language in the slate's constitution mandating segregated schools "for white and colored children" along with language refeiring to the poll taxes that in the era of segregation were used to disenfran..hise blacks. This mean-spirited and pathetic clinging to the now -unused remnants of the anti-democratic regime of the Old Sourh-some of which still litter several other southern state constitutions, too-contrasts in this season even more shaiply to the vision for .America the Ci\ i\ Rights MoN ement of the 1950s and 1960s advocated: One in which the meaning of such words and phrases as freedom and justice and the pursuit of happiness are not limited to one class of .Americans but are a li\ ing realit\ that ap plies to all. Community (Continued From Paee 14) .stale or local police force for at least lour years. Scholarship funds cover education expenses, includ ing tuition, fees, books, supplies, iransporlatioti. room and board, and miscellaneous expenses. The graduates of the North Caro lina Police Corps program will join I 1 North Carolina and Virginia law enforcement agencies. Those agen cies include: Asheville Police Dept., C’ary Police Dept., Dare (’ounty .Sheriff’s Office, East Caro lina University Police Deparlmcnl. Fayellevilie I’olice Dept., Garner Police Dept., Henderson Police Dept., Marion Police Dept., New Bern Police Dept., Waynesboro Po lice Dept., Winston-Salem Police Dept. The.se agencies will assign the new officers to community patrol within their juri.sdielions. The graduating Police Corps of ficers are: Christopher Ball of Hendersonville; Mare-Aiilhony Carmona of Statesville; Benjamin Dec.se of Willow Springs; Erin El- lerman of Greenville; George Jenkins of Raleigh; Marcus Kirk of Hope Mills; Virginia Laughlin of Montvale, VA; Nathan Lusk of Pembroke; George Moore, Jr. of Greenville; Ivan Pechtel of Winston-Salem, ; Justin Sasser of Hulisboro; Tiffany Silsbee of Cary; Joshua Smith of Kernersville; Wil liam Watson of White Lake; and Harry While, III of Plymouth. say their primary duty is to secure healthy return for funds toward the retirement incomes of 20 million public employees around the country - which amounts to some $2 trillion. A pension fund is a savings plan set up and invested by an employer or a labor union toqprovide retirement in come for workers. The funds accumulate income and capital gains tax- free which are used to pay benefits. William Reed - www.BlackPressInternational.com blocks of community in general. Each da> during Kw anzaa focuses on one of these principles and reminds celebrants to recommit to that value: "Umoja (unity), to siri\e for and maintain unity in the familv. com munity. nation and race. Kujichagulia (self-determination), to define our selves. name ourseEcs. create for oursehes and speak for ourselves. Ujima (collective work and responsibility), to build and maintain our community together and make our brothers and sisters' problems our problems and to sol\e them together. Ujamaa (cooperaii\e economics)-, to build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses and to profit from them together. Nia (purpose), to make our collecti\e \ocation the building and dexeloping of our comnumit\’ in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness. Kuumba (creativity), to do always as much as we can, in the way we can. in order to leave our community more bcautilul and benelicial than we inherited it. And imani (faith), to believe w'ilh all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righleoiisness and \ iclory ol our struggle." Not everyone celebrates Kwanzaa. but these xalues contain some uni versal principles lor building strong communities, Kw anzaa ends on New Year's Day-in the Kwanzaa celebration, the Day of Meditation. Many people already spend New Year’s Day thinking about how they can resolve to improve themselves during the next year. But imagine if this year we all re.solved to take steps to improve our communities in stead. Imagine i1 every child in this nation were being raised in a com munity resolved to seeing any member's problems as everyone’s prob lems and solving them together, or to making sure that all community members live together harmoniously and support each other in their com mon goals, or that every community decision would leave the community healthier and more beautiful tomorrow than it is today. What kinds of places would these communities be for our children-and. by extension, for all of us? During a traditional Kwanzaa celebration muhindi, ears of com, are laid on a mkeke. a straw mat. The mat symbolizes African peoples’ his tory and traditions, and the corn symbolizes children and the future. Families place one ear of corn on the mkeke for each child in the household, but they're instructed to put at least two ears down even if they don’t have children, because in African tradition every adult is con sidered a parent to every child in the community. Many people talk about this belief, but imagine if every one of us really put it into action. And then imagine what kind of a world we could build for our children if our local, national, and global communities all com mitted to making it our most important community value. During that final Day of Meditation in Kwanzaa, people are supposed to ask themselves three questions: "Who am I? Am I really who I say I am? And am I all I ought to be?" Everyone answers these questions as an individual, but their answers should reflect how well they are playing their part in making their community function as a whole and with jus tice. A person’s success is deeply connected to how much value they are giving to others. At a time when our children desperately need adults to reweave the fabric of family and community for them, all of us need to think and ask ourselves these questions. Are we all that we ought to be? Marian Wright Edelman is President and Founder of the Children's Defense Fund and its Action Council, whose Leave No Child Behind mis- sion is to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start, and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities.
The Carolina Times (Durham, N.C.)
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Jan. 8, 2005, edition 1
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