the right person
/Instead of focusing on the search for the right person, focus on becoming the right person.
ideas that challenge / comfort / inspire
The important Tool of Silence
/Your most important tool when a fellow human being is in distress is silence. Don’t be afraid of silence; learn to hold it. Although it may feel uncomfortable to you, it won’t to them. They’re working through painful thoughts and feelings, so don’t rush them. People will start opening up if you don’t interrupt.
Moya Sarner writing in The Guardian
a time of destruction
/In a time of destruction, create something. -Maxine Hong Kingston
Articles of Interest about the virus, higher ed, & fakes - May 11
/***THE VIRUS
An impressively clear explanation of how the virus often spreads inside confined spaces
Why are so many people are convinced that they had covid-19 already
***THE VIRUS & WORK LIFE
The 4 best posture exercises to help you stand a little taller
Zoom Security: You Need To Know About These 3 New Features Arriving Today
Why are some people better at working from home than others?
Bookcase Credibility (Twitter)
***FAKES & FRAUDS
How to Talk About the Coronavirus
Deepfake Music Is So Good It Might Be Illegal
Statisticians win $20 million to address shoddy forensic science methods
Flattening the Propaganda Curve in the Age of Coronavirus
***THE PLANDEMIC VIDEO
I’m an Investigative Journalist. These Are the Questions I Asked About the Viral “Plandemic” Video
Why It’s Important To Push Back On ‘Plandemic’—And How To Do It
The anti-vaxx agenda of 'The Plandemic'
***HIGHER ED
Inside America's empty college towns
The Secretive closed door search for new president of OU
Marian University enters articulation agreement with closing Manitowoc college
The CARES Act shortchanged two-year public colleges
Paine College Loses Accreditation Appeal
***THE FALL SEMESTER
American College Health Association Issues Guidelines for Reopening
What will colleges do in the Fall? Here's what USC and Clemson are planning
Here’s how college students can return to campus in the fall
NCAA's Mark Emmert says fall sports likely a no-go if campuses aren't open
For inbound college students — and universities — fall semester presents new choices and dilemmas
Higher Education Mulls a Fall Semester without Lecture Halls
Michigan, most Big Ten schools planning for in-person classes, a key variable in fall sports
***MASS VIRUS TESTING ON CAMPUSES
Even With Mass Coronavirus Testing, UC San Diego Officials Are Cautious About Fall Opening
UW System Working To Test All Students, Faculty, Staff For COVID-19
***HIGHER ED & FINANCE
The Coming Disruption to College
Grand Canyon Education Stock Surged 60%
The Crisis on Campus Is Here To Stay (opinion)
Wells College may close if students can't return in fall 2020
Lincoln University in Missouri Declaring Exigency
Amid coronavirus pandemic, a growing list of colleges in financial peril ($)
NYU prof says college is about to change forever — and expensive schools could close for good
***FURLOUGHS & LAYOFFS
University of Kentucky furloughs 1,700 staff; 1,500 work in healthcare
Furloughs, possible staffing reductions on the way for University System of Georgia
West Virginia University furloughed approximately 875 staff members
University of Missouri furloughs hundreds to cut expenses
University of Idaho announces mandatory furloughs plan
Florida Tech cuts football program, announces layoffs due to coronavirus
***TEST-BLIND ADMISSIONS
UAF to look at students’ core GPA rather than College Board aptitude tests
Washington and Lee to make SAT & ACT optional for 2021 applications
NU’s SAT/ACT requirements an obstacle for applicants
SAT, ACT and AP: What students need to know about testing during the pandemic
Florida schools may be flexible with ACT/SAT for 2021 admissions
As elite colleges go remote, students revolt against the state of higher ed
***TEACHING
The Limits of Online Education
$70k for Zoom classes? Virus crisis leaves US students miffed
NYC schools lift ban on Zoom — even as hackers hit other ed online events with ‘horrendous’ material
***ONLINE CHEATING & PROCTORING
Online proctoring is surging during COVID-19
Georgia Tech warns physics students who cheated: Admit it or risk failing
Boston University Investigates Whether Students Cheated on Online Tests Amid Shutdown
AP Exams And Colleges Go Online, Cheating Follows
Fourteen Simple Strategies to Reduce Cheating on Online Examinations
***ACADEMIC LIFE
Do Tenure and Promotion Policies Discourage Publications in Predatory Journals?
***CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS
Coronavirus in Austin: St. Edward’s University sees revenue drop ahead
Christians Need the Liberal Arts Now More Than Ever
Court Weighs Whether Parochial Schools Are Exempt From Employment Laws
***RESEARCH
Psychological Science is Not Yet a Crisis-Ready Discipline
***STUDENT LIFE
Parking lot Wi-Fi is a way of life for many students
What Recent College Graduates Are Going Through During The Pandemic
Students Call College That Got Millions In Coronavirus Relief 'A Sham'
Challenges abound for students forced to take classes remotely
***STUDENTS IN COURT
Growing number of students suing colleges that moved classes online amid pandemic
Students sue Pitt for refunds over 'sub-par' online instruction due to COVID-19
College Students Across the Country Are Demanding Schools Give Back Their Money
***SEXUAL HARASSMENT & ASSAULT
Ohio State Pays $40.9M in Sexual Abuse Settlement
Title IX college sexual assault rules have changed. As a former dean, I have some concerns
The American nones
/Reconciling the overwhelming sense of life’s importance with the universe’s ostensible indifference to human suffering is hard.
Although belief in God is no panacea for these problems, religion is more than a theism. It is a bundle: a theory of the world, a community, a social identity, a means of finding peace and purpose, and a weekly routine. Those, like me, who have largely rejected this package deal, often find themselves shopping à la carte for meaning, community, and routine to fill a faith-shaped void. Their politics is a religion. Their work is a religion. Their spin class is a church. And not looking at their phone for several consecutive hours is a Sabbath.
American nones may well build successful secular systems of belief, purpose, and community. But imagine what a devout believer might think: Millions of Americans have abandoned religion, only to re-create it everywhere they look.
Derek Thompson writing in The Atlantic
to make a man covet a thing
/In order to make a man covet a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain. -Mark Twian
The path to sainthood
/The path to sainthood goes through adulthood. There are no quick and easy shortcuts. An identity must be established before it can be transcended. One must find one’s self before one can lose it.
M Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled
Articles of interest about the virus and higher ed - May 7
/***THE VIRUS
Is It Safer To Visit A Coffee Shop Or A Gym?
About Seven-in-Ten U.S. Adults Say They Need to Take Breaks From COVID-19 News
Fed study ties 1918 flu pandemic to Nazi Party gains
Virus hospitalization is new barrier to military enlistment
UC San Diego to mass test its students for the novel coronavirus
***HIGHER ED: WHAT’S AHEAD
As Students Put Off College, Anxious Universities Tap Wait Lists
Disasters have shut down California colleges in the past: Here’s how they fared
***UNIVERSITY CUTS & CLOSURES
University of Akron will be cutting six of its 11 academic colleges
Professors at Ohio U say faculty cuts can't just be blamed on COVID-19
PSU employees furloughed after university’s loss in revenue
Are layoffs coming? Fresno-area community colleges face massive budget shortfalls
***HIGHER ED & FINANCE
Windfall for Small Colleges like God’s Bible School and College
Faculty, Staff Criticize System President's $200K Bonus
Forecasting the US Higher Education Market: A Primer
University-affiliated hospitals suffer huge revenue losses
The University of Illinois made a prophetic insurance bet in 2017
The ‘Public’ in Public College Could Be Endangered
***HIGHER ED IN COURT
Initial Considerations for Colleges and Universities Defending Class Action COVID-19 Refund Cases
***TEST-BLIND ADMISSIONS
UC will waive ACT and SAT requirements for most applicants starting next year
Loyola University New Orleans Adopts Test-Blind Admission Process
UW campuses, except Madison, consider dropping SAT and ACT requirement due to COVID-19 pandemic
Alabama colleges waive ACT & SAT scores for admission
Texas Lutheran waives SAT/ACT requirements
Will the Coronavirus End the SAT?
***TEACHING
Paranoia about cheating is making online education terrible for everyone
Why I’m Learning More With Distance Learning Than I Do in School
***ACADEMIC LIFE
Plans for fall assume professors will be willing to teach. Will they?
Report details gaps for women and minority professionals in higher ed
***CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS
Christian college president urge Calif. to reopen churches
Holy Family College to close this summer
Liberty University surpasses 100k online students
***RESEARCH
The dangers of sharing unpublished medical articles during a pandemic
Chinese state censorship of COVID-19 research represents a looming crisis for academic publishers
Three ways to turn the page after your first paper rejection
***STUDENTS & THE GAP
Coronavirus fears may lead to big gap year for college students
College Students Are Considering Gap Years If Classes Are Still Remote In the Fall
***STUDENTS & GRADUATION
Daytona, Texas to host high school graduations, NASCAR style
****STUDENT PROTESTS
University of Chicago students refuse to pay spring quarter bills until the school cuts tuition
College protests go digital, distant
****STUDENT LIFE
San Diego college students adjust to online job interviews
Gallup/Knight Foundation survey shows students conflicted about free speech
Chinese students who remain on American college campuses during the pandemic adjust to quieter lives
Students face restricted access to open records and meetings due to COVID-19
***SEXUAL HARASSMENT & ASSAULT
The new regulations governing campus sexual assault under Title IX
The New Federal Rules Will Better Protect Students Accused Of Sexual Assault
ACE: The Education Department "is not living in the real world"
one step
/If you're running a 26-mile marathon, remember that every mile is run one step at a time. If you are writing a book, do it one page at a time. -Charles Swindoll
It's over
/What you knew, what you understood, and what you trusted about everything is OVER. Because everything’s changed. It’s over. That’s the first truth.
The second truth.. is that it’s just beginning—if you choose to be remarkable. Why not choose to show up in your life and then your profession with a kind of engagement and energy and commitment and passion that says, “I can do it again! And I can’t wait.” Why wouldn’t you choose that?
If you say, “I don’t know,” then look at your beliefs. Because chances are someone told you long ago that you couldn’t do it. You weren’t tall enough. You weren’t smart enough. You weren’t rich enough. You weren’t the right color.
Don’t pay a bit of attention to that. You are in the process every day of becoming. Take your hand off the doorknob and say, “Now.”
Roger Fransecky, The Apogee Group
Articles of Interest about the virus, journalism, writing & more - May 5
/***THE VIRUS
New Studies Add to Evidence that Children May Transmit the Coronavirus
Coronavirus spares one neighborhood but ravages the next. Race and class spell the difference.
Covid-19: What if a vaccine is never developed?
Anti-Vaccination Activists Are Growing Force at Virus Protests
Study shows mutant coronavirus has emerged, even more contagious than the original
***PROTECTING YOURSELF
Is It Ok To Go To Parks And Beaches? Coronavirus Experts Weigh In
Report on face masks' effectiveness for Covid-19 divides scientists
How does alcohol change immunity? 3 truths about lockdown drinking
***ZOOM
How to hide yourself on Zoom—and why you should
Hackers target remote workers with fake Zoom downloader
***GOOD NEWS
Anonymous donor gives $1 million to virus-fighting hospital staff —designated entirely for employees
An Alabama teacher paid several months of utility bills for some of his students and their families
FSU students create map of kindness
***WRITING & READING
Indie bookstores take a page, and a slice of sales, from Amazon
For a lot of book lovers, rereading old favorites is the only reading they can manage at the moment
***PLAGIARISM
India’s University Grants Commission: 'Self-Plagiarism, Text Recycling Not Acceptable'
Illinois Republican congressional candidate’s fundraising email plagiarizes Chicago Tribune story
***JOURNALISM
The Rev Guide to Surviving Journalism in 2020 (A Toolkit)
COVID-19 Resources for Reporters
The topography of local news: A new map
***THE BUSINESS OF JOURNALISM
Local newsrooms unite to cover coronavirus pandemic
After coronavirus furloughs, Gannett newspapers lay off journalists around the country
Most newspapers not eligible for stimulus loans, says report
***FAKES & FRAUDS
The scientific community must take up cudgels in the battle against bunk (opinion)
Trump’s Pick for Intelligence Chief Follows a Slew of QAnon Accounts
***SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media use spikes during pandemic
The founder of surveillance startup Banjo has a secret racist past
***LANGUAGE
Can COVID-19 isolation change how you speak? You may emerge with an accent, experts say
What protects minority languages from extinction?
***LITERATURE
Alaska school board removes 'The Great Gatsby,' other famous books from curriculum
‘Never Be Afraid’: William Faulkner’s Speech to His Daughter’s Graduating Class in 1951
***POETRY
A beginner's guide to reading and enjoying poetry
Emory professor wins Pulitzer prize for poetry
a dog barks
/If you stop every time a dog barks, your road will never end. - Arabian Proverb
Why couples start to look alike
/It’s folk wisdom that couples in long and happy relationships look more and more alike as the years go by. Peer closely at those old photographs, and you’ll see that the couples haven’t actually grown similar noses or chins. Instead, they have reflected, each other’s expressions so frequently and so accurately that hundreds of tiny muscle attachments to their skin have reshaped their faces to mirror their union. How this happens gives us a window on one of the most fascinating recent discoveries about the brain, and about how we come to “feel felt” by one another.
Daniel J. Siegel, Mindsight
Carl Jung's patients
/I have treated many hundreds of patients. Among [those] in the second half of life-that is to say over 35—there has not been one whose problem in the last resort was not that of finding a religious outlook on life. –Carl Jung
Celebrating what is right
/If we celebrate what is right in our lives, we gain the perspective to deal with some of the things that are wrong in our lives.
Articles of interest about the virus & higher ed - May 1
/***THE VIRUS
Poop may tell us when the coronavirus lockdown will end
How the COVID-19 Pandemic Could End
Florida medical examiners were releasing coronavirus death data. The state made them stop.
Texas Still Won’t Say Which Nursing Homes Have COVID-19 Cases. Families Are Demanding Answers.
***FAKES & FRAUDS
Cue the debunking: Two California doctors go viral with dubious COVID test conclusions
Groups sow doubt about COVID vaccine before one even exists
An infectious disease expert on Covid-19, misinformation and 'bullshit'
Covid hoaxes are using a loophole to stay alive—even after content is deleted
***WORKING FROM HOME: ZOOM
Google Meet tackles Zoom by going completely free for all
When Mom’s Zoom Meeting Is the One That Has to Wait
Is video conferencing draining our productivity?
***WORKING FROM HOME
Tips to settle into your new work-from-home routine
Should I run with a mask? Experts share coronavirus mask guidance
What Expenses Can I Write Off Working From Home During the Pandemic?
Bad WiFi is slowing you down. Fix yours without spending a dime
***HIGHER ED & THE VIRUS
Higher Education in the Age of Coronavirus
Colleges and universities could see more interest in nursing
What are some of the key decision points colleges face?
***HIGHER ED & FALL CLASSES
What Do US Universities Risk If They Reopen This Fall?
Anxiety builds as California colleges consider how and when to resume on-campus fall courses
These universities say their students will return to campus in the fall
Colleges Are Weighing the Costs of Reopening in the Fall
There's No Simple Way to Reopen Universities
Even if California college campuses reopen, will most students still come?
Brown University President On Why Universities Need To Reopen By Fall
Community colleges offer summer discounts to help struggling students and enrollments
***HIGHER ED & FINANCE
Coronavirus pandemic brings staggering losses to colleges and universities
Colleges could lose up to 20 percent of students, analysis says
Colleges are facing a cash crunch and it could alter campus life
***EDUCATION IN COURT
Students sue California’s university systems demanding coronavirus-related refunds
Court Rules Detroit Students Have Constitutional Right To An Education
***STUDENTS & THE VIRUS
Some students are considering dropping out of college because of coronavirus
Gap Years To Financial Aid: A College Decision Day Colored By Coronavirus
***STUDENT LIFE
Millennials outnumbered Boomers in 2019
Students in off-campus housing struggle to make rent
An all-star virtual graduation awaits college students
Uncertain Job Market Awaits Soon-to-Be Graduates
Who qualifies for a stimulus check? Not most college students or adults under 24
***TEACHING
From Wuhan to Brooklyn, educators are rethinking what students really need
5 Traps That Will Kill Online Learning (and Strategies to Avoid Them)
21 Times Zoom University Was Truly Out Of Control
***ACADEMIC LIFE
Who’s Laughing Now? (A Letter from Henry David Thoreau)
University of Miami professor resigns after reportedly sharing porn bookmark on Zoom
***CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS
Wheaton College offers a full room/board refund instead of a prorated refund
Beyond Cedarville: Why Do Pastors Keep Getting Rehired After Abuse?
The Promise & Paradox of Christian Higher Ed
Faith-based colleges face challenges even bigger than coronavirus
Point Loma Nazarene 3D Prints Over 300 Face Shields for Tijuana General
***SEXUAL HARASSMENT & ASSAULT
NCAA sued by 7 women for failure to protect in alleged sexual assaults
Harvard Law School Students Come Together To Demand The School Stop Harassing Three Students
NC Supreme Court orders UNC-CH to turn over sex assault info
Take a Closer Look
/
This lovely furniture looks like cozy quarters. But you won't findthe furniture taking up space in someone's living room. The trees in the background offer a hint that something's amiss. These items are tucked away in a Seattle park. They're made of solid cement. And while you can take a seat on the sofa, cozy wouldn't be the best word to describe the experience.
Today you will come across a situation that will look quite different--if you would only take a few small steps toward it. A closer look can change your whole perspective.. when you take the time to go deeper.
Stephen Goforth
Speech & Silence
/I have often regretted my speech, never my silence. -Xenocrates
Choosing Your Plan
/He who lets the world, or his own portion of it, choose his plan of life for him, has no need of any other faculty than the ape-like one of imitation. He who chooses his plan for himself, employs all his faculties. He must use observation to see, reasoning and judgment to foresee, activity to gather materials for decision, discrimination to decide, and when he has decided, firmness and self-control to hold to his deliberate decision.
John Stuart Mill, On Liberty
braver
/I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who overcomes his enemies. –Aristotle