A group of students at the University of Mississippi want their university to implement a new policy that would require students to take multicultural courses in order to graduate.
The group, Students Against Social Injustice says that the new policy would put the university in line with the stated aims of its recently released “diversity plan“.
The group has launched an online petition that it hopes to send to Ole Miss Interim Provost Noel Wilkin.
From the text of the petition:
“We propose that UM Liberal Arts students be required to take 6-9 hours of multicultural courses, as well as an additional 12 hours of diversity-related extracurricular/volunteer hours. We believe that a multicultural course requirement will further institutionalize inclusion at the University of Mississippi, and advance UM’s mission of “enabl[ing] students to…understand a variety of world cultures as well as the richness and complexity of American society.” What’s more, such a requirement will push students to center the intellectual and historical contributions of marginalized communities (black, Latino/Chicano, indigenous, Asian, LGBTQIA+, disabled, women, etc.) in their educational narrative.”
Students Against Social Injustice member Makala McNeil told the Daily Mississippian that the additional course requirements would play “an in instrumental part” in bringing about further inclusion to campus.
“We’d be doing students a disservice if after four years they leave the institution without exposure to the wide array of multicultural courses the institution offers,” McNeil told the paper.
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Cover Photo Credit: Karla/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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Millennial Travel Guide: A Day Trip To Northern Ireland
Another weekend in Ireland calls for another day trip!
My roommates and I decided to make the journey to Northern Ireland to see Belfast City, Giant’s Causeway, and Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge as a quick getaway from Dublin.
Not leaving the island, but being in a different country was another thing I could check off my bucket list after our excursion to the United Kingdom.
We left Dublin with our Paddywagon tour and headed North!
The luck of the Irish was with us again as we got nearly perfect weather for a day, according to Northern Ireland standards.
Everything’s just better when the weather cooperates.
Our first stop was particularly exciting for me, as a huge Game of Thrones fan.
We got to see THE Dark Hedges on the King’s Road.
This iconic destination was beautiful regardless if you watch the show or not, but definitely a bonus for those of us with an obsession.
Back on the bus we continued on to the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge.
The bridge connects the mainland to Carrick Island.
It was originally built by fishermen so they could cast nets over the wide chasm; however, now it is purely a tourist attraction for the brave.
We watched as people crossed before us and the 100 feet drop didn’t seem to daunting.
The second I stepped on that bridge the 100 feet felt like 1000.
Once I got over initial fear of the height I was able to fully enjoy the views and they were spectacular.
Watering crashing below, cliffs on either side, and only wood and a few ropes under my feet is something I’ve never experienced.
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is a definite must-see of Northern Ireland.
The main attraction of our tour was Giant’s Causeway.
This place truly blew my mind.
There are over 40,000 basalt columns formed through volcanic burning and cooling.
The formations are reportedly 60 million years old and even have the legend of Finn McCool to try to explain the fanaticism of the site.
We hopped from rock to rock with the ocean in front of us and the mountains behind us.
It was a picturesque scene everywhere we looked.
This seems to be a common theme of my travels.
After two hours of climbing, sitting, and taking in the views we had to say goodbye to Giant’s Causeway.
Honestly still confused how volcanic rock can form into hexagons and be stacked so perfectly together.
We ended the day by getting a little time to explore Belfast City.
Steeped in history, we were overwhelmed by the city’s tumultuous past.
The effects of the Troubles are still seen today with conflict between the Protestants and Catholics of the city.
Regardless of the dangerous past of Belfast, the city center offered us a glimpse into the urban side of Northern Ireland.
It was a great ending to a great day. When you’re on an island as beautiful as I am, there’s no reason not to explore as much as possible.
Read More: Millennial Travel Guide: A Day Trip To Ireland’s Majestic Cliffs Of Moher
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Kicking Turkey Out Of NATO Would Be A Massive Mistake
Read the companion piece to this one: Why Turkey Should Be Removed From NATO
First, the obvious; there is no mechanism in the North Atlantic Treaty to remove a member without their consent.
The only conceivable workaround is for the other twenty seven member states to deposit their intent to leave the Alliance in Washington D.C., and then form a new Alliance. However, this “solution” has problems.
The credibility of the alliance would be compromised. Public’s on both sides of the Atlantic are growing ambivalent to collective security.
Collapsing and reforming the alliance to exclude one of the oldest and most strategically relevant will inspire a lack of confidence in collective security. The whole house of cards comes crashing down.
Read More: 10 Days In Turkey: An American Student Comes Face To Face With The Islamic Crisis Of Modernity
For the sake of argument, let’s say that excluding Turkey is possible, and won’t create a tremendous credibility gap; NATO would still be shooting itself in the foot in terms of its deterrence value.
Even ignoring that Turkey has the second largest military in NATO, its geographic position is invaluable in deterring Russian aggression against the alliance, and negating the Black Sea Fleet.
The Black Sea Fleet, recently reinforced by ships stolen from the Ukrainian Navy, would be free to do as it pleases, were it not for the Bosporus and Dardanelles, which act as a tremendous nautical choke point.
The Bosporus Bridge. Photo Credit: Güldem Üstün/Flickr (CC by 2.0)
This severely limits the ability of the Russians to act aggressively in the Mediterranean, as they must utilize this passage.
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Turkey is a guarantor of good behavior on behalf of the Russians in NATO’s southern flank, and gives the alliance a second front to project over the Black Sea.
If Turkey is so important, why would anyone want to be rid of it?
A reasonable criticism is that Turkey is increasingly undemocratic due to President Erdoğan, among other things, silences media at home and abroad, and continues to deny the genocide in Armenia.
Photo Credit: Hyeong Seok Kim/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
While these instances are wholly undemocratic, and contrary to the democratic ethos of the Atlantic Alliance, it would not be the first time an alliance member was behaving badly.
Both the United States and Belgium, for instance, fueled the Congo Crisis of the early 1960s, leading to the deaths of about 100,000 people.
The British and the French attempted to seize the Sinai Peninsula in a shameless imperialist land grab in 1956. Poland’s ruling party is also curtailing democracy in much the same way Erdoğan has.
Yet all of these parties remain in the alliance.
Instead of ostracizing an old and strategically invaluable friend, utilizing the existing alliance architecture to influence Turkey back onto the path of liberalism is the far more reasonable reaction.
Read the companion piece to this one: Why Turkey Should Be Removed From NATO
Do you with agree with this view? Give us your take in the comments below.
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Cover Photo Credit: ResoluteSupportMedia/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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ITT Tech Closed Down Out Of The Blue, And Its Students Got Royally Screwed
The dramatic and sudden closing of all ITT Technical Institute campuses earlier this month left 40,000 students and 8,000 employees wondering what’s going to happen to them in the future.
The good news is debt incurred by ITT Tech students will likely be forgiven.
The bad news is that the credits they earned may not be transferable.
Plus, because of ITT’s reputation, it’s embarrassing for current students and even former graduates to list it on their resume.
What’s more is the closures could lead to a housing crisis for some veterans who were receiving housing allowances. The list of potential problems goes on and on.
As a for-profit school, ITT Tech was not accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, which requires certain standards from its schools.
ITT Tech had 130 campuses in 38 states. Thirty percent of ITT students nationwide are veterans.
The Higher Learning Commission will not allow regionally accredited schools to accept credits from for-profit schools that are not regionally accredited, like ITT, for example.
Why did this happen?
A week before ITT closed its doors, the government banned the school from enrolling new students receiving federal aid. ITT relies on federal grants and loans from students for the majority of its revenue. ITT pulled the plug on operations as a result.
However, the Department of Education has been worried about the college for several years.
ITT was facing lawsuits and federal/state investigations from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission.
The last straw happened last month when the college’s accreditor (Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools) said that ITT was not in compliance and “unlikely to become in compliance” with its criteria.
Today’s postsecondary environment is in a constant state of flux and adapting to the changes is an opportunity for institutions to adapt to and succeed in the current climate, writes Jay Halfond, the former dean and professor at Boston University Metropolitan College.
Unfortunately, it isn’t happening on every level.
“For-profits pray for someone in the White House who will protect their federal source of funds and ignore their (own) accountability,” Halfond wrote.
In 2014, Time magazine ranked ITT Technical Institute No. 2 on its list of “The 5 Colleges That Leave the Most Students Crippled By Debt”.
Among ITT Tech graduates with loans due in 2011, 22% had defaulted by 2014.
The for-profit University of Phoenix had a lower default rate by percentage – 19% at Phoenix vs. ITT Tech’s 22%.
But the total number of students in default from Phoenix was much higher – 45,123 Phoenix students versus 11,260 ITT Tech students.
Now what?
The death of for-profit schools will likely continue which gives other institutions like online colleges with hearty programs the opportunity to absorb some of that business.
A prime example of a school that saved itself from closure is Regis College in Boston. Regis was once a small, private, all-women’s college. They opened their doors to men in 2002, which helped the school thrive. Another move that helped saved the brick and mortar school is when Regis expanded their nursing program into the online realm.
Online options could be a way for former ITT tech students to re-enroll in school without having to move.
A list of career colleges and trade schools that have formed agreements with ITT to make it easier for students to transfer credits can be found here.
There are two main options for the ITT students left in a lurch.
They can transfer credits to another school with a comparable program, but those students won’t be eligible for federal student loan forgiveness.
If they choose to cancel their loans instead, anyone enrolled at the time or withdrew within 120 days of the school’s closure has the legal right to have their federal loans forgiven under a “closed-school discharge” agreement.
The problem with that route is that students must start all over if they want to further their education.
U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. has warned students to steer clear of companies offering to help in exchange for money.
Applying for any form of loan forgiveness is free.
The future of for-profit colleges
Enrollment in for-profit colleges is declining.
DeVry University said the number of students taking classes is down 23% this year and the University of Phoenix is down 22%.
Harder government scrutiny is one of the reasons.
Other major players will start to shut their doors if they don’t change the way they do business, which is one of the reasons DeVry is trying to differentiate itself.
A few days ago, DeVry Education Group announced it will voluntarily limit the amount of federal revenue it receives back to the 1992-98 federal ratio.
Today the rule requires for-profits to receive at least 10% of their revenue from nonfederal sources, and DeVry plans to increase it to 15%.
Regulatory scrutiny is not going away. Here’s another interesting thing to follow: The Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) is the organization that accredited ITT Tech and said they were fed up with the school’s noncompliance issues.
But ACICS may be terminated real soon as recommended by a federal panel, according to Inside Higher Ed.
“When we see schools provide extremely poor outcomes for students – or even commit fraud – while maintaining accreditation, that is a black mark on the entire field,” said Ted Mitchell, the under-secretary of education in the Inside Higher Ed article.
RISE NEWS is a grassroots journalism news organization that is working to change the way young people become informed and engaged in the world. You can write for us.
Cover Photo Credit: ITT Tech/ Facebook
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