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| Volume IV | Issue 62| 04/25/2008 |
The House passed a bill intended to help small businesses commercialize research projects. Important to the higher education community, the House bill did not include an increase in the set-aside for small business research that would have reduced peer-reviewed funds at the major federal research agencies. A bill intended to reverse a Supreme Court decision that limits the amount of time workers have to file a wage discrimination case stalled in the Senate on Wednesday, with Democrats warning that the vote will return as a campaign issue this fall.
The House is expected to clear legislation that would bar genetic discrimination, while the Senate could consider a long-awaited reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration. House floor action is also possible if leading Agriculture Committee members reach final agreement on the Farm Bill.
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Government Seeks to Buy Student Loans
New York Times
The Bush administration is proposing that Congress authorize it to buy billions of dollars in federal student loans to make sure the nation’s credit crunch does not block borrowing for higher education. The proposal, outlined in a letter to be sent Wednesday to members of Congress from the Education and Treasury Departments and the Office of Management and Budget, endorses a provision in a bill passed by the House this month.
» Full Story
Bush Administration Concludes It Needs Congressional Approval to Aid Student-Loan Companies
Chronicle of Higher Ed
The Bush administration called off internal deliberations over a bailout plan for student-loan companies after concluding it did not have the authority to act on its own, instead endorsing a Congressional proposal that would allow the education secretary to purchase loans from private lenders. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, after weeks of discussions within the administration, joined her colleagues at the White House and Treasury Department in telling Congress that they see no legal option for putting in place an industry-backed proposal to use the Federal Financing Bank to supply funds to cash-strapped student-loan companies.
» Full Story
Graduate Education and the Public Good
Inside Higher Ed
At a time when skepticism about higher education and its need for public support edges ever higher, association leaders appear to be settling on a branding strategy of trying to convince people that colleges deserve an increasing share of resources. Three years ago, the American Council on Education, which represents all of academe, along with other groups kicked off a campaign that framed higher education as not just a private investment but a public good. Last year, a report from the College Board took the same tack, asserting that college graduates are more engaged citizens and make healthier decisions than those who don’t earn a diploma.
» Full Story
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Larger Skin Lesions More Likely to Be Melanoma
Healthcentral.com
Skin lesions larger than six millimeters in diameter are more likely than smaller lesions to be melanoma skin cancer, a new study suggests. In this study, researchers at the New York University School of Medicine, New York City, studied more than 1,300 patients undergoing biopsies for 1,657 pigmented skin lesions or markings suggestive of melanoma. Of those lesions, 804 (48.5 percent) were larger than six millimeters in diameter and 138 (8.3 percent) were diagnosed as melanoma.
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Happy Earth Day, NYU: Good Job Going Green
Washington Square News
In honor of Earth Day, which is today, we would like to applaud NYU for its dedication over the past few years to green efforts. NYU has taken many environmentally-friendly actions, such as purchasing wind power credits for electricity usage - a first for a university of its size.
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Researchers Identify New Class of Photoreceptors, Pointing to New Ways Sights and Smells are Regulated
Science News Daily
The identification of a new class of photoreceptors in the retina of fruit flies sheds light on the regulation of the pigments of the eye that confer color vision, researchers at New York University's Center for Developmental Genetics report in a new study appearing in the Public Library of Science's journal, PloS Biology.
» Full Story
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April 28, 2008
4:00 - 5:30 pm
Tishman Auditorium, NYU Law School's Vanderbilt Hall
40 Washington Square South
April 29, 2008
6:30 - 8:30 am
Jurow Lecture Hall, NYU Silver Center
100 Washington Square East
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Washington Post
Senate Republicans yesterday blocked legislation to make it easier for women and others alleging discrimination to sue their employers over unequal pay, blasting the measure as an attempt by Democrats to score political points before the fall presidential campaign. The vote was delayed until 6 p.m. so the Democratic presidential contenders could make it back after a day of campaigning in Indiana. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and Barack Obama (Ill.) gave showcase speeches on the Senate floor.
New York Times
The Senate Ethics Committee admonished Senator Pete V. Domenici, Republican of New Mexico, on Thursday for creating an “appearance of impropriety” by telephoning the top federal prosecutor in New Mexico at home shortly before the 2006 midterm elections to ask whether an indictment was imminent in a politically sensitive case.
Washington Post
Capping 13 years of political wrangling, the Senate today is slated to pass landmark legislation that would prevent employers and health insurance companies from discriminating against people on the basis of genetic test results. The House and Senate have passed similar legislation on several occasions over the years, but never in the same congressional session.
Halt U.S. Educational Erosion - U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
On Tuesday, I met with the presidents of some of America's most prestigious universities to discuss ways to improve our nation's global competitiveness. There is a growing consensus that America's future prosperity is threatened by an erosion in our educational capabilities. Compared with children in other countries, our nation's students are underperforming in the vitally important fields of science, technology, engineering and math. These are areas of expertise that spur creativity and new technologies, which are essential for economic growth.
Chronicle of Higher Education
In the past decade, universities have increasingly searched for ways to derive income from the intellectual property produced by their research centers. Biotechnology, usually commercialized in collaboration with the private sector, has been among the most fruitful university-based research endeavors, for the public as well as universities.
Inside Higher Ed
In 1971, a lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court that would have a profound impact on the way American schools are funded. Serrano v. Priest was the first in a wave of elementary and secondary school finance cases that would touch nearly every state in the nation and continues to this day.
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