As an education financial aid adviser, Kevin Fudge hears a lot of interesting and sometimes very sad stories: Families struggling to help put their kids through college and weighing myriad financial aid options; new students trying to make sense of financial aid documentation that can get so confusing it blurs the definitions of grants and loans are just two examples.
Donald Woods wants to be a documentary filmmaker someday. Although he has film-making equipment, ambition and a growing knowledge base, right now he’d like a car. The 22-year-old student at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’ Greenspun School of Communications uses the bus to get to school from his east valley home, which sometimes can be a challenge, he admits. But online courses are helping him march toward his graduation goal, which should happen in about a year and a half.
Few decisions that parents can make are as nerve-racking as settling on which school their child will attend.
As area school rooms bulge with more and more students and teachers squeeze into fuller classrooms, some parents are opting out of the norm, choosing a well-researched alternative instead.
In one of his campaign speeches, President Barack Obama said, “The single most important thing we can do is make sure we’ve got a world class education system for everybody. That is a prerequisite for prosperity. It is an obligation that we have for the next generation.”
Two months ago, the following paragraph started my weekly Career Coach column that has appeared every Sunday in this newspaper for the past nine years.
Danny Crinson describes himself as “bizarrely motivated” and has the resume to prove it. At 24, the Scotland native already has nearly a decade of work experience under his belt split between the banking and hospitality fields.
Getting accepted to a college or university is one thing, paying for it is another. These days students and families can be particularly wary about the cost of higher education in the wake of a recession that has seen tuition rates rise across the country. Top that off with some of the misconceptions about financial aid, not to mention a fairly detailed application process, and it can all seem like an incredibly daunting process.
Entering college just out of high school, leaving behind a structured life of school, family and friends, can be tough for any young adult, but for those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, the challenges can be compounded.
No less than President Barack Obama emphasized the importance of a degree when he told students at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas last year that “college education should not be considered a luxury but an economic necessity.” Echoing his thoughts, Gov. Brian Sandoval, in his recent State of the State address, noted that “education is the foundation of economic growth.”
Nevada’s high school graduation rates remain among the lowest in the nation. Preliminary findings released in November by the Education Department put Nevada’s graduation rate at 62 percent for the 2010- 11 academic year. In contrast, Iowa, Vermont and Wisconsin are near 90 percent.
A policy change championed by the American Civil Liberties Union means that Clark County public school computers no longer will block students from informational websites on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues.
Last week’s raised voices over the contract renewal of high-paid consultant Ken Turner weren’t an issue Thursday when the Clark County School Board quickly approved the rehiring without debate, bringing Turner’s total earnings to $750,000 over three years.
Clark County School District Superintendent Dwight Jones has created an assistant superintendent position to oversee a new English Language Learner department.
One hour after Dale Darcas got word that his father had died on Father’s Day weekend in 2012, he was told that the nonprofit he served as executive director for two years, Caring 4 Kids was being put to rest, too.
