The Upwardly Mobile Barista – The Atlantic

The Upwardly Mobile Barista - The Atlantic. I commented. "I'm a former math professor. (I last taught at Wash. U. in St. Louis.) This article describes a wonderful and laudable effort by Starbucks's Howard Schultz. But it never asks the … [Continue reading]

College Counsel for the Poor – WSJ

College Counsel for the Poor - WSJ. I suggest this excellent article.  I commented. "In their insightful book, Paying for the Party - How College Maintains Inequality, Elizabeth Armstrong and Laura Hamilton, show that a major reason why many … [Continue reading]

NY Times Column on Value of a Liberal Education

Starving for Wisdom - NYTimes.com I also recommend this fine article or the short version. When I was a Freshman at Carnegie Tech (Now Carnegie-Mellon), we had to take a course in composition, followed by a course in literature.  I don't … [Continue reading]

Do the Richest (Universities) Have Enough? And A Contest for Grads:)

Rich colleges and universities are getting a lot richer, study finds - The Washington Post. You can explore further by clicking on "endowments" in the Tag Cloud (on the right).  I especially recommend this post for some financial facts that … [Continue reading]

Pressure to Please Students – It’s All Over the Place

Dan Laroque responded (on the WSJ site)to my previous post.  I think it is important because, I have only taught at 3 places.  From that and newspaper articles, books, and data, I deduce behavior elsewhere.  His comment adds to our … [Continue reading]

Chemistry Departments Try to Attract More Students by Retooling the Major – WSJ

Chemistry Departments Try to Attract More Students by Retooling the Major - WSJ. Good or Bad?  I'm not a chemist, so I don't know.  But I'm always concerned.  It really depends on the university. I wrote, " I don't know chemistry, but … [Continue reading]

Moved Quotes

I moved quotes from the Quotes page here and will delete the Quotes page. … [Continue reading]

Demand for Skilled-Worker Visas Exceeds Annual Supply – WSJ

Demand for Skilled-Worker Visas Exceeds Annual Supply - WSJ. My comment and explanation: "In a nutshell, these two items explain this story. 1. Washington U. in St. Louis, "make it the normal 'cookbook' course..so we don't have trouble … [Continue reading]

Thomas Jefferson Quoted from 1786

"...Preach...a crusade against ignorance...improve the law for educating the common people. Let our countrymen know that the people alone can protect us against...evil, and that...kings, priests and nobles...will rise up among us if we leave the … [Continue reading]