Brown and White Vol. 118 no. 3

              Possible talks to reinstall a student escort service
By ERIC FEATHER
Lehigh is opening discus­sions about starting a voluntary student-led escort service to walk students home at night.
The goal is to instill more comfort in the student body and reduce the chances of students being robbed or harmed.
“In light of recent happenings, it is imperative to assist police in improving campus safety,” said Taha Haque, ’10, founder of the program.
The idea of a student-led es­cort service has gained support from both the university and the Lehigh police department. A ser­vice like the proposed one existed at Lehigh a few years ago, but ended due to a lack of interest.
The increase in criminal activ­ity has motivated students, the administration and LUPD to con­sider re-starting the program.
“Thus far, we have had a lot of support and cooperation from the university and LUPD,” Haque said. “Since the service will be completely run by students, the LUPD has opened up the pos­sibility of offering hands-on train­ing in order to give each volun­teer the proper skill sets to handle given situations.”
Hacque discussed with Ed­ward Shupp, Lehigh chief of police, and President Alice Gast a support gap that needed to be filled from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. Wednesday through Friday.
“The concern for more cam­pus safety has been brought up by students, and it’s something we look forward to discussing with them in the upcoming days,” Shupp said. “But nothing is certain.”
The plan states there would be two student escorts on patrol during these nights either in their cars, on bikes or on foot. Each escort would be required to wear a recognizable uniform, including
See ESCORT Page 2
Obama proposes student loan plan
Vol. 118 No. 4
Friday, February 5, 2010
‘All the Lehigh News First’
THE BROWN AND WHITE
Lehigh University’s Student Newspaper Founded in 1894
Women’s basketball to take on American
Page 12
Students on Obama: one year later
www.thebrownandwhite.com
What’s the state of our union?
Page 5
LIFESTYLE
Plugged in to party
B&W photo by STEPHEN JABAUT
Lehigh University Technology in Service (LUTIS) held an open house on the Hill last Saturday from noon to midnight to attract new members and showcase its community.
By ALEX KADIS
In the State of the Union ad­dress last week, President Obama confirmed he would push the U.S. Congress to make changes in the structure of the student loan industry. The president has prom­ised to alter the way student loans are dolled out since his campaign for election, but many of his plans will not come to fruition until the passage of the 2010 fiscal year budget.
According to WhiteHouse.gov, the proposed budget would shift federal funds for student loans from “wasteful subsidies to banks” directly to students “on an efficient basis that uses private and nonprofit companies to deliver services.” The president’s plan would also increase funding for Pell Grants, which are grants from Congress based on financial need. According to Linda Bell, director of financial aid, approximately 13 percent of Lehigh undergraduate students receive Pell Grants, and approximately 52 percent of the recently graduated class used fed­eral loan programs.
The plan would also lower the cap on federal student loans from 15 percent to 10 percent of discre­tionary income. The repayment period for loans would also be re­duced from 25 years to 20 years, and after that, the loan would be forgiven. In addition, public sec­tor employees would have their debt forgiven in 10 years.
Critics of the budget say the proposed plan would unfairly tax those who choose not to attend college. The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, is cau­tious of the White House’s defini­tion of “public service” work, wor­rying the new policy could lead to more graduates seeking big shot salaries in the public sector. The foundation believes the higher education industry has not and will continue to not cut costs.
“As college costs continue to rise, future students may be forced to take out larger loans to pay for the increasingly expensive college bill. That means more college debt would be thrust onto the backs of taxpayers,” the Heritage Foundation’s Web site says.
A proponent of the new plan, the Institute for College Access & Success, says Income-Based Repayment (IBR) will help many students with financial difficulties overcome loans. The proposal would increase the number of stu­dents eligible for IBR and would be helpful to those who already qualify.
“IBR is targeted to those with high student debt burdens relative to their income and can lower monthly payments by hundreds of dollars in many cases, helping borrowers avoid default and pay down their debt in a manageable way,” the Institute for College Ac­cess & Success Web site says.
Bell said Obama’s pledge to change the structure of loans is not “exactly news to me at this point.” If the Department of Edu­cation does decide to “end” the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP), Lehigh and all other schools would “all need to participate in direct lending,” she said.
By JOHANA BHUIYAN
The Harvard Graduate School of Education will offer a new doctoral degree in Education Leadership starting in August 2010 for the first time in 74 years.
The degree will be comprised of a three-year course and will initially be offered to 25 candidates. According to the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s (HGSE) Web site, each of these candidates will receive “a full tu­ition funding package.”
The program aims to produce a new breed of leaders with experience and education in three different and al­together separate disciplines. Harvard’s Graduate School of Education hopes these leaders will put this experience to use and pave the way for public policy educational reform.
In an interview with The New York Times, Kathleen McCartney, dean of HGSE, emphasized the importance of creating a tuition-free program in order to broaden the potential pool of candidates.
“We can’t do that unless we remove all the barriers to studying here,” she said in the interview.
This doctoral program is the “first of its kind” and will include “ground-breaking curriculum,” according to the HGSE’s Web site.
But other colleges may be quick to follow.
Iveta Silova, assistant professor at Lehigh’s College of Education, commented on the benefits of such a program.
“A capstone-type project, which will substitute a dis­sertation, promises to be a valuable hands-on experience, which will allow doctoral candidates to work with some of the most effective and innovative education institutions across the country,” Silova said.
Silova also said the innovative structure of the program is essential to the success of education reform.
“Its interdisciplinary effort is an asset, and its practice-oriented learning is an advantage.
“In particular, interdisciplinary perspectives will cer­tainly broaden students’ perspectives into how politics, business and law all play a crucial part in education deci­sion-making,” she said.
The program will taught by faculty members from the HGSE, the Harvard Business School and the Harvard
Harvard aims for education reform with new degree
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