U.S. Pays Commentator to Tout School Law
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The Bush administration paid a prominent commentator to promote the No Child Left Behind schools law to fellow blacks and to give the education secretary media time, records show.
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An independent commission yesterday proposed dramatic changes that would shake upAmerican public education in an effort to make the nation more competitive globally. The recommendations include authorizing school districts to pay companies to run all their schools; enrolling many students in college after the 10th grade; and paying teachers about $100,000 annually....
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The White House said Monday that the case of the Education Department paying a conservative commentator to plug its policies was an isolated incident, not a practice widely used by the Bush administration.
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A proposed settlement in a federal antitrust suit could raise NCAA limits on financial aid and allow schools to pay athletes for other expenses such as travel, health insurance and laundry.
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UK taxpayers should subsidise overseas students, argues a higher education body.
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THE HAGUE - Colin Powell, outgoing US Secretary of State, hinted yesterday that he might become a commentator on political and foreign affairs after he leaves his post next month.
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The Department of Health and Human Services said Friday that a third conservative columnist was paid to assist in promoting a Bush administration policy.
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Cheap and adaptable, pre-recorded lectures are drawing interest from educators in the US and Central America.
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Playing fair, or promoting religion? Parents, civil liberty advocates and suburban-Atlanta school officials are in federal court over the issue of warning stickers on science textbooks.
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A controversial figure takes charges of a State Department advisory panel.
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An expert in child law has warned that Irish schools could be sued by students who have been educated in sub-standard buildings, The Irish Times reported Monday.
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Justices' representing opposing factions on the court argued issues in front of student and national TV.
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Ending high school at 16, paying teachers according to merit, turning schools over to independent contractors  -  a new report on U.S. education envisions radical change
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A group of U.S. senators has introduced legislation that aims to improve how U.S. workers and industries compete against the rest of the world by pumping more money into math and science programs.
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(InfoWorld) - That explosive H-1B YouTube video offering advice on how to hire foreign workers instead of Americans has gotten the attention of U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), who called it evidence of abuse of the visa program. Both men want a federal investigation and are seeking answers from the law firm that posted the original video on YouTube. In a letter to U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, Grassley and Smith characterized the video as "exposing the blatant disregard for American workers and deliberate attempt to bring in cheaper foreign workers through the H-1B program." They also want the labor secretary to review the video and investigate "the law firm's unethical procedures and advice to clients." In the video, a person identified as Lawrence Lebowitz, an attorney at the firm Cohen & Grigsby PC in Pittsburgh, Penn., explains how U.S. companies can avoid hiring U.S. workers. "Our goal is clearly not to find a qualified and interested U.S. worker," said Lebowitz in the video. "And that, in a sense, sounds funny, but it's what we are trying to do here." Grassley and Smith also wrote Cohen & Grigsby, noting that "your firm's video advises employers how to hire only foreign labor, while making it nearly impossible for a qualified American worker to get the job.... While many companies insist that they are not participating in fraud, many are finding loopholes around government rules and regulations in order to bring in cheaper foreign workers. These loopholes lead to abuse that ultimately displace qualified Americans. The abuse is evident thanks to a video produced by your firm...." They also noted that the video "advises potential employers that they can fulfill" Labor Department hiring requirements "by advertising the position in places where they will not find the most qualified applicants. Your firm asserts that an employer can advertise in regional publications with limited circulation, while internally listing the job for a foreign worker. We would like you to please explain how this practice does not constitute outright discrimination based on nationality and why your firm so blatantly promotes this type of behavior." The law firm had taped a seminar on immigration law it held in May and then posted the video on YouTube, possibly for training purposes. The firm has not responded to repeated requests for comment this week. The two letters, dated today, were initially posted online at the University of California, Davis by Norman Matloff, a professor of computer science at the school and one of the longest-standing critics of the H-1B program. Matloff, in an e-mail said, "This 'YouTube-Gate' incident should be an eye opener for people in the press and in Congress who have been taking the industry lobbyists at face value all these years." The tape was brought to light by the Programmers Guild, a Summit, N.J.-based professional association after guild president Kim Berry said he was alerted to it by activists. He made a copy of an excerpt, added in some subtitles to annotate the tape, mixed in some music for dramatic effect, and posted the new version on YouTube. "My hope is that this proof on video will open some eyes to this sham," said Berry.
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The Supreme Court affirmed wide authority for school administrators to regulate students' speech today, allowing principals to punish pupils who make any in-school speech or demonstration that may "reasonably be viewed" as promoting illegal drug use.
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A European judge's comments raise the prospect of EU students getting student loans in the UK.