Acting Dean of the College Sylvia Spears and Provost Carol Folt discussed the College's voluntary reaccreditation process, overseen by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education, at Tuesday's Student Assembly meeting in Collis 101. The reaccreditation committee, comprised of nine administrators from New England colleges and universities, will be on campus Nov. 14-17 to speak with undergraduate and graduate students, administrators and faculty, according to Folt. The committee will host an hour-long open forum for students to voice their opinions about the College. The campus visit is the culmination of two years of work by administrators and faculty, who presented a 100-page self-study report to the committee, Spears said. The College expects to receive reaccreditation within several months of the visit, according to Folt. Student Body President Eric Tanner '11 also previewed a brief Homecoming video, designed to show students the importance of Homecoming not only to the College but also to the community. The video is being distributed to students via BlitzMail this week.
An education initiative called Project Win-Win is recruiting stud-ents who dropped out of college to return to their would-be alma maters to graduate if they have completed degree requirements or are close to doing so, The Chronicle of Higher Education reported. The project includes 35 colleges in six states and includes both community colleges and four-year institutions. Supporters believe that it could bring the United States closer to being the country with the highest proportion of its residents possessing postsecondary degrees in the world by 2020. Many institutions have faced roadblocks students often are skeptical of the project or unwilling to participate, and colleges cannot always locate students who qualify for the program, The Chronicle reported. The project has led to 600 associate degrees being awarded and identified around 1,600 potential recipients in the past seven months, according to The Chronicle.
Four Loko alcoholic energy drinks are being scrutinized after nine Central Washington University students were hospitalized and dozens became ill after consuming the beverage, NPR reported. Since last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been investigating whether caffeinated alcohol products are safe, although according to a spokesman the study is "still underway," NPR reported. Ken Brigs, head of physical education and public health at CWU, compared a can of Four Loko which is 12 percent alcohol by volume to a six-pack of beer and five cups of coffee, NPR reported. In a statement by the producer of Four Loko, Phusion Projects, representatives said the company supports limiting underage drinking but does not believe that the product itself should be banned because other illegal substances were involved the incident.
