A Fattah college-prep program failed to thrive here, study says

MAYORAL CANDIDATE Chaka Fattah touts the national GEAR UP program as his crowning legislative achievement - proof of his commitment to education and his ability to get a major bill through a Republican Congress.

Since 1999, the legislation has provided roughly $2 billion in grants to help low-income middle-school students go to college by offering them more advanced courses, providing tutoring, taking them on college visits, paying for their SATs and educating them about financial aid.

But a review of the first six years of GEAR UP - which stands for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs - in Philadelphia raises questions about how effective the program has been for kids locally.

The study - by West Philadelphia nonprofit Research for Action - found that although many GEAR UP participants did take advanced math classes and visited colleges, they also suffered from high dropout rates and were often academically unprepared for college.

Fattah defended GEAR UP, saying it had increased the number of students in algebra and geometry classes - both considered key to college attendance - and helped educate students about their college options.

"I think this study shows that there were significant increases in college awareness," Fattah said.

GEAR UP is being phased out by the school district because the district has been unable to get continued federal funding. The Department of Education described the fight for merit-based grants as "very competitive."

The local GEAR UP program received about $37 million in federal grant money between 1999 and 2006, and served up to 18,000 students each year. Per-student funding started at about $800 a head, but decreased as the number of participants grew.

Even though the program is ending, some aspects of it - such as paying for the SAT and taking students on college visits - have been adopted by the school district.

Lauded as an ambitious educational effort, GEAR UP was supported and praised by President Clinton when enacted. Fattah based GEAR UP on small, private initiatives such as "Say Yes to Education," in which philanthropist George Weiss promised a group of inner-city Philly kids free college education.

The premise is that if low-income kids know college can be a reality, they are more likely to stay in school, graduate and go on to higher education.

Karen Boran, director of research and evaluation for Chicago GEAR UP, said GEAR UP can be crucial to a child's future.

"If a kid doesn't drop out of school and manages to take more rigorous coursework, and they go on to [college] . . . you're changing people's lives," said Boran, who is based at Northeastern Illinois University.

Still, Boran and other GEAR UP directors said they face an uphill battle because the program deals with the most at-risk kids when they have already reached middle-school age. They also said that six years was a very short time to affect any real cultural change.

"It doesn't surprise me that we continue to struggle," said Laurie Ballering, GEAR UP director in Houston. "The whole system needs to look at itself and say, 'How are we going to make it work?' "

According to the study by Research for Action - an education-evaluation group founded in 1992 that lists Pew Charitable Trusts and the Annenberg Foundation as funding sources - the first six years of GEAR UP in Philadelphia were plagued by poor organization with the school district. The students suffered from high dropout rates and low standardized-test scores.

"Data on student outcomes are mixed, but indicate that many GEAR UP students will not be academically well prepared for college," the report states.

Donna Frisby-Greenwood, director of the School District's Office of College and Career Awareness, said some of the organizational problems were due to the state takeover of the schools, which caused administrative changes at many of the high schools and middle schools in the GEAR UP program.

The report did say that GEAR UP had increased the number of students visiting colleges and the number taking the PSAT and SAT exams. Data on whether GEAR UP had increased the number of students attending college were not available, but reviewers said it appeared likely.

"I absolutely think that there are students in those schools that went to college because of GEAR UP," said Frisby-Greenwood. "Did we see the sweeping reform or change we had hoped? No."

GEAR UP programs in Chicago and Houston, which did win new federal grants, also saw only moderate improvements in test scores. Like Philadelphia, those programs increased the number of students in advanced classes and the number going on college visits.

Fattah said he recognizes that the program needs tweaking and expects to reauthorize a new version of the program. The revised GEAR UP would start working with kids at a younger age and follow them into the first year of college, which can be a vulnerable time.

He also said that he has tried to further help Philadelphia schoolchildren go on to college through his CORE Philly scholarship program, which provides "last dollar" grants for city students.

"There's no person in this city who has put more kids in college or graduate school than me, period," he said.

Although the Philadelphia School District's funding for GEAR UP has run out, about 7,500 students who were already in the program have continued to get GEAR UP support under grants awarded to the state. But the district said the state-funded GEAR UP will end locally next year.

The district applied for new six-year federal funding in 2005 and 2006 and did not make the cut either time. Applications must show the need for the programming and the quality of the services offered.

Fattah said that the lack of renewed funding was not his fault.

"This is a competitive program," Fattah said. "There was nothing in the GEAR UP legislation that suggested that original grantees would be refunded." *

Beasiswa Pascasarjana Islamic Jerusalem Studies

Islamic Research Academy (ISRA) is pleased to announce the continuation of it scholarships for Young Postgraduate Students in Islamicjerusalem Studies.

This year, there are a number of full and partial scholarships for young postgraduate students wishing to study full-time for an M.Litt. in Islamicjerusalem Studies at Al-Maktoum Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies- University of Aberdeen. The scholarship is only for one year beginning from September 2007.

Winners of the scholarship will undertake the taught full-time M.Litt. course in Islamicjerusalem Studies at Al-Maktoum Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies in Dundee.

These prestigious scholarship schemes are serious efforts on the part of ISRA to prepare a team of scholars in this new field of inquiry, and a great human investment to prepare an academic team of young scholars as specialists in Islamicjerusalem Studies.


The full scholarship will cover the full student tuition fee and will also include a fixed monthly sum to cover living expenses (£500). Applicants for the scholarships will normally be required to hold at least a second upper Honours degree (2.1) in an appropriate discipline and the scholarships would particularly suit recent graduates who can show potential to excel.

CRITERIA FOR APPLYING

To apply for ISRA’s scholarship the candidate must normally fit the following criteria:

Candidates will normally be required to hold at least a second upper Honours degree (2.1) in an appropriate discipline.
Any applicant whose first language is not English is required to have an IELTS score of 6.5 or above (including a score of 6 in the writing section); or equivalent (e.g. TOFEL 580)
The candidate must be able to demonstrate evidence of interest in Islamicjerusalem Studies. This can be shown by submitting three copies of any relevant academic works including published or unpublished papers, books, manuscripts, monographs, etc.
As the scholarships would particularly suit young recent graduates, applicants should be no more than 30 years old (ie: born after the year 1977)
Administrative contact and how to apply:
Applications can be made by submitting (non returnable):

A letter to the Secretary-General of the Islamic Research Academy explaining why the candidate should receive the scholarship.
Al-Maktoum Institute/University of Aberdeen application Form for postgraduate studies (Fully completed and signed).
Copies of degrees certificates and transcripts.
Evidence of interest in the field.
Written references from two academic referees.
Three copies of the candidate’s Curriculum Vitae (CV).
A copy of the candidate’s birth certificate.
Proof of English language proficiency, i.e. IELTS certificate.
Further information and an application form can be found at: http://www.isra.org.uk/english/scholA.html

All applications should be submitted to:

Secretary General
Islamic Research Academy (ISRA)
124 Blackness Road, Dundee, DD1 5PE
United Kingdom

DISCLAIMER:
All submissions will be referred to the Scholarships Committee at the Islamic Research Academy who will select the award winners. The Committee has the right to hold back the scholarships in the event that there is no suitable candidate(s). The decision of the committee is final, with no review procedures. Successful candidates will be expected to sign an agreement with the sponsor and start studying the full-time taught Masters course in September 2007; subject to them receiving an unconditional offer of acceptant from the University of Aberdeen to study at Al-Maktoum Institute.

Beasiswa Riset Rockefeller

USA Fellowship for International Researchers, Rockefeller Archive Center

Invitation for Applications, Rockefeller Archive Center / ARNOVA, Fellowship for International Researchers

The Rockefeller Archives Center and Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action [ARNOVA] invite applications for a first International Research Fellowship. The purpose of this fellowship is to encourage and provide support for attendance at ARNOVA’s Annual Conference, and research using the Rockefeller Archive Center [RAC], by scholars from outside the U.S. and Canada. The fellowship award will provide $4000 intended to cover the costs of travel to and attendance at the ARNOVA Conference, and to the RAC for a time of research at the Archives.


Qualifications

Applicants must demonstrate that they have a scholarly research project that will benefit from attending the ARNOVA Conference and requires research at the Rockefeller Archive Center . They must also have a record of prior scholarship, which may be a thesis or dissertation. Applicants must contact the RAC at least one month prior to applying for the fellowship so that they can clearly identify in the application substantial archival materials that are related to their research project. (Note: Information about the RAC and its collections can be found at http://archive.rockefeller.edu. )


Expectations

Applicants must plan on attending the entire ARNOVA Conference. (Conference registration fees will be waived.) In addition, they must plan on spending at least three days at the RAC for the purpose of conducting their research. The fellowship is expected to cover the full costs of travel, lodging, meals and incidentals. (No supplemental funds will be available.) They must also be able to obtain a travel visa for the dates of the ARNOVA Conference (November 15-17, 2007) and time spent at RAC. Half of the award will be provided two months prior to the dates of the conference, with the balance to be paid at the completion of the conference and the time of research.

Applications

Applicants should send a letter of no more than four pages describing the research project they will pursue, its purposes, and the methodology they will employ. This should also describe how participation in the ARNOVA Conference and use of the RAC will help move this project forward. (As noted above, contact with the RAC prior to sending in the application is necessary.) They should also include records of prior scholarly accomplishments – that is, graduate transcripts, certification of their advanced degree, or the like. They may include a short sample of scholarly writing demonstrating their research abilities.

Completed applications must be postmarked no later than May 15, 2007, and received at ARNOVA’s offices by June 1, 2007. The fellowship winner will be notified no later than July 1, 2007. Applications and supporting materials should be addressed to:

ARNOVA, RAC Fellowship Program
340 W. Michigan St., Canal Level – Suite A, Indianapolis, IN, 46202.

PhD position in Ceramics Science Germany

Germany PhD position in Ceramics Science at Darmstadt University of Technology

A PhD position (Doktorandenstellen ) is available at the Materials Science Department of Darmstadt University of Technology (Germany). The successful candidate will integrate a young research team focusing on the development of new ceramic processes in a dynamic and international work environment.

The drying is a necessary step in the manufacturing of ceramic layers when using particle suspensions. The evaporation of solvent induces shrinkage and stresses in the drying layer, which can create cracks and delamination from the substrate. Experimental work encompasses thin film processing and in-situ measurement of physical and mechanical properties by means of innovative techniques during drying. The experimental data will be used to develop a predictive model of drying.

TOEFL, IELTS, GMAT, GRE, SAT Preparation Material. Its Free!!


Ideal candidates have a good background both in materials science and mechanics.

High motivation, ability to work in team but also autonomy, curiosity, very good experimental skills as well as interest in theoretical approaches are expected.

This project will include cooperative work in Germany and abroad.

Fluency in English is required, knowledge of German is appreciated.

Salary is funded by the German Research Organization (DFG) for a duration of 3 years, at the rate of 5/6 Bat IIa.

Envisioned start time: flexible, from May 2007

Darmstadt University of Technology specifically encourages female candidates to apply with a view towards increasing the proportion of female scientists. Handicapped persons with comparable qualifications receive preferential status.

Interested candidates should send their application per mail (in English or German, including a cover letter indicating their motivation to apply for this position, detailed CV, certificates, a short summary of research, references…). E-mail applications will not be considered.

Contact

Dr. Olivier Guillon
Adresse: Technische Universität Darmstadt FB Materialwissenschaft, FG NAW, Petersenstr. 23 Ort Darmstadt Postleitzahl 64287
Telefon: 06154-166396
E-Mail: guillon@ceramics.tu-darmstadt.de
Website: http:// www.tu-darmstadt.de/ fb/ms/fg/naw/

Beasiswa Marie Curie Summer School

France - Marie Curie Summer School 2007 on Knowledge Based Materials, Partial Melts and Amorphous Materials
The deadline for applications for funding for this year’s Summer School is April 30th.

Following on from the successful 2005 Marie Curie Summer School on Single-Phase Materials, held in Hürtgenwald, Germany, and the 2006 school on Polyphase and Composite Materials in Älvdalen, Sweden are pleased to announce this year’s Summer School, which focuses on Partial Melts and Amorphous Materials. This year’s event will be hosted by Dr Mark Jessell from
the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, and will run from the 20th to the 30th of August, 2007.

The full presentations of the 2005 & 2006 summer schools, together with information on the 2007 event, including a list of speakers and the online application form may be found at:

http://www.materialsknowledge.org

Details of the eligibility requirements to receive one of the 30 EU fully funded places, and fees for non-eligible participants can be found at the above address. Research scientists not eligible for EU funding are also most welcome to apply on a fee-paying basis and should use the same application form.

Contact:
Mark Jessell
IRD LMTG UMR 5563
14 avenue Edouard Belin
31400 TOULOUSE
Tel: +33 (0)5 61 33 26 47
www.lmtg.obs-mip.fr/user/mjessell (home)
www.tectask.org (IUGS Tectask)
www.materialsknowledge.org (Marie Curie Summer Schools)

1 PostDoc position in Security Perimeter Virtualization

One PostDoc position in IT Security Perimeter Virtualization,
University
of Twente, The Netherlands

The Distributed and Embedded Systems and Information Systems research
groups of the University of Twente collaborate with a number of
industrial partners in the VISPER (http://visper.eemcs.utwente.nl)
project.

In this project, we investigate modelling and developing a
virtual security perimeter across the digital, physical, and
organisational domains. We will investigate how re-perimeterisation
affects the digital domain (where data moves from organisation to
organisation through networks), the social domain (where one
individual may play a variety of roles in cooperating organisations)
and the physical domain (where appliances such as mobile phones and
laptops move around). We are currently looking for one PostDoc (three
years) who will investigate the linkage between the policies and the
mechanisms across the three domains (vacancy number 06/127).

What we look for and what we offer:

You have completed a PhD or are about to complete one, in an area
that
is relevant to our research, e.g. computer
science, software engineering, or operations research. You like
working in a team and have intellectual curiosity and knowledge of
one
or more of the following topics: information systems, distributed
systems, security, decision support techniques. Your main
responsibility will be to carry out research, but you will be given
the opportunity to acquire some teaching experience.

We offer both our PostDoc researchers the opportunity
to broaden their knowledge by joining international exchange
programs,
by participating in national and international conferences and
workshops, and by visiting other research institutes and universities
worldwide.

The monthly salary of a PostDoc starts at EURO 2708 per year and is
negotiable.

Information and application

More information can be obtained from:
- prof.dr. Pieter Hartel (pieter.hartel@utwente.nl),
web site http://dies.cs.utwente.nl ).
- prof.dr. Roel Wieringa (roel.wieringa@utwente.nl),
web site http://is.cs.utwente.nl)
Candidates are invited to send their application together with
curriculum vitae, marks transcripts, and the names and addresses of
two referees by email to the address is_jobs@cs.utwente.nl before
April 15, 2007.

The Computer Science department of the Faculty of Electrical
Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science (EEMCS) at the
University of Twente (UT) is one of the largest academic institutions
in Computer Science in the Netherlands, with 220 faculty members
and 1200 students. We provide courses in Technical Computer Science,
Business Information Technology, and Telematics. In addition, the
department contributes to Computer Science teaching within other
academic programs. The research of the department is part of the
multidisciplinary research institute Centre for Telematics and
Information Technology (http://www.ctit.utwente.nl).

New Zealand Int'l Doctoral Research Scholarships (NZIDRS) 2007

New Zealand International Doctoral Research Scholarships
http://www.newzealandeducated.com/scholarships

Funded by the New Zealand Government and administered by Education
New Zealand, the New Zealand International Doctoral Research
Scholarships(NZIDRS) are a significant educational opportunity.

World Class Opportunity

New Zealand institutions provide the opportunity to study under
internationally recognised academics and researchers in a wide range
of disciplines. Qualifications attained from a New Zealand university
rank with the best internationally. New Zealand degrees have a
reputation globally for being practical, modern and desirable. In
some niche areas, such as biotechnology, forensic science and marine
engineering, New Zealand degrees are acknowledged as world-leading.
Students educated in the New Zealand education environment are
earning a reputation as a new breed of innovative thinkers and are
enjoying success the world over.

Over the next two years the scholarship programme will be expanded
progressively. From 2007, up to 100 doctoral and 100 undergraduate
students will be studying under the programme.

Entitlements under the New Zealand International Doctoral Research
Scholarships are as follows:

Full tuition fees for three (3) years of full-time doctoral study
NZ$18,000 per annum living allowance (NZ$1500 per month)
Up to NZ$600 per annum health insurance allowance
NZ$2000 (across 3 year tenure) travel allowance. This is intended to
be used for conference attendance and field research
NZ$800 (across 3 year tenure) book and thesis allowance
NZ$500 One-off establishment allowance. Only to be paid to those
students who are travelling to NZ specifically to take up the NZIDRS.
No student already located in NZ is eligible to receive this amount
Additional funds are not available to support accompanying dependants
Please note :

The New Zealand International Doctoral Research Scholarships (NZIDRS)
are open to all International Students meeting the eligibility
criteria.
Prospective candidates are advised to start corresponding with
academics in the relevant departments of New Zealand universities
regarding the availability of appropriate supervision well in advance
of submitting their application papers. Evidence that supervision is
available is required as a part of the NZIDRS application process.
Please see the 'NZIDRS Terms & Conditions' for further information.

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In 2007, NZIDRS Applications will be accepted until 5pm on Monday the
16th of July (NZ Time).

No applications will be considered by the Selection Panel if they
arrive after the stated close date.

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Should you have any questions regarding the New Zealand International
Docotral Research Scholarships, please contact the Education New
Zealand Scholarships Manager at scholarships@educationnz.org.nz

http://www.newzealandeducated.com/scholarships