Media Watch (Dec. 19, 2005 – Jan. 9, 2006)

"Media Watch" is a round-up of recent stories in the media about the University of Hartford, as well as significant stories about other local and peer institutions and news about trends and issues in higher education.

A book by Hillyer College alumnus Darius Mehri '86 about his experiences working for Toyota in Japan was favorably reviewed by The Wall Street Journal and The Christian Science Monitor. The book, Notes From Toyota-Land: An American Engineer in Japan, is based on a journal that Mehri kept during his three years at an upper-level Toyota Motor Group company in Japan. Mehri’s inside perspective on daily work life in Japan portrays what he describes as a surprisingly unhealthy work environment. Mehri officially launched his book and gave a lecture at the university in October 2005, at which time he was presented with an Outstanding Young Alumnus Award from Hillyer College. (Wall Street Journal, Jan. 3; Christian Science Monitor, Jan. 3)

The late Franklin S. Gross ’50, who was principal of Bacon Academy in Colchester and adjunct professor of psychology at the University of Hartford for 25 years, was profiled in an article in the New York Times titled "Neighbors, Family and Friends Who Made a Difference." The article, which covered the deaths of notable Connecticut residents in 2005, included Gross’s Hillyer College graduation photo from the 1950 yearbook. Gross died Sept. 25 at his home in Windsor. (New York Times, Jan. 1)

A New York Times story on efforts under way to bring more residents to downtown Hartford included a reference to the plan to have about 135 University of Hartford students living in apartments at the redeveloped, former Sage-Allen property. (New York Times, Jan. 4)

Vice President of Student Affairs Lee Peters was quoted in a story about the “extras” that college applicants are looking for when they apply for admission. From the university’s perspective, though, it is more important to help students improve their social and coping skills than to ensure that they can have the perks they want, Peters said. (Connecticut magazine, January ’06 issue)

University President Walter Harrison was among Hartford area dignitaries who gave their forecasts of the major trends that will shape this region’s industries in 2006. President Harrison wrote about the impact of efforts to make colleges and universities more accountable for the academic progress of their student-athletes. (Hartford Business Journal, Jan. 2)

The Engineering Applications Center (EAC) at the university’s College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture has received a 2005 Connecticut Quality Improvement Silver Award. A plaque was presented to Professor Devdas Shetty, dean of research and director of the EAC, and Research Engineer Claudio Campana at the 18th Annual Conference on Quality and Innovation in Westbrook. The award was presented to the EAC for the ambulatory suspension system for rehabilitation device that it developed. (Hartford Courant, Jan. 3; Hartford Business Journal, Jan. 2)

The "Accolades" section of the Hartford Business Journal featured a write-up and photograph from the presentation of a 2005 EDDY Award to Upper Albany Main Street, Inc. for its work to help improve the economic climate in that inner-city neighborhood by the Connecticut Economic Development Association and the Connecticut Economic Resource Center. (Hartford Business Journal, Jan. 2)

Matthew Bragon, 19, a sophomore at the University of Hartford, was featured in a story about a number of young people in Eastern Connecticut who have joined the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC). “My parents actually offered me money not to join ROTC,” he told the reporter, “But I feel this country has given me so much that it’s my duty to give back.” (Norwich Bulletin, Dec. 25)

William Major, an assistant professor of English at Hillyer College, wrote an opinion article urging people to take time to enjoy this state’s snowstorms instead of rushing to clear the snow and get to work. (Hartford Courant, Dec. 25)

Demetrios Giannaros, a professor of economics in the Barney School of Business and a Connecticut state legislator, was quoted in a story about the transfer of ownership of the former Norwich Hospital property from the state to the Town of Preston. Giannaros expressed concern about the valuation of the property, saying, “If a student presented this to me, I would fail him, quite frankly.” (The Day, New London, Dec. 28)

Goodspeed Musicals is working to support new musical theatre voices with two new initiatives, including the New Artists Program, a collaboration with The Hartt School. The program “offers new and emerging artists the opportunity to thoroughly work on their projects with the help of Goodspeed’s renowned resources and artistic environment, while affording senior students from The Hartt School real-world experience in new musical development and performing new musicals.” (Broadway World, Dec. 28; Playbill.com, Dec. 28; Hartford Courant, Dec. 29)

In its listing of the top stories of the year for Connecticut’s Jewish community, the Connecticut Jewish Ledger cited the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies at the university. The newspaper’s year-in-review issue also included a mention of the newspaper’s interview with Leslie Lindenauer, director of the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame and an assistant professor of history in the university’s College of Arts & Sciences. (Connecticut Jewish Ledger, Dec. 29)

In previewing an upcoming concert, Jazz Police magazine noted that Steve Davis, a faculty member at The Hartt School’s McLean Institute of Jazz, “is widely regarded as one of today’s leading improvisers on the trombone. His lyrical, hard-swinging style first gained him broad recognition during the 1990s while working with the bands of jazz legends Art Blakey, Jackie McLean, and Chick Corea’s acclaimed sextet Origin.” (Jazz Police magazine, Dec. 26)

University President Walter Harrison, head of the NCAA’s Committee on Academic Performance, said football, baseball and men’s basketball appear to be the Division I sports in greatest jeopardy of NCAA sanctions when the governing body releases an academic progress report next month. Speaking at an NCAA meeting, Harrison said individual schools that face penalties already have been notified, but they would not be identified until the complete progress rate list is finished. (Associated Press; Hartford Courant, Jan. 9)

President Harrison was quoted in newspaper stories across the country in connection with the NCAA’s unveiling of its new Graduation Success Rate (GSR) for student-athletes. The GSR “gives you a more accurate snapshot of how well your students are graduating,” said Harrison, who is chairman of the NCAA Executive Committee. (Seattle Times, Dec. 20; San Diego Union-Tribune, Dec. 20; Hartford Courant, Dec. 20)

Other News

The University of Connecticut will pay $2.5 million to settle allegations that it filed about 500 false federal grant applications between 1997 and 2004 and overbilled the federal government for work at two campus research centers—the Environmental Research Institute and the Booth Research Center. The settlement caps a three-year criminal investigation into the university’s actions. (Newsday, Jan. 9; Associated Press, Jan. 9)

Part of the fiscal burden created by hurricanes Katrina and Rita will be borne by college students repaying federal student loans, and even more by parents who borrow for them, under budget legislation expected to pass Congress in the coming weeks. (Bristol Press, Jan. 9)

University of Connecticut Professor David Miller is recording small group study sessions from his psychology classes and offering them as free podcasts, audio recordings that can be downloaded from the Internet and played on portable digital audio players. Podcasting is a tool that is emerging on campuses as a means of conveying information to a technologically savvy generation of young people. (Associated Press, Jan. 9)

Yale University and Trinity College were mentioned in a Washington Post story about how urban universities are becoming good neighbors. Yale has developed retail and office space, offered financial incentives to employees to buy neighborhood homes, and offers tutoring, internships and college advisers to local schools. Trinity College and its partners spent more than $100 million to turn an area beset by drive-by shootings and condemned buildings into a 16-acre Learning Corridor with four local schools. (Washington Post, Jan. 9)

Yale University officials projected a $25 million budget deficit for the 2006–07 fiscal year, but said they expect to close the gap by the end of the year without slashing expenditures. (Yale Daily News, Jan. 9)

Four students who were kicked out of Quinnipiac University after throwing an off-campus keg party last fall claim the university broke a federal law by announcing their dismissals to the press. The four seniors have filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court asking Quinnipiac to overturn its disciplinary actions and allow them to return to campus to finish their degrees. (Hartford Courant, Dec. 31)

Rising U.S. tuitions, increased tension between much of the world and the United States, and post-9/11-related immigration issues have all fed a decline in foreign student enrollment. Although there are more than 500,000 foreign students in U.S. universities, enrollment has dropped more than three percent since the 2001–02 academic year. The consequences are serious enough to lead President Bush to call for more federal spending on language training, the recruitment of foreign language experts to teach in the U.S. and a streamlining of immigration regulations to allow more students to study here. (USA Today, Jan. 6)

Today’s high school juniors and seniors likely grew up surrounded by “Baby on Board” stickers, bicycle helmets, television v-chips, and nanny cams. So-called “helicopter parents,” named for the way they hover over their children’s lives, are here to stay. As their Millennial Generation teens get ready for college, these parents are going to have an enduring presence in the college selection process. Higher education must adapt its marketing strategies to address a teen demographic that casts a parental shadow. (University Business magazine, Jan. 9)