• No minimum amount for qualification: When you want to take out a debt consolidation loan from a private lending institution they will ask you for the minimum loan amount without incurring which you can never take out such a master loan. But this is not the same with the direct debt consolidation loan. You can take out the consolidation loan with any amount of money that you’ve accumulated on your multiple student loans.

• Various repayment options: Yes, most students look for the flexibility in the repayment options before choosing a debt consolidation loan. When you take out a direct debt consolidation loan, you may be offered different loan repayment options among which the most common are Income Based Repayment Plan and Income Contingent Repayment Plan. The student borrower can even switch from one repayment plan to another according to their present financial needs.

• A single monthly payment: You just have to make a single monthly payment towards the debt consolidation loan. It becomes tough when you have to split your payments among different lenders and you can effortlessly forget all these hassles when you consolidate through a direct debt consolidation loan. You just have to write a single check to the debt consolidation loan and also remember a single date.

• The monthly payments will be reduced: The monthly payments as the interest rate on the debt consolidation loan will be much lower than what you were paying on the individual student loans. The repayment term of the loan will also be extended so that the borrower can repay the loan without having to fall back on all the other monthly debt obligations.

Therefore, when you’re drowning in high interest debt mire, you should take out a direct debt consolidation loan so that you can easily combine your payments and live off the cycle of debt. However, manage your finances and make timely payments on the debt consolidation loan in order to avoid hurting your credit score.

Tesoriero decided to turn her frustration into inspiration. The motivation behind Tesoriero’s teaching stemmed from wanting a deeper understanding of her own disability.  Driven to find the answers, in college, she learned sign language and studied audiology, speech pathology, and linguistics.  She soon grew to love teaching others, which eventually led her to become a teacher and later brought her to Department of Education in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services.

She attended Columbia University’s Teachers College, studying Deaf Education. Upon graduating she went on to teach at a state school for the deaf in Brooklyn, later moving to the New York City Public School system to teach at the city’s only public school for the deaf.

“I always wanted to share music with my students – even though some skeptics would ask why I would want to teach music to deaf children. It seemed almost ironic, but my students love dance, vibration, and music. Everyone loves music!”

While teaching, Tesoriero directed the school musical, “Free to Be You and Me”, striking a chord with both the hearing and deaf students of the school, as it “brought the whole community together” with a compilation of songs, poetry, skits and dance. Based on the book by Marlo Thomas and Friends, the essence of the play focused upon promoting individuality and comfort with your identity.

“It was a showcase of everyone’s talents, and the students loved it. I played the piano while the children sang, signed and danced. It gave these children a sense of confidence that some weren’t necessarily experiencing in the classroom academically. It really opened up opportunities for kids to shine in other ways.”

Inside Tesoriero’s classroom, learning exercises accompanied the similar theme of inclusion and promotion of self-identity. Using “open-ended” approaches, she allowed the students to be creative and approach problems differently.

“I wanted to open their minds to the value of differences, promote respect, tolerance, and cooperation in showing them that being different can be a thing.”

Tesorieros experience in the classroom continues to play an important role in her job at the Department of Education. After her recent completion of the Administration Program for Special Education Leaders at Johns Hopkins University, Tesoriero now finds herself at ED as the Small Business Innovation Research Program Specialist at the National Institute on Disability Rehabilitation Research.

She oversees grantees who are researching and developing cutting-edge technologies and products that focus on helping people with disabilities. With views as a consumer, advocate, and educator, Tesoriero is excited to be part of the process, as she understands just how important these kinds of developments are.

Catherine Tracy

West Broward’s Shayina Green scores over Douglas’ Brooke Stoddard during the second half of their Class 8A regional semifinal game. (Michael Laughlin, Sun Sentinel)

By Gary Curreri, Sun Sentinel Correspondent

PARKLAND — Colleen Chatfield scored a game-high 15 points to lead three Bobcats in double figures as West Broward advanced to the team’s first Class 8A girls basketball regional final in the school’s history with a 49-45 victory over host Douglas on Tuesday night.

West Broward (18-3) rallied from a 16-8 first quarter deficit as Shayina Green scored six of her 12 points in the third quarter as the Bobcats outscored Douglas, 11-3 in the quarter. Tiana Perez added 11 points for West Broward who will Palm Beach Central pn Satruday.

Douglas (23-3) led for the last time at 45-44 when Dani Lifshitz banked in a 3-pointer with 2:33 remaining in the game. West Broward’s Green scored inside with 1:40 left to give the Bobcats the lead for good at 46-45. Chatfield made two free throws and Kelsey Angus converted one of two free throws to ice the game with 4.3 seconds left.

West Broward coach Marquita Adley said her team took its lumps in a fall league losing every game by 30 points. She said her team had a different intensity at practice since and has benefited from scrimmaging the boys’ team at the school. West Broward had never won a district playoff game before this season.

“We get beat down in practice, but we have been able to beat up on our opponents,” said Green, who also pulled down 17 rebounds and dished out three assists. “We want this like no one else because we didn’t have this last year. We can go all the way and win state.”

Rashawna Mogent had 13 points for the Eagles, while Deja Enos and Lifshitz scored 12 and 10 points respectively.

“If we could have made our free throws and layups it would have been a different story,” said Douglas coach Larry Moore, whose team was 15 for 23 from the line, including four misses in the closing 17 seconds.

We have the workshop for you this Summer.

Recurring Questions of Technology is a 5-day open institute that explores these questions, with leading scholars facilitating the exploration. This is a joint institute between UBC and SFU, with speakers from both universities, as well as John Willinsky, noted scholar in the field from Stanford University. Some of those scheduled to speak or teach are Mary Bryson, Teresa Dobson, Richard Cavell, Andrew Feenberg, and many more.

This course can be taken either for UBC/SFU credit or as a non-credit seminar. Instructions for how to register, as well as all relevant information about the course,  are on the program web site.

The course will run from July 9-13, 2012.

Each day in the course consists of both a class (9:00 am 3:00 pm)  and an afternoon lecture (3:30 pm 5:00 pm).  Only those registered can attend the class, but the lecture is open to all with no registration required.

You can sign up for individual days or register for the whole 5-day course, whichever meets your needs and interests.

Check out the course web site for a full schedule, including speakers, topics of discussion, fees, etc.

Over the course of six years Claremont McKenna College lied about its incoming students SAT scores, inflating them by 10-20 points. When administrators discovered the problem, the ramifications were serious. They may become even more serious. This is despite the fact that the actual deception was pretty meaningless.

As I wrote earlier in the week the financial planning magazine Kiplingers has dropped Claremont McKenna College from its prominent Best Values in Liberal Arts Colleges list. U.S. News also plans to recalculate its rakings due to the Claremont deception.

But, according to Daniel de Vise, its not just the rankings the school needs to worry about. As he writes in the Washington Post:

This apparently went on for several years. And that presumably means inflated SAT data were sent to the Education Department, which publishes consumer-oriented college data on its College Navigator site.

Bad data must also have been included in Claremont McKennas periodic internal review documents, submitted to the Western Association of Schools and Colleges to support its case for academic accreditation. Accreditation is the regulatory lifeblood of a college.

As he explains:

Dropping the school from the list is about the worst penalty a ranker can inflict on a college. What about Claremont McKennas accreditor? What about the Department of Education? Claremont McKenna must have reported inaccurate SAT numbers to them, too. Either of those agencies could conceivably inflict real penalties such as suspension of accreditation, or of student aid on a school that breaks the rules.

As he points out though, its not clear that the SAT lies were symptomatic of any larger structural problem, or even plan of deception at the school. It appears that one admissions officer, Richard Vos, was responsible for the whole thing.

But then, whats really so odd about all this is why Vos even bothered. A 10 or 20 point difference is, as de Vise points out the equivalent or answering one or two more questions correctly on the test. Why?

Well it may sound ridiculous from the outside, but a 15 point difference in SAT scores, students moving from the 94th to the 95th percentile, is very much the sort of thing on which an academic admissions officer is evaluated.

Perhaps thats the problem.

An overflow crowd of about 220 people turned out at the Board of Governors meeting, and most who spoke called for a national search for chancellor.

Flores, 69, who recently said he will retire by the end of this year, announced plans Tuesday to take medical leave effective today to deal with health issues.

Flores’ contract expires in June 2014, and under the proposal, Miles, now the college’s second in command, would have served out the rest of his term. She would have earned the same base salary, more than $270,000, and received nearly the same benefits as Flores.

Board Chairman Scott A. Stewart and members David A. Longoria favored offering Miles the automatic contract.

Voting against Miles’ automatic appointment and leaning toward a national search were members Brenda Even (who took part in the meeting by teleconference), Marty Cortez and Sherryn S. “Vikki” Marshall.

Cortez said she looks for Miles to be a candidate considered in the national search because she is qualified to compete.

College attorney John Richardson said the board is likely to set a meeting within a month to discuss a search.

Call for “vigorous” search

In the call to the audience before the vote, Miguel Palacios, former PCC Desert Vista Campus president who worked for the college for more than 30 years, was one of nine people who spoke against the automatic appointment.

“Over the years the college has taken great pains to select top-flight faculty and top-notch staff through extensive and competitive processes. The selection of the next chancellor should be no less vigorous to assure that the most qualified person is selected,” he said.

Palacios added, “Many of us in the community are keenly aware of the current troubled state of the college, and I submit to you that it will take a uniquely qualified individual to lead this institution through these difficult times and restore the college’s credibility and standing in this community.”

Several speakers referred to an article Sunday in the Arizona Daily Star revealing that PCC paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to a consultant, John Crnokrak of Wisconsin, who was hired in a manner that bypassed the college’s competitive bidding process. Crnokrak forwarded lewd emails to the school’s executives and billed the public for a personal massage, the Star’s investigation of college records showed.

Scott Collins, on the math faculty at PCC’s West Campus, told the board that a national search isn’t the easiest way but is the best way to fill the top post.

Collins, immediate past president of the PCC Education Association, said he had a petition with 187 signatures favoring the appointment of an interim chancellor while a national search is conducted.

Michael Coiro, executive director of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 449, said the board should know that there is an unfortunate perception that it rubber-stamps contract renewals. He also called for a national search.

Four people spoke in favor of Miles’ appointment, including Heather Tilson, Miles’ senior assistant. Tilson said Miles “leads with humility and fosters an open work environment.”

Miles also recognizes leadership in others and embraces it for the good of the college, while bringing a sense of humor that energizes the staff, Tilson said.

A recommendation included in the board’s agenda package said Miles’ appointment “would promote a smooth and cost-effective transition” when Flores retires.

Miles has been at PCC for 20 years, most recently as executive vice chancellor and president of the college’s community campus, in addition to her provost duties. She also filled in for Flores while he recuperated from bypass surgery.

Board member Cortez said of the vote, “When it is all said and done, there’s going to be unhappy people tonight. We need to come together and do what is best for our students, faculty, staff and the community.”

Longer contracts approved

In one of his last acts before taking medical leave, Flores asked the Governing Board to approve two-year contracts for his entire top tier of executives, who have had only one-year contracts until now.

They include Miles; Pima’s finance chief, David Bea; college spokesman C.J. Karamargin; human resources boss Janet May; and five campus presidents.

By a 5-0 vote Wednesday night, the Governing Board approved the longer contracts.

Flores needs “time to heal”

As for his medical leave, Flores said in a written news release that he will take the time to concentrate on recovering from heart problems. “My soul’s still strong, but my heart of late has been less than completely dependable, and I need to listen to my cardiologists and take the necessary time to heal,” he said in the release.

Flores underwent emergency angioplasty on Friday at Tucson Medical Center after experiencing severe chest pains while at the college’s district offices. In October, he underwent a quadruple-bypass heart surgery.

“The selection of the next chancellor should be no less vigorous to assure that the most qualified person is selected.”

Miguel Palacios, former PCC Desert Vista Campus president

The report by Education Trust – Midwest, a nonprofit nonpartisan research organization that advocates for Michigan students, was released this week and includes an analysis of state and national assessment test scores.

The report focuses on the gap between white and minority students in Michigan, as well as a comparison of Michigan students compared to other states.

Among the findings:

– In the fourth-grade reading test administrated for the Michigan Educational Assessment Program  in October 2010, about 69 percent of African-Americans statewide were rated as proficient in reading  compared to 63 percent in KPS.  Kalamazoo black students passed at a higher rate than their peers in Grand Rapids, Flint, Benton Harbor and Detroit, but below Lansing, Jackson and Battle Creek.  The passage rate for white students was 88 percent statewide and 89 percent in KPS.

– In the MEAP’s 2010 eighth-grade math test, 69 percent of Hispanics statewide were rated as proficient compared to 66 percent in KPS. Among white students, the passage rate was 84 percent statewide and 86 percent in Kalamazoo.

– On the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests, which are taken by a representative sampling of students nationwide every two years, Michigan ranking has fallen since 2003. In 2003, Michigan fourth-graders ranked 27th in math and 28th in reading. In 2011, Michigan fourth-graders had fallen to 35th in reading and 41st in math. The reason for the slippage in rank: Other states improved their NAEP scores while Michigan scores stayed flat.

– Michigan’s African-American fourth-graders rank last among black students in  50 states on the NAEP’s 2011 fourth-grade reading test and Michigan white students rank 36th among their white peers on that test.

“Michigan now consistently ranks near the bottom in most subjects and grades,” the Ed Trust report said. “Since 2003, our position relative other states has declined.

“So why has our ranking declined? The conventional wisdom in Michigan holds low-income and black and brown students responsible for our state’s low average — and assumes middle-class and white students are doing just fine,” the report said. “Indeed, this belief is so prevalent that state educational leaders and policymakers have been known to say, ‘If it wasn’t for our urban and poor students, we would be doing a lot better.

“Not only is this belief based on dated stereotypes, it also is patently false,” the report  said. “Yet it is used to justify inaction on improving our state’s schools.”

Ed Trust’s “recipe for reform” includes high-quality teachers in every classroom; better alignment of the curriculum to state and national standards; ensuring that low-income students have adequate support systems and cultural enrichment, and “transforming school culture.”

KPS scores

The low achievement levels of Kalamazoos minority students fits with other data that suggest the local minority community is one of the most distressed in Michigan.

Kalamazoo County has the highest rate of black teen pregnancy among Michigans 83 counties and a 2009 U.S. Census report estimated that 93 percent of single mothers with children under the age of 5 in the city of Kalamazoo live below the poverty line a higher rate than Detroit or Flint.

In 2010, almost 86 percent of KPS black students qualify for the subsidized lunch program, compared to 79 percent of Detroit students and 46 percent of KPS white students.

About 46 percent of KPS students are African-American, 39 percent are white and about 10 percent are Hispanic. A majority of Kalamazoos white students are middle-class.

Under Superintendent Michael Rice, KPS has launched a broad and aggressive array of reforms to improve outcomes.

The district has improved its preschool program, launched all-day kindergarten, overhauled its elementary math and literacy curriculums, beefed up its summer school and after-school programs, changed its secondary schedules so that students spend more time in core subjects, implemented a new homework policy, mandated a double dose of math and/or English language arts for middle school students who are below grade level and has greatly expanded enrollment of Advanced Placement courses in high schools.

In the past few years, KPS scores have been inching upwards. Results from the MEAP administered in fall 2011 have not yet been released.

The case is noteworthy because the justices in 2009 used it to decide that, in principle, the main federal special education law authorizes reimbursements for private school tuition even when a child has never received special education services.

The court that year ruled 6-3 in Forest Grove School District v. T.A. that 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act meant to rein in the costs of private school placements did not remove the power of hearing officers and federal judges to order such reimbursements under the proper circumstances.

Writing in dissent, Justice David H. Souter, joined by Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, warned that the majority’s decision could prove costly for school districts. “The more private placement there is, the higher the special education bill,” then-Justice Souter said.

The 2009 decision was a victory at the time for the parents of a boy with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder who had clashed with the Forest Grove school district in Oregon before placing the child in the private Mount Bachelor Academy.

But the family’s battle with the school district continued after the Supreme Court’s decision, with a federal district court considering the “equities” on remand. The district court ended up denying any tuition reimbursement to the parents because they “appear to have enrolled T.A. in [Mount Bachelor] not because of any disability recognized by the IDEA but because of his drug abuse and behavioral problems,” as the district court put it.

A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, in San Francisco, upheld the district court in in a 2-1 decision last April.

In their appeal to the Supreme Court, the parents said the 9th Circuit’s decision that the reasons for the private school placement can be the key factor in an IDEA reimbursement decision conflicted with a decision by another federal appeals court. The parents also argued that the lower courts should have considered partial reimbursement of the private school tuition.

The justices on Jan. 23 declined, without comment, to hear the parents’ appeal in T.A. v. Forest Grove School District .

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

NBC News Rehema Ellis has a segment on the much-improved Louisiana high school graduation rate

If the trustees approve the project, officials will move quickly to begin construction, with the goal of having the residence halls ready for students by fall 2013, said Jim Alty, the associate vice president for facilities and campus services.

The residence halls, which would each measure 75,000 square feet, would be built on 10 acres between a large parking lot off Wake Forest Road and the Polo Residence Hall.

Alty declined to say how much the project would cost.

Trustees are expected to vote on the project at their meeting on Feb. 1 and 2.

The residence halls would add a combined 480 beds, fulfilling a need to provide more on-campus living space for students, said Donna McGalliard, the dean of residence life and housing.

Under a policy that began with this year’s freshman class, students are required to live on campus for three years, a move that officials hope will discourage students from leaving campus for social events and build community on campus.

Other schools, including Duke and Vanderbilt, have similar residency requirements.

“Research proves that having more of your population live with you creates a greater sense of vibrancy on campus,” McGalliard said. “Upperclassmen can act as role models for students younger than them. It’s about being engaged not just academically but out of the classroom as well.”

The new residence halls would be for upperclassmen, creating an intentional geographical divide with freshmen who live on the south end of campus, she said.

Many sophomores live in residence halls on the main quad in the central part of the campus.

In response to input from students, the new residence halls would be suite-style rooms for groups of four, six or eight people, McGalliard said.

“You do get to live with friends in smaller areas as opposed to those long hallways, which are great for building community for first-year students, but as students progress, they want to live with a smaller friendship group,” she said.

The spot that was chosen for the planned residence halls comes from the university’s master plan, which identified potential building areas on campus.

To serve the students who may one day live in the new residence halls, a new dining hall may be added, but that idea is still being explored, McGalliard said.

If the project is approved, it would represent another shift in the landscape on the campus’s north side. Farrell Hall, the new business school, is also expected to be ready for the start of the 2013-14 school year. The 120,000-square-foot building will be near the Polo Road entrance to the school.

Goodlette, 63, signed a contract to serve as interim president at Edison State College, starting Saturday and running through Aug. 1. He will earn $16,667 monthly, equivalent to an annual base salary of $200,000, plus an $800 monthly vehicle allowance.

Goodlette is heading Edison as it makes a last-ditch effort to avoid sanctions from its accrediting agency, a decision that comes in June, and expedite a much-needed national accreditation for the baccalaureate nursing program. The college expects another cut in state funding, a shortfall that could be magnified if a slight enrollment decrease intensifies.

The most pressing issue, though, could be restoring Edison States image. It took a hit in 2011 after a string of revelations exposed a practice of graduating students who didnt complete required courses, lavish spending of executives and a bitter battle between faculty and administration.

The quality of the education here has not diminished at all, Goodlette said. Its the character of the institution that has been challenged.

Goodlette moved to Naples at 6, and recalls hearing in junior high about Edison Junior College, its name back then, opening in Southwest Florida. That was 50 years ago. Now, after decades of experience in business, government and the not-for-profit sector, Goodlette believes he can redirect Edison back toward its mission of changing lives for the better.

I think I can provide leadership, he said. I think I can provide collaboration.

Goodlette also provides a recognizable name and face to start the colleges healing process, and those local ties are what trustees cited in choosing him over higher education consultant Kathie Sigler. Both were recommended by Randy Hanna, chancellor of the Florida College System, and answered a half-dozen questions during brief interview sessions Saturday.

Board members spent little time debating the merits of each candidate, though, selecting Goodlette with a 7-0 vote; trustee Julia Perry was absent and another seat is vacant. But the board didnt want to bid adieu to Sigler, debating whether to offer her a position as interim executive vice president or provost to handle academic and operation issues while Goodlette worked on legislative matters and image building.

I just think that would be a dynamite team, trustee Chris Vernon said.

No offer was made, and Sigler later told The News-Press she declines being considered for an alternate role.

I would not be comfortable doing it with a division of responsibilities, said Sigler, who previously worked as president of Miami Dade Colleges medical campus. They need one leader who is responsible for all of the issues.

Experience

Goodlette is best known as an attorney and state representative, serving from 1998 to 2006. He was on the Florida Gulf Coast University Foundations board of directors from 1994 to 2007, and on FGCUs presidential search committee in 2007. He was a member of Edisons Board of Trustees from 1990 to 1994, selecting Kenneth Walker as president in 1991. Walker has been on paid suspension since Nov. 29 as the college builds a termination case, and Charlotte Campus President Patricia Land was acting president for the past six weeks.

Florida law limits public colleges and universities from paying presidents more than $200,000 in salary and benefits from public funds. Because Walker remains on Edisons payroll, according to vice president of financial services Gina Doeble, Goodlettes salary must derive from private donations or auxiliary funds, which include revenue from the bookstore, cafeteria and facility rentals. Trustees ordered Goodlettes salary be withdrawn from $1.4 million thats sitting in a board-designated reserve fund, which is separate from the colleges overall reserve fund.

In addition to his paycheck, Goodlette will receive five paid personal days through his initial term, plus sick days, vacation leave, health insurance and retirement benefits available to other employees. He will not be paid for unused sick or vacation days after ending his appointment, and Goodlette agreed not to pursue the post on a permanent basis.

Trustees on Saturday also reviewed materials submitted by three potential presidential search firms, but have asked each consultant to have a representative present at their Jan. 24 meeting. The firm, trustees and Goodlette will be crafting a presidential profile and launch a national search, with a target start date of Aug. 1.

As an outsider to higher education, Goodlette isnt proposing any immediate changes at Edison, but plans to spend the next two weeks speaking to everyone with a stake in Edisons future before developing his to-do list.

I have to get a better sense of where we are before I know where were going, Goodlette said.

The Board of Trustees has approved a contract with Dudley Goodlette that runs today through Aug. 1. Beyond that term, the contract continues on a month-to-month basis, with both parties required to provide a 30-day notice to terminate the contract.

Goodlette will earn $16,667 monthly, along with an $800 monthly vehicle allowance. He also will have five paid personal days at his disposal, plus receive health and retirement benefits eligible to other employees.

11:23 a.m. - Dudley Goodlette tentatively has agreed to accept the position of interim president at an annual rate of $200,000, although he likely will only serve six to eight months. Goodlette and general counsel Mark Lupe have left the board room to draft a contract, which will be approved later today.

Meanwhile, three presidential search firms will send representatives to the Board of Trustees meeting on Jan. 24, when trustees will choose one to help recruit, screen and sign a new president. The firms — Academic Search Inc. (Washington, D.C.), Pauly Group (Springfield, Ill.) and R. William Funk & Associates (Dallas) – were among nine firms that submitted proposals earlier this month. A four-member trustee committee narrowed the list on Thursday.

Trustee Marjorie Starnes-Bilotti estimates the total cost of the presidential search will fall around $100,000. The new president is expected to start work in July or August.

11:03 a.m. - Trustees have voted 7-0 to hire Dudley Goodlette as interim president at an annual base salary of $200,000, plus up to $25,000 for benefits such as vehicle and development allowances.

The board plans to consult with Goodlette on the hiring of Kathie Sigler as a second-in-command. They have yet to ask Sigler if she would accept that role.

Although the board has selected Goodlette and made a salary offer, he has not yet agreed to the deal or signed a contract.

10:05 a.m. -The Board of Trustees have heard from both candidates, but they may not choose one today. They could choose two.

Trustee Chris Vernon proposed hiring Dudley Goodlette as interim president to develop connections in the community and Tallahassee, but also hiring Kathie Sigler as a second-in-command or interim provost to oversee academics and daily operations.

I just think that would be a dynamite team and I think people would embrace them, Vernon said.

Several other trustees have chimed in, agreeing the college should hire both. They havent discussed job titles, duties or salaries yet, but general counsel Mark Lupe said trustees expect to have a contract signed today.

10:04 a.m. - Kathie Sigler, of Miami, retired in 2006 as provost and chief operating officer at Miami Dade College, but quickly returned to serve as president of its medical center campus. She now is president of Higher Education & Technology Consultants.

Sigler, too, sees much work ahead as Edison tries to repair its image before it can get back to the business at hand – changing students lives for the better. A big pressing issue, she said, is responding to 14 violations cited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, which is Edisons accrediting body.

We have a very short period of time in order to get the SACS response done, Sigler said. That, and the nursing accreditation, are both doable.

She wants the college to begin telling positive, success stories, and says improving Edisons reputation is something staff and trustees must focus on day after day after day after day. Sigler also encouraged college employees not to let accreditation struggles get them down, even if SACS requirements are causing them much stress.

They are not an organization that is trying to put schools out of business, Sigler said.

9:49 a.m. - Dudley Goodlette, of Naples, said hes interested in the position of interim president to help Edison State settle some matters before the new president is installed.

Ive had an interest in this institution since junior high, said Goodlette, who moved to Collier County at age six.

Goodlette started by acknowledging the strengths of the other candidate, Kathie Sigler, who has spent her career in higher accreditation and is familiar with academics, college operations and accreditation. What he brings, Goodlette said, is knowledge of the community and issues impacting the college, as well as an outside perspective.

I think I can provide leadership, said Goodlette, who served eight years in the Florida House. I think I can provide collaboration,

Goodlette, an attorney, was a member of Edisons Board of Trustees from 1990 to 1994, serving at the time Kenneth Walker was selected as president. Goodlette also was a community representative on the search committee that chose Wilson Bradshaw at Florida Gulf Coast University.

Goodlette said Edison remains a strong institution, but needs to repair the colleges image in the community after a series of problems unraveled in 2011.

Restoring integrity is vitally important, he said.

8:57 a.m. update - The Board of Trustees at Edison State College has convened this morning for a special meeting and orientation workshop.

The biggest item on todays agenda is selecting an interim president. Two candidates – former state representative Dudley Goodlette and higher education consultant Kathie Sigler – will interview for 30 minutes each. The interim is expected to serve until a new president is seated in July or August.

Board members also will hear an update about three firms vying to lead a national search, but no decision will be made until Jan. 24.

Parents are able to find out how their childrens school has performed in exams relative to local and national averages

A newly updated Scottish government website indicates that pupils in East Renfrewshire have the best chance of leaving school with good exam results.

The postcode-searchable tool showed that 55% of teenagers studying in the council area stayed on at school and secured three or more Highers.

In East Lothian, where there is a similar demographic, 27% of pupils secured three or more Highers.

The special website can search independent, state and special schools.

Schools in the East Renfrewshire Council area have had a long-held reputation for delivering the best exam results in the country.

Its education convener, Councillor Alan Lafferty, said: “The performance of our schools right across the board is cause for celebration. They have delivered for yet another year with superb results and are an inspiration to us all.”

He added that the approach of the council – which has 9.7% of pupils claiming free school meals – was to focus on the “needs of every individual pupil” and to “direct our attention and expertise on encouraging each to achieve their potential”.

Mr Lafferty put the results down to dedication, hard work and partnership between schools, pupils, parents and the education service.

On the east coast of the country, East Lothian Council – which has 9.5% of pupils claiming free school meals – saw 27% of pupils secure three or more Highers, a figure just above the national average of 26%.

A council spokesman explained that the indicator it used to measure exam success was the “cumulative attainment” of three or more Highers at the end of sixth year, which currently stands at 39%. That compares with a Scottish average of 35%.

The spokesman added: “Of course, East Lothian Council will continue to work closely with school staff, parents and the wider community to improve educational attainment in all of its schools.”

Aberdeen

75

27

Aberdeenshire

82

29

Angus

78

25

Argyll and Bute

79

27

Clackmannanshire

76

20

Dumfries and Galloway

80

24

Dundee City

70

18

East Ayrshire

74

19

East Dunbartonshire

92

45

East Lothian

82

27

East Renfrewshire

88

55

City of Edinburgh

77

28

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar

86

27

Falkirk

80

24

Fife

76

23

Glasgow City

72

16

Highland

82

27

Inverclyde

82

26

Midlothian

77

22

Moray

81

22

North Ayrshire

74

20

North Lanarkshire

77

22

Orkney

84

30

Perth and Kinross

81

31

Renfrewshire

81

26

Scottish Borders

80

29

Shetland

88

27

South Ayrshire

80

30

South Lanarkshire

77

26

Stirling

79

34

West Dunbartonshire

76

21

West Lothian

78

23

The appeals choices are mediation or arbitration. They are valuable tools for enrolled agent work. Appeals using mediation or arbitration are heard by advanced grade IRS employees. These well-trained officers have considerable discretion when assessing a person’s dispute with the IRS.

An EA practice provides important alternatives when presenting a taxpayer with the avenues of mediation or arbitration. Improving the possibility of immediate settlement with the IRS is often far more attractive to taxpayers than waiting for a federal court to decide a matter.

Appeals cases don’t require an attorney. They are, however, commonly conducted as enrolled agent jobs. This permits the EA to build a defensible position for a taxpayer and conduct the presentation to a mediator or arbitrator.

Either the taxpayer or the IRS may request non-binding mediation. A taxpayer may decline a mediation request by the IRS. Mediation is a dispute resolution process that uses a collaborative approach between the parties. A mediator obtains information from each party and presents reasonable alternatives that are potentially persuasive to both. The taxpayer’s representative and an IRS agent are present at the mediation, but normally in different rooms for the mediator to hold separate discussions.

Arbitration is more like a trial court process, but informally conducted. The costs for arbitration are significantly lower than a court. Plus, arbitration provides faster decisions than a court judge. An arbitration ruling is given in favor of one party, which is unlike mediation that has no declared winning side. In addition, arbitration results are binding on the parties. They must accept the decision of the arbitrators. A mediator has no authority to bind the parties like an arbitrator. A request for binding arbitration is made jointly by IRS Appeals and a taxpayer.

IRS appeal criteria are available for enrolled agent study by examining Revenue Procedure 2002-44 and Announcement 2008-111. A mediation procedure helps decide both legal and factual issues. Only factual matters are decided in arbitration cases. So, the preparation is a little different for each appeal process.

IRS Circular 230 Disclosure

Pursuant to the requirements of the Internal Revenue Service Circular 230, we inform you that, to the extent any advice relating to a Federal tax issue is contained in this communication, including in any attachments, it was not written or intended to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (a) avoiding any tax related penalties that may be imposed on you or any other person under the Internal Revenue Code, or (b) promoting, marketing or recommending to another person any transaction or matter addressed in this communication.

Courtesy of Stock.chng

If you are using paper fax machines to send documents because you are unsure of how email faxing works, then all you need is a little help. When you see how easy email faxing with Metrofax can be, then you can feel comfortable making the move to the newer technology.

Email Account

The main thing you need for email faxing, aside from an account with an email fax provider, is an email account. Most businesses already have email servers and most business professionals already have email accounts. That means that the majority of business professionals already have the first part of email faxing covered.

If you do not have an email account then you should look into the free email providers such as Google or Microsoft for email service. However, you could also use the process of getting an email account as an excuse to get your own company website and establish your Internet presence.

Courtesy of Stock.chng

Scanner

When you use an email fax service, your documents need to be computer files. You can create a document in a word processor and save it as a file that can be faxed, or you can scan your document and fax the scanned file.

Scanning a document is convenient because it can help you to create backup files of important hard copy documents. You can scan executed contracts, sales agreements or anything that can be printed on a piece of paper.

Printer

Email faxing deals primarily in digital documents. However, when you receive an email fax of an agreement that you need to sign, you will need a way to transfer that document to paper. A good inkjet printer is inexpensive and can print everything from important documents to high-quality photographs on special photograph paper.

Once you are done signing your hard-copy document, you scan it back into your system to be placed into a digital file. The purpose of email faxing is to reduce the need to print documents. Nevertheless, there will always be that occasion where you will need to print the occasional sales contract or lease agreement to be signed.

When it comes to email faxing, it is something that can be done on any computer or cellular phone. The extra equipment you will need is inexpensive and will last for many years.