Tuesday, November 27, 2001

College Briefs

Schools try to increase on-time graduation rates

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (U-WIRE) — What is traditionally a four-year commitment is quickly becoming a five- and six-year standard. Many four year colleges and universities are suffering from an influx of students who, for one reason or another, don’t graduate on time.

Nationally, only one-third of undergraduate students attending a four-year college graduate on time.

Many universities are bracing for this low rate to cause problems in the near future. Rural and suburban universities, expecting that as part of the fallout from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks students will be less likely to go to an urban school, worry about overcrowding and over-enrollment.

To alleviate the problem, some states such as Texas are offering universities with graduation rates above a certain percentage additional funding. And some schools are requiring that students seek permission before taking longer than four years to graduate.

The University of Michigan, with a 61 percent four-year graduation rate, has the highest rate of any public university in Michigan. Officials said students staying longer than four years is not a problem.

However, Michigan State University has the second-highest four-year graduation rate in the state, at 31 percent. At Eastern Michigan University, fewer than 10 percent of freshmen graduate within four years, and only 35 percent graduate within six years. Central Michigan University has a graduation rate of 16 percent.

Nationally, universities and colleges with higher tuition rates also have higher graduation rates. About two-thirds of students at private institutions graduate within four years.

The 15 highest graduation rates belong to private institutions with annual tuition of at least $23,000.

Michigan also gives full-time students a flat tuition rate, meaning students who take 18 credits pay the same amount of money as those taking 12 credits.

The University of Texas at Austin is planning to offer students a flat tuition rate in fall 2002 in an attempt to boost its graduation rate of 32 percent.

In addition, extra-curricular activities, study-abroad programs and undergraduate research opportunities can also deter students from graduating early.

— Michigan Daily

Former U. of South Florida professor jailed

TAMPA, Fla. (U-WIRE) — Holiday lights adorning Mazen Al-Najjar’s Tampa mosque would not light Saturday. It was as symbol that they could sense his absence, surmised his sister Nahla Al-Arian.

Al-Najjar, a former University of South Florida adjunct professor, is back in jail after being arrested Saturday by the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The arrest comes on the heels of a ruling of final deportation upheld by the 11th Circuit United States Court of Appeals on Nov. 15.

But Al-Najjar, a stateless Palestinian, has nowhere to go.

He was first ordered deported in 1997 after his student visa expired. He was jailed for three years and seven months on secret evidence that the government said linked him to terrorism and made him a national security threat.

— The Oracle