Private Colleges 'Act Local' With Financial Aid
August 31st, 2010 by Noah
Hoping to portray themselves as more affordable and all-around better neighbors, private colleges from Appalachia to Boston are sweetening financial aid packages for students from their own backyards.
The latest and most prestigious example is Northwestern University. By targeting local students in financial need, Northwestern is seeking to boost minority enrollment, strengthen local ties and stay competitive in the college admissions race at a time when many private schools are increasing aid based on student merit instead of financial circumstances.
"You may be thinking globally about your education curriculum," David Warren, president of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, said of such efforts. "But you're increasingly acting locally with respect to students."
Northwestern's "Good Neighbor, Great University" scholarships will be awarded starting in fall 2011 to about 100 incoming freshman who graduated from high schools in Evanston, Ill., home to Northwestern's main campus, and Chicago, site of its medical school. About 2,000 first-year students enroll at Northwestern annually.
Students whose families show financial need – there is no income cut-off – will be eligible for scholarships replacing loans and payments from work-study. The majority of students who qualify will receive enough aid to fully cover the cost of Northwestern's $40,223 annual tuition and fees, said Michael Mills, associate provost for university enrollment.
The program was recommended by a university task force on diversity and inclusion, which was formed following racial tensions on campus, including a controversy last fall over two students who dressed up in blackface for Halloween.
After its black student enrollment peaked at nearly 10 percent during the Carter administration, Northwestern experienced a slow and steady decline, Mills said.
This year's incoming freshman class is about 7.2 percent black, up from 4.5 percent three years ago, which Mills attributed in part to better outreach to Chicago Public Schools and waiving the $65 application fee for its students. The university expects to enroll 60 CPS graduates in this fall's freshman class, up from 28 in fall 2008.
Turning again to Chicago for the new scholarship program seemed a logical step considering the city's racial diversity and the strong Chicago connections of faculty and board members, he said.
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Wayne Newton -- Park My Jet On My Lawn
August 30th, 2010 by Noah
According to employees at the Oakland International Airport, Wayne -- who left the plane to rot after repairs became too expensive -- finally paid the aircraft's mounting storage fees last month and had it shipped to his famous Casa de Shenandoah estate in Las Vegas.
We're told the plane had to be disassembled to make the long haul from Michigan to Nevada -- but it has since been put back together ... and now resides in the yard of Wayne's Las Vegas estate for all to see (pictured above).
This is now the second loose end involving sky miles that Wayne has tied up recently ... we've also learned Wayne just settled a $500k debt with his former pilot.
As we previously reported, Monty Ward won a $501,388 judgment against "Mr. Las Vegas" back in 2009 for unpaid wages.
But now ... according to documents filed in Clark County, Nevada last week, Monty "acknowledges full satisfaction" of the debt ... which means the two are now officially even-steven.
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EXCLUSIVE! Whitney Port Defends Her Skinny Shape — Tells Us Her Body Is ‘Normal’!
August 28th, 2010 by Noah
The City starlet is fighting back against claims that she’s too thin and says if she WAS getting to a frightening weight, her family would intervene!
If you think Whitney Port looks alarmingly thin these days, you’re not the only one — but don’t expect The City starlet to agree with you – she tells us she’s not only fine, but normal!
“I’m totally normal,” the 25-year-old reality star assured HollywoodLife.com exclusively at Sephora’s Kiss For a Cause event in Hollywood August 26. “I’m fine. ”
But Whitney isn’t going to let the talk get her down – she’s happy with who she is, haters be damned! “Sometimes I see [comments about my weight], but to be perfectly honest with you, it doesn’t really effect me all too much. I know I am OK, and I know if there was ever a problem, my family would be the first ones to come in, come up to me and would totally help me. So it doesn’t really affect me.”
So how DOES Whit look so damned perfect all the time? Warning: you may hate her after you read this. “Right now my [workout] routine is probably non-existent. Sometimes I will really get into the swing of things, I’ll go into the gym and get on the elliptical, but right now I do push-ups in my bedroom and that’s the extent of it.”
Ugh. Jealous.
When she’s busy NOT working out and fighting off body criticisms, Whitney is preparing to release her advice book, True Wit (which will be released this winter), working on her fashion week presentation and hanging out with boyfriend Ben Nemtin. “I think [we work because] we are very low-maintenance,” she said of The Buried Life star. “I mean, in the time that we have been dating, I haven’t seen one movie with him at all. We’ll go to events. We are very low-key, going to dinner and hanging out.”
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Jimmy Carter To Return From North Korea With Aijalon Gomes
August 27th, 2010 by Noah
BOSTON — An American who was imprisoned in North Korea for illegally crossing the border has a gentle spirit but is also a person of conviction willing to be bold about what he believes, friends and acquaintances said.
Aijalon Gomes had been teaching English in South Korea when he was imprisoned in January for entering North Korea from China, U.S. officials said. This week, former president Jimmy Carter traveled to the isolated nation to try to win Gomes' release, and end the Boston's man harrowing and unlikely trip from the inner city to a North Korean jail.
"'He ran deep,' I think, would be the phrase that other people might use," said Erik Woodbury, who attended college with Gomes. "I was surprised that he ended up in North Korea, but I wasn't surprised that there was something he was passionate about."
It's unclear what prompted Gomes to enter the repressive nation. He may have been emulating fellow Christian Robert Park, who was detained after he crossed into North Korea a month earlier to highlight its human rights record, said Jo Sung-rae, a South Korean human rights advocate who met with Gomes. Park was expelled a few weeks later.
Shortly before he left for North Korea, Gomes was photographed in Seoul, South Korea, protesting Park's plight.
Gomes was sentenced in April to eight years of hard labor and fined $700,000 for illegally entering the country. Gomes' relatives have declined to say much about him or his situation, though they pleaded for his release on humanitarian grounds after North Korea's state-run media reported last month that he'd attempted suicide.
The family stayed quiet when asked for personal reflections about Gomes this week.
"They would prefer not to comment," said family spokeswoman Thaleia Schlesinger.
Gomes grew up in an apartment in Boston's Mattapan neighborhood, long a haven for immigrants and now heavily populated by African-Americans and people from Caribbean nations. In high school, he worked after school at Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. as part of a jobs programs that aimed to steer students toward college.
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Hollywood Celeb Assistants Reveal All – Miley Flashes Strangers, R-Patz’s Romantic Texts & Who Knew Katie Holmes Smoked!
August 26th, 2010 by Noah
The assistants to the rich and famous are finally opening up and it turns out the stars, they aren’t just like us!
From Katie Holmes’ smoking habit to Britney Spears’ baby talk, it seems like every celeb has some habit they wish they could hide from the public!
According to the new issue of Star, Britney, “talks in a baby voice all the time,” and Miley, “thinks it’s hilarious to greet first-time guests at the door and shock them with some skin.” Scandalous!
It doesn’t stop there either, with Tori Spelling only hiring gay men to work on her staff in fear of losing husband Dean McDermott, and Mariah Carey insisting on drinking champagne from a straw!
Most shocking however, is that Katie is a cigarette smoker! “Katie demands that her employees keep secrets from her hubby, Tom Cruise … including her smoking habit,” reports the magazine.
Most romantic meanwhile goes to Robert Pattinson who is always sending texts to his GF Kristen Stewart.
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Dan Rooney, Pittsburgh Steelers Chairman, Kicked Out Of Giants' Press Box
August 25th, 2010 by Noah
Pittsburgh Steelers chairman Dan Rooney was kicked out of the New York Giants' press box on Saturday night.
Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette explained that Rooney flew in from Ireland to watch the preseason game between the Steelers and Giants. Rooney, who has made it a routine to talk to the writer before games, was ordered to leave by a press box attendant because he didn't have credentials. Rooney only had a ticket for his private box.
The Hall of Famer quietly left without saying anything.
According to Bouchette, the attendant didn't know he was kicking out the owner of the Steelers.
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Darrell Issa: Tea Party 'Not Angry Enough'
August 24th, 2010 by Noah
(AP) - Tea party activists who have protested government spending and pushed for the GOP to nominate more conservative candidates this year aren't outraged enough about government malfeasance and excessive spending, Rep. Darrell Issa of California said Saturday.
The Republican congressman told delegates at the state party's meeting in San Diego that the GOP hasn't been vigilant enough about reining in waste, fraud and abuse, including excessive spending during Republican administrations such as that of President George W. Bush.
"We have to say to the tea party: You're not strident enough, you're not angry enough and the government has gone far enough," Issa said.
"We've already squandered the legacy of our parents."
Issa, the senior Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and one of the most vocal critics of the Obama administration, said the GOP must be willing to tear itself apart and rebuild, stronger and more focused on core constitutional issues.
He predicted Republicans would retake the House in November, but said holding a majority is not enough, noting that government spending has continued to grow during the last two decades.
Issa called for the appointment of more inspectors to audit spending and greater transparency about where federal dollars are going.
"I'm ashamed that Republicans were not zealots about flaws in government that were pointed out by inspector generals," he added.
Issa spoke to a crowd of about 100 on the final night of the GOP's twice yearly meeting.
Driver from www.huffingtonpost.com
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Derrek Lee Debuts For Braves At Wrigley Field
August 21st, 2010 by Noah
CHICAGO — After seven mostly happy years with the Chicago Cubs, first baseman Derrek Lee has returned to the site of his favorite memory as a ballplayer: the tiny visiting clubhouse at historic Wrigley Field.
Lee made his Atlanta Braves debut on Friday against the very team that dealt him away two days earlier. Batting cleanup, he waved his helmet as he received a standing ovation in the first inning. He then flied out on Ryan Dempster's first pitch, stranding a runner at third.
Earlier, when the 6-foot-5 Lee stepped into the clubhouse – ducking so he wouldn't bump his head on any low-hanging beams – he realized he hadn't been in there since October 2003.
He was with the Marlins then, and he played a major role as Florida rallied to win an epic Game 6 of the NL championship series. He then drove in the winning run in Game 7, depriving the Cubs of their first pennant since 1945.
"That's my last memory of that clubhouse – celebrating," he said. "That's probably the most fun I've ever had playing baseball. That series was even better than the World Series. I know the fans here don't like to hear that, but it was fun for us on that side of the field."
Lee joined the Cubs the following year and was one of several important players who slumped badly as the Cubs lost their grip on a playoff spot in the final week in 2006. The team returned to the postseason the next two years but failed to win a single playoff game. Last season was disappointing, and the Cubs have become a fifth-place laughingstock in 2010.
Lee, wearing No. 27 for Atlanta because Troy Glaus has his familiar No. 25, has been smiling ever since the deal was finalized. All of a sudden, he's playing for a contender again.
"I didn't ask to be traded. I was fine. I love those guys," Lee said. "It's just a new beginning. I feel like a 15-year-old kid on the first day of school. We play to get to the postseason. There's a great opportunity here."
To the Braves, getting Lee for three prospects seems almost too good to be true.
Driver from www.huffingtonpost.com
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Carnival Spa Manager Arrested on Prior Sexual Assault Charges, Previously Worked for Disney
August 16th, 2010 by Noah
A spa manager on the 3,006-passenger Carnival Splendor has been arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old gymnastics student 10 years ago.
And AOL Travel News has learned the man, employed by shipboard spa concessionaire Steiner Transocean since 2004, also worked on other cruise ships including those of Disney Cruise Line.
Kaloyan Kaloyanov, 36, a Bulgarian native and former international gymnastics competitor, was taken into custody on the Carnival ship during a Mexican Riviera cruise from Long Beach, California, reports the Oakland Tribune. He had been on Fremont, California's Most Wanted List since 2002.
Kaloyanov was held in the brig for six days by Carnival security guards, before being handed over to law enforcement officials in Long Beach, a Carnival Cruise Lines spokesman says, adding the cruise line "fully cooperated" with authorities.
Before fleeing the country in 2002, and abandoning his wife and child, Kaloyanov had admitted to Fremont police to having had sexual relations two years before with the girl, who he had coached at a local gymnastics school.
Fremont police Detective Michael Gebhardt tells the Tribune that the department's sexual crimes unit started reviewing cold cases two weeks ago and found Kaloyanov's Facebook page (since taken down) on a Google search.
There were photos showing him posing in front of a number of cruise ships and he was tracked to the Splendor.
The Carnival spokesman says Kaloyanov worked in spas on the line's ships briefly in 2006, and returned to Carnival in July of last year.
But the former gymnast worked on several other ships as well.
He was hired by Steiner Transocean in Bulgaria six years ago and worked his way up from a fitness instructor to a management slot, Steiner Chief Operating Officer Glenn Fusfield tells AOL.
Kaloyanov worked for Steiner on ships including those of Disney, Fusfield says.
He adds the company did do a background check. "We have a very clean background check on him," Fusfield says.
Disney Cruise Line says in a statement, "Pre-employment background checks are conducted for crew members, and the U.S. State Department conducts background checks before issuing work visas to non-U.S. citizen crew members. Vendors who employ crew members on our ships, such as Steiner, are required to go through the same steps prior to hiring a new crew member."
Driver from www.huffingtonpost.com
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The Waters Are More Still, but Just as Dark
August 14th, 2010 by Noah
The Goodman household has calmed down since the last time I hung out there. Sure, Mom is still certifiably bipolar and delusional; Dad is suffocating on his own denial; and the kids — well, let’s just say they’re definitely not all right. Yet in the newly recast “Next to Normal,” the musical that won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in April, nobody is bouncing off the walls anymore or threatening to pull the audience into one collective meltdown of extreme feelings.
As played by Marin Mazzie and Jason Danieley (who are married in real life), Diana and Dan Goodman seem more focused, centered and contained than they ever did before. They signal separate emotions clearly, they sing beautifully and even in moments of crippling stress, they maintain perfect postures. In this sense, the teenage Natalie (now portrayed by Meghann Fahy) and her older brother, Gabe (Kyle Dean Massey), are very much their parents’ children.
But you know what? To borrow a lyric sung by the manic-depressive Diana, I miss the mountains, I miss the highs. The lows too.
Before I go any further, let me say that audiences new to “Next to Normal,” lured by the trophies it has won since it opened at the Booth Theater in April 2009, won’t feel shortchanged by its latest incarnation. Created by Tom Kitt (music) and Brian Yorkey (book and lyrics), and directed by Michael Greif, “Next to Normal” retains its status as the bravest and most surprising musical on Broadway. And it could be argued that the show has acquired a clarity and precision it lacked before.
What it doesn’t have right now (and this may change as the new cast members relax and stretch into their roles) is that surging tidal force that takes you where you never intended to go, knocking the breath out of you. Led by Alice Ripley, who won a Tony for creating the role of Diana, “Next to Normal” dared to be as anguished, exhilarated and scary as its heroine. Ms. Ripley’s was a sui generis portrayal, possessed of its own idiosyncratic rhythms and a calculated disregard for many of the conventions of classical performance in musicals (which include staying on key).
Though a veteran of all sorts of psychological and pharmaceutical treatments, Ms. Ripley’s Diana held on fiercely to her own version of reality. And while it was not our reality — or the rest of her family’s — Ms. Ripley endowed it with such possessive force that we had no choice but to accept and, in a strange way, honor it. One of the show’s central points is that emotions, especially in times of crisis, are seldom pure or simple. Ms. Ripley was never merely ambivalent; in any given moment, she was overwhelmingly multivalent.
Ms. Mazzie, whose roles on Broadway include leads in “Kiss Me, Kate” and “Ragtime,” is, on her own terms, an equally strong presence. But even playing the mercurial diva in “Kate,” she has never seemed touched by the sort of temperament that could run away with her. She has always registered as a woman who is, on some level, practical and in control — of herself, if not her situation. If you were casting “Hamlet,” she’d be an automatic Gertrude but not a natural Ophelia.
As might be expected, then, Ms. Mazzie’s Diana is more calmly self-aware than Ms. Ripley’s ever was. She often seems to view herself with weary, sardonic detachment. And while she eloquently defines her character’s sorrow and longing for what she cannot have (particularly regarding her charismatic son, played with new gentleness by Mr. Massey), she never scales the dizzying heights that Diana must feel as well. No matter what the script and lyrics say, this Diana comes across as simply depressed, and for legitimate reasons.
As the masochistically stalwart Dan (first played on Broadway by J. Robert Spencer), Mr. Danieley comes across as forbiddingly rigid, and his exquisite tenor sometimes feels at odds with the electric drive of Mr. Kitt’s music. His performance makes sense: it’s as if Dan had willed himself into a state of numbness to stave off the dangerous anger around and within him. That attitude is matched by the defensive, one-note petulance of Ms. Fahy as his overachieving daughter.
What makes “Next to Normal” great, in ways that few Broadway musicals are, is its insistence that feelings can never be successfully compartmentalized. Big emotions are sloppy and confusing; they bleed at the edges into other emotions. And, in truth, there is no easy answer at any time to that most basic of questions, “How are you feeling?”
Onstage, of course, few things are harder than conveying such confusion with clarity. And it should be remembered that when “Next to Normal” opened on Broadway, Ms. Ripley and most of her fellow cast members had worked together for more than a year in earlier versions of a show that required extensive rethinking and revision to get right. (Originally seen off Broadway in 2008 at the Second Stage Theater, with Brian d’Arcy James as Dan, “Next to Normal” was subsequently reworked at Arena Stage in Washington.)
Two of those original cast members have stayed on: the appealing Adam Chanler-Berat, as Natalie’s bewildered stoner boyfriend, and Louis Hobson, who smoothly embodies two of Diana’s doctors. And it is possible that, by degrees, this latest ensemble may arrive at a richer state of symbiosis.
As it is, I was glad to have the chance to hear anew Mr. Kitt and Mr. Yorkey’s sensitive, organically varied songs, which use rock ’n’ roll idioms to evoke raging pain and frightened fragility. And if the show is, for the moment, more professional than it is persuasive, the chorus of snuffles I heard in the final moments the other night (mine were among them) testified to this singular musical’s enduring cathartic power.
Driver from www.nytimes.com
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