Richard Oakes, Native American Activist

Richard Oakes, the famous Mohawk Native American activist, is world renown for leading the unused Alcatraz prison occupation in the San Francisco Bay at the end of the 1960s. Richard is well-credited with bringing change to the narrative around the rights of indigenous peoples. See also this 1969 video with Richard Oakes delivering his famous Alcatraz Proclamation during the occupation of Alcatraz:

Richard was born on May 22, 1942, and he died in September 1972, so he would have been 76 years old today if he hadn’t been killed and still alive. In Richard’s honor, a Google Doodle was created.
Richard Oakes was a Mohawk tribe member, a tribe that originated from the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada regions. Richard grew up in upstate New York but moved to the San Francisco area where he enrolled at San Francisco State University.

Oakes was not so pleased with the classes offered at SF State and when he got involved in the local Native American communities, he helped with founding (together with an anthropology professor) the first U.S. Native American Studies departments.

The revolutionary, vibrant atmosphere at the end of the 1960s, in combination with his social and academic connections, led Richard Oakes to start one of the most feared and respected radical direct action movements ever set up by activists from Native American origin.

(more…)

Continue ReadingRichard Oakes, Native American Activist

Ease Your Financial Burden: Federal Student Loan Consolidation

The time eventually comes when having hopefully earned their degree, a student has to begin repaying all those student loans that they took out over the years and for some people that can be more of a financial burden than they had bargained for.

For this reason, many students opt to try and find out about federal student loan consolidation, to see if consolidating the loans they have taken out with Uncle Sam over the years can be consolidated and their payments made a little more manageable.

Which Federal Loans can be Consolidated?

Federal student loan consolidation can usually be applied to most of the loan the federal government extends, including PLUS loans. You cannot consolidate your federal loans together with any private loans you may have taken out though, they have to be consolidated separately in an agreement with the particular lender you chose to work with.

(more…)

Continue ReadingEase Your Financial Burden: Federal Student Loan Consolidation

Online Education – A Form of Globalization?

The classroom concept has undergone a huge transformation with the passage of time. Virtual classroom education, another name for online education, is quite different from the traditional campus classrooms. The conventional form of education still exists in the present day.

Both modes of education are running in parallel in the present world. However, online education or distance mode of education enables one to reach out to those courses that seemed far away and out of reach.

The thought immediately comes to mind is whether it will be an effective mode of education. The answer is yes. The entire process has turned out to be effective and successful due to the sincere career aspirants who study the course materials with full concentration and dedication. Now, most colleges have started their correspondence or online courses to enable students around the globe to have access to their courses of study. This has acted as a mutual benefit.

(more…)

Continue ReadingOnline Education – A Form of Globalization?

Are Credit Cards Still Available To College Students?

A few years ago the major credit card companies made a lot of money issuing special credit cards for college students. These credit cards were exceptionally easy for a full-time college student to obtain, even though most of them had very little in the way of a credit history.

These credit cards for college students came with all sorts of attractive benefits attached to them and obviously, for most students on a tight budget having such a financial avenue open to them was a very attractive prospect.

The Credit CARD Act of 2009

The downside of these credit cards for college students was that many students quickly found themselves in more debt than they could realistically handle. Spending the money was easy – paying it back not quite so simple. As a part of a fairly comprehensive attempt to reform the way credit card companies work, the 2009 Credit CARD Act aimed to change the way students were given credit cards to cut down on the rising numbers of young people who found themselves in over their heads.

(more…)

Continue ReadingAre Credit Cards Still Available To College Students?

Minority women starting their own businesses

It’s lonely at the top — especially for minority female business owners, says a major California study out recently.

The study of 807 women paints one of the most detailed portraits yet of the USA’s 1.6 million minority female entrepreneurs. The number of such companies is growing four times faster than all U.S. businesses, making them a major source of future economic growth.

One highlight of the survey is that minority women are more likely than white women to start and run businesses by themselves. Their goals are often altruistic, such as serving their community. And many have more trouble than white women getting financing, says the study by the Center for Women’s Business Research.

Still, the top issues for female business owners — hiring, boosting revenue, and finding capital — are largely the same regardless of race or ethnicity, says the center. Those issues mirror the concerns of all small-business owners.

(more…)

Continue ReadingMinority women starting their own businesses

California School Problem – Fighting The Science Dumb-Down

Glenn T. Seaborg is an eminent scientist – so eminent that he’s the only living person with an element named after him. But the state of California won’t let him help write science standards for its public schools. His problem? Taking the idea of standards too seriously.

Seaborg, 85, is what more trendy educators today would call an elitist. That is, he thinks schools should teach the difficult principles of science even if all students may not grasp them. He’s worried that if schools try too hard to make hard subjects fun, they’ll cheat the students out of essential knowledge.

He and two other Nobel laureates have joined with more than 30 other scientists and teachers to fight for rigorous goals in teaching science in California public schools. They’ve been treated with less than respect.

The state board set up to adopt science standards turned down their offer to write standards for free. The job went to a group made up mostly of teachers and education professors, at a cost of $178,000. And one member of the state panel, Judy Codding, added insult to injury. “They wouldn’t know a classroom if you put it in front of them,” the Los Angeles Times quoted her as saying.

(more…)

Continue ReadingCalifornia School Problem – Fighting The Science Dumb-Down

Common Forgotten Items by International Students

Imagine life as a foreign student in the land of the spirit itself may cause you. Besides busy preparing various documents that you need, from a long day, you even start putting things would you bring to the suitcase.

The day of departure arrived. Way as well until you arrive at the destination. Later, when unpacking, you forget some important items that you actually need in a totally different country to the old hometown.

Well, so this incident does not happen to you, Surviving College launched a list of 10 essential items that are usually taken by foreign students forget.

Adapter/converter universal

The first thing you realize is the design of the socket is not always the same in several countries. The second, most electronic equipment manufactured at a voltage of 220 watts. Meanwhile, the voltage that is allowed in the United States and Canada is 110 watts for each electronic equipment.

(more…)

Continue ReadingCommon Forgotten Items by International Students

Refinance Rates Student Loans

College loan refinancing is often a smart option for students looking to consolidate all of their college loan bills into one easy payment and potentially retain superior interest rates. The decision to consolidate can also result in stable, lower monthly payments with a constant fixed interest rate.

In 2016, The SF Chronicle spoke to Patricia Scherschel, vice president of the popular private lending company, Sallie Mae, about college loan refinancing. Scherschel mentions consolidation as a great debt-management arrangement, and in addition, accurate repayment of student loans can be an excellent credit-building practice for recent graduates as well.

Do you qualify for college loan refinancing?
The refinanced loan repayment options virtually mirror their originally federally backed loan counterparts.

College loan consolidation and refinancing repayment options include:

(more…)

Continue ReadingRefinance Rates Student Loans

Student Loan Consolidation

Do you need to consider applying for Student Consolidation Loans? In a recent study taken by the National Center for Education Statistics, over 70 percent of all students require financial aid for their education. Many students find that after obtaining their college degree, the monthly payments for the loans are beyond their financial means.

Graduates that find themselves having financial difficulties may find it necessary to seek out alternative means to manage their finances. Consolidation Loans may provide students an effective way of combining payments into one loan, and reduce their financial burden.

Do you want to apply for Consolidation Loans?

There are several Student Consolidation Loans available, which are relatively structured by the type of loans the student has. For instance, if a student has loans through one of the Federal Loan programs, such as the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) or the Federal Direct Student Loan Program (FDLSP), they may apply for Federal Consolidation Loans. However, if the student loans are from a private lender or a banking institution, then they should apply for Private Consolidation Loans.

(more…)

Continue ReadingStudent Loan Consolidation