I’m excited to announce that my university has changed its motto. Out with the old and in with: “Omnia Venduntur!” Our old motto, “Disciplina In Civitatem,” or “Education for Citizenship,” just sounded so, you know, land-granty, so civic-minded. It certainly doesn’t capture our new ethos of entrepreneurial dynamism and financial chicanery. Besides, the state legislature […] … learn more→

I’ll be the first to admit that higher education need not be about job skills, that learning, as an end, is a perfectly legitimate pursuit for a human being. But, I must qualify this: As soon as you take loan money for education, you MUST justify how that education will be used to pay back […] … learn more→

It might be a little weird, but I like to read about the process of writing. Sometimes this might be procrastination, but the more I have gotten the opportunity to speak to others about their writing practices the more I have gained confidence that reading about writing has done me some good. I want to […] … learn more→

Here is a link to a short but very pointed video on how rising ocean levels will affect the coastlines of southern and eastern Asia: http://www.businessinsider.com/asia-earth-ice-melted-rising-ocean-coastline-china-india-2015-3 I doubt that such forecasting or modeling will be appreciated by those who are ideologically opposed to any shift away from our ongoing dependence on fossil fuels. After all, […] … learn more→

A few years ago, I overheard two of my MBA students talking after class about their “personal brands.” At the time, I was amused. But then I kept hearing more about this notion of “my brand.” I noticed it was the subject of articles in Forbes and Harvard Business Review. Suddenly, I saw book upon […] … learn more→

Usually, the mainstream media has never met a tax or program it didn’t like. It’s never a question of whether we should have some new social program, instead the media presents the question that the reader should decide between “more” or “much more” government involvement. So I was a little surprised when a CBS article, […] … learn more→

Last weekend, college sports fans across the nation celebrated “Selection Sunday” – a day busily spent composing college basketball tournament brackets. Annual bragging rights and the coveted pool of money amassed by friends and coworkers lead to a particularly high level of fanaticism — March Madness. For some, however, the wager is far higher than […] … learn more→

After reading (and commenting on) Dr. Mewburn’s recent fantastic article on Why People Quit the Ph.D., I wanted to add four more reasons to her list. As a writing productivity teacher and coach, I frequently see these among graduate students who are stuck. 1) Prior Harsh Rejection While rejection is endemic to work and life, […] … learn more→

“Cheating by test takers is becoming more common in the United States and throughout the world,” explains T.J. Bliss, adding: In the past year, multiple news agencies have reported several instances of cheating on high-stakes tests. Recently, news broke that doctors in a variety of specialties had cheated to pass certification exams (Zamost, Griffen, & […] … learn more→

It’s not at all uncommon for thesis writers to use secondary sources. This term – using secondary sources – refers to the practice of reading about Text X that is relevant to your work in Text Y, and then referencing it. The reader knows that this has happened because the citation will refer to both […] … learn more→