University Business - December 2007 - (Page 15)

DATA P O I N T 956,000 — Estimated number of spam e-mails rejected per day in 2007 by Miami University (Ohio) IT services. — Miami University newsletter Va. Tech Families Given Memorial Donations I N A N OT H E R S T E P TOWA R D healing from last April’s mass shootings on campus, Virginia Tech distributed the Hokie Spirit Memorial Funds money to those most deeply affected by the tragedy. Seventy-nine eligible claimants, both families and individuals, will receive funds or the equivalent educational tuition (given in disbursements over time). Checks totaling more than $8.5 million were allocated according to protocols developed with the funds’ administrator, Kenneth Feinberg. The protocols called for distributions to families of the deceased and varying amounts to those injured or in the classrooms where the shootings happened. The disbursements are: • $208,000 to each of 32 families • $104,000 to each of five individuals • $46,000 to each of eight individuals • $11,500 to each of 34 individuals About $860,000 remain in designated funds. In a statement about the disbursement, President Charles W. Steger explained, “There is no right way to disburse these monies, but we believe the best way to continue the healing is to put as much as possible in the hands of those who have suffered the most.” Spontaneous donations began almost right after the shootings, and by late summer almost 21,000 groups, companies, or Va. Tech’s Associate VP of University Relations Larry Hincker and President Charles W. Steger announce the funds distribution. KIM PETERSON AIDING RHODE ISLAND NIGHTCLUB FIRE FAMILIES PROVIDING SCHOLARSHIPS TO FAMILIES AFTER A LIFE-ALTERING TRAGEDY HAS TRADItionally been a way institutions deal with sudden loss. Seven Rhode Island colleges and universities are doing just that: pledging aid to children whose parents died in the 2003 Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed 100 people. Johnson & Wales, Bryant, Roger Williams, Brown, and Salve Regina universities, New England Institute of Technology, and Providence College are offering assistance through the nonprofit Station Education Fund, named after the nightclub. Each IHE has a different commitment. For example, all 76 children will be eligible for a $15,000 renewable Johnson & Wales scholarship, Brown will let them participate in its summer college prep program, and Providence will establish a scholarship named after fire victim Rebecca Shaw, who was a student and daughter of a longtime faculty member at the college. —M.H. individuals had contributed. In other news related to the tragedy, Virginia Tech is using a $960,685 grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools to help with ongoing recovery efforts and to develop a model for assessing and responding to at-risk behaviors in a higher ed setting. Activities will include identifying mental health services and providing education on trauma recovery and threat assessment. —Michele Herrmann Too Much Is Never Enough THE COLLEGE FOUNDATION OF NORTH CAROLINA HAS A ROBUST WEBsite providing all the information a student or parent could want about preparing for college at one of the 110 colleges and universities in the state. Although 588,000 online applications were processed in the period from July 2001 through December 2006, for the last two years the governor has declared “College Application Week” in November in an effort to reach first-generation, low-income, and other students who have not yet applied. “College Application Week sends the message that college is possible for every student in North Carolina,” says Bobby Kanoy, senior associate vice president for academic and student affairs for The University of North Carolina. The program was piloted at 15 high schools last year with 6,736 applications submitted, an increase over the 3,619 submitted for the same time frame in 2005, and blowing away the 2,758 in 2004. As an added incentive to students, participating IHEs are waiving application fees during the week with the expectation of receiving “significant applications,” says Melissa Andrews, CFNC spokeswoman. This year 109 high schools participated, generating 22,419 applications and 13,667 new accounts. Next year the program will be statewide. Andrews thinks North Carolina is the first state to run such a program, but Georgia officials have inquired about it. —A.M. universitybusiness.com December 2007 | 15 http://universitybusiness.com

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University Business - December 2007 Contents College Index Company Index Advisory Board Editor's Note Behind the News Viewpoint Admissions On The Hill Marketing Future Stock Independent Outlook Technology Spending Survey '08 Conference Call A Working Education 30 Smart Business Ideas Educause in Emerald City What's New Calendar of Events End Note

University Business - December 2007

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