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One
thousand professors
from over 300 colleges in all 50 states released a statement declaring their preference for high-quality,
affordable textbooks, including open textbooks, over expensive commercial
textbooks. Open textbooks are high quality open-access textbooks reviewed and written by academics that can be used online at no cost and printed for a small cost. Open textbooks are already used at some of the nation’s most prestigious institutions, like Harvard, Caltech and Yale. Textbooks cost students an average of $900 per year, which is a quarter of tuition at an average four-year public university and nearly three-quarters of tuition at a community college, according to the GAO. Research conducted by The Student PIRGs identifies publisher tactics as the primary cause of escalating prices. Bundling textbooks with unnecessary supplements forces students to purchase items they do not need; unnecessary new editions undermine the used book market; and withholding critical price information keeps faculty in the dark. “As faculty members, our top priority is to choose the textbook that is best for our students. We share concerns about affordability, and face similar frustrations with publisher practices,” said Sandra Schroeder, Chair of the American Federation of Teachers Higher Education Program and Policy Council. “Open textbooks and other affordable options, when appropriate for a course, are a win-win for everyone.” Here are some examples of open textbooks: Introduction to Economic Analysis A First Course in Linear Algebra Introduction to Physical Oceanography Check out a great front-page article in the Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette |
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Student PIRG chapters across the country released the "Campus Credit Card Trap" report,
which outlined the unfair marketing practices of the credit industry.
Students overwhelmingly support limits on campus credit card marketing,
according to the results of the nationwide USPIRG survey of more than
1500 students at 40 colleges in 14 states. Learn more at: truthaboutcredit.org |
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For more information: Ellynne Bannon, 202-458-7635, ebannon@studentpirgs.org
Youth Turnout in Iowa More Than Triples, Youth Decide Caucus Winners The Youth Vote in New Hampshire and Beyond According to a new
analysis youth turnout in Iowa
(17-29 year olds) more than tripled over 2004, with 65,000 young people turning
out to caucus. The youth vote also decided the caucus winners. Fifty-seven
percent of youth voted for Democratic winner Barack Obama, while 40 percent
voted for Republican winner Mike Huckabee. Iowa
PIRG students were critical in boosting the youth vote, personally
contacting and turning out thousands of youth in the final days leading up to
the caucuses. The youth vote surge in Iowa continues the trend from the recent election cycles. In 2004, the youth vote increase by 4.3 million votes and more young people voted than those over the age of 65. In 2006, the youth vote increase by 2 million votes, almost twice the increase of the overall electorate.
Looking to New Hampshire, and Beyond 1. The youth vote continues to post big increases. In 2004, the youth vote in New Hampshire was the highest in more than a decade, and at 58 percent voter turnout, it was up 12 points over 2000 turnout. 2. Recent surges in youth voting aren’t a fluke. Research and practice show that non-partisan (i.e. Student PIRGs) personalized, peer to peer youth voter outreach turns out young voters. Young people contacted by the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project in 2004 were 13% more likely to turn out to the polls on Election Day, than a group of demographically similar individuals who also registered to vote within six months of the election. We also know that when candidates reach out to, and target young voters – often and on the issues that youth care most about – that they turn out in bigger numbers. 3. Young people are engaged. As part of the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project What’s Your Plan? campaign hundreds of students across the country have hit the campaign trail to ask all of the candidates what their plans are on key youth issues, such as global warming and college affordability. So far, nearly 400 students have had more than 100 face to face conversations - across the country - with all of the candidates to ask them: What’s Your Plan? And the candidates recognize us, calling on us at events and highlighting our work. 4. The youth vote matters, especially if the races are close. The Iowa caucuses demonstrated how critical the youth vote is - Democratic winner Barack Obama attributed his victory to the youth vote. New Hampshire has approximately 172,000 18-29 year olds who are eligible to vote. With the contests so close, every vote – including the youth vote- will make a difference.
The Student PIRGs are independent state-based student organizations that work to solve public interest problems related to the environment, consumer protection, and government reform. The Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project is the nation’s largest voter mobilization program. Since 2004, we have registered more than 600,000 young people and made more than 650,000 peer to peer voter turnout contacts to get young people to the polls on Election Day. Due in large part to our efforts, the youth vote increased by 4.3 million votes, or 9% in 2004 and an analysis of our work in 2006 found that in the student dense precincts in which we worked, the youth vote increased on average by 157%,
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Colleen Delahanty Iowa Memorial Union, Iowa City, Iowa. 7pm College Students Pack the Iowa Memorial Union in Iowa City The night begins with our caucus leader directing all of the participants to the front of the room and all of the observers to the back of the room. All of the 200 or so chairs are filled and there are a good number of observers. The leader gives a short speech about the night’s events and instructions. After that, the leader then “passes the hat” to collect donations for the Democratic party of Johnson county. Unfortunately, the majority of people in this room are young college students, with little cash to spare. Next, the floor opens for nominations to elect the officers for the night. This is a very casual process, and there is no dispute over the elected leaders.
It is up to the chair to decide whether or not to allow time for the candidate leaders to speak about their candidates. This was allowed, so each candidate leader spoke for a minute or two about why their candidate is the best. Most told personal stories. The precinct captain for Barrack Obama received significantly more applause than the others. After figuring the number of people caucusing in the room, it was determined that the magic number was 32 to make a candidate viable. We are getting ready to break out into our support groups now so we will see who is viable and who is not.
Stacy Wilson Precinct 45
Drake
University Caucus night started early, with many people showing up at 6 or before to register or to check in. After registering myself, I ran into media from my home state that drove all the way from Milwaukee Wisconsin to cover the caucus—college students from Marquette. After discovering a common friend and answering some interview questions, it was time to go into the lecture hall. Olin Hall’s lecture hall was close to capacity as our Caucus Chair was forced to kick the media out of seats so everyone could sit. The lecture hall was full of democratic candidates supporters, complete with posters for each candidates. The Chair worked to keep the mood light by cracking jokes. Laughter came quickly and easily and the mood was energetic and full of excitement. After taking care of some administrative tasks, we moved on to reading letters from different Iowa Politicians, thanking Iowans taking the time to caucus, then from any candidate who submitted a letter. Candidates who submitted letters included; Bidden, Clinton, Dodd, Edwards, Gravel, Obama and Richardson. Precinct 45 had a similar number of people in 2004. The secretary of the caucus was very impressed at the number of students that turned out, despite the fact school was not in session. Students heavily favored Obama with 74 people starting in the group (not including the undecided) of 176 people at the caucus. A candidate needs 27 people to be considered viable. Edwards seemed to have the second most people. Richardson and Clinton had similar numbers. _______________________________________________________ Alex Rajewski Drake University (2010) Biochemistry I just drove for 5 hours to caucus. I have no idea what to expect and no idea what is going to happen next, but it’s so cool to see other people my age that are excited to vote and actually care about choosing the president. ________________________________________________________ Nicholas McGahan Drake University (2010) Political Science I don’t care who the multitude of young people are here to caucus for, but just the fact that they are here to caucus gives me hope and fills me with a sense of pride for my generation. ________________________________________________________ Kalee Portz Drake University I think it’s really important to be here at the caucus. We have a privilege to live in Iowa, where each voter can really make a difference early in the electoral process. It’s a very exciting event, and I am really thankful to be part of it. _______________________________________________________ Laura Brill Drake University Growing up in Illinois, I didn’t really understand the impact that Iowa voters could have on the Presidential election. I feel very fortunate to be able to be involved in the race at the caucus level. It is great to be part of such an integral process in this important election. ________________________________________________________ Emily Carruthers Drake University This is the first presidential election that I’ve been able to be involved in
and I’m really glad that I’m in Iowa to experience the caucuses.
There has been so much excitement in the past few weeks over the Iowa
caucuses and it’s amazing to be here and get to be a part of it.
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For Immediate Release Contact: Sujatha Jahagirdar 323-309-6120 cell Ellynne Bannon 202-468-7635 cell January 3, 2008 11:00 PM Despite the winter
break caucus date, cold temperatures, long lines and delays due to high
turnout, young people flocked to the caucuses and made their voices heard.
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For Immediate Release: Contacts: Thousands of Iowa College Students to Rock the Caucus Despite hurdles, young Iowans rally to mobilize their peers Today, 250 Iowa PIRG student leaders are calling, texting, and throwing Rock the Caucus parties at caucus locations across the state to rally thousands of their peers to turn out to vote. Despite the date of the caucuses and recent suggestions that some Iowa youth shouldn’t caucus, young Iowans are gearing up to participate in the nation’s first Presidential contest of 2008. "Thousands of my peers are mobilizing today - taking time off from work, driving hundreds sometimes even thousands of miles to get to their caucus locations. It may be winter break, but students are working overtime," said Ryan Crane, a ‘Caucus Rock Star’ student leader with Iowa PIRG. Background on Iowa PIRG’s Rock the Caucus campaign. Background: Iowa Student Leaders Decry Calls for Disenfranchisement."Young people represent one-quarter of the U.S. electorate. We’re the generation that will be most affected by critical issues like global warming so we’re turning out tonight to make sure that the candidates pay attention to us and the issues that we care about the most," said Ellynne Bannon, Director of Iowa PIRG’s New Voters Project. The youth vote is critical to the Iowa caucuses. In 2004, youth represented nearly one-fifth of the total turnout in the Democrat caucus and the winning margin was just 6 percent. All indications are that the Iowa caucuses will be tight races and every vote will be crucial. In two of the past four Republican caucuses, when incumbents weren't running unopposed, the winner was decided by less than 3,000 votes. Below is schedule of Rock the Caucus parties for the day and a partial list of Iowa PIRG’s New Voters Project spokespeople who will be on call for insight into the Iowa youth vote. Caucus Night Schedule of Caucus Precinct PartiesStudent volunteers with Iowa PIRG’s Rock the Caucus campaign will be at numerous student-heavy caucus locations throwing Rock the Caucus parties – with their peers, party hats, blow-horns, signs, and t shirts – rocking the caucuses and celebrating their vote. Caucus Rock Stars - student leaders who have been working to mobilize their peers to participate in the caucuses will be available for interviews at the caucus parties. Iowa City, IA Iowa PIRG’s New Voters Project Spokespeople Ellynne Bannon is the Director of Iowa PIRG’s and the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project. For more than ten years, Ms. Bannon has been organizing on youth issues, mobilizing young people to vote, and training the next generation of social change leaders. Prior to becoming the director in 2007, Ms. Bannon was the chief advisor to the U.S. House of Representatives Education and Labor Committee on higher education and national service issues. She also served as the Youth Vote Coalition’s Chair of the Board of Directors. 202-468-7635 (cell) Sujatha Jahagirdar is the Program Director of Iowa PIRG’s and the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project. Prior to this position, Ms. Jahagirdar served as Clean Water Advocate for Environment California, a statewide environmental organization. Prior to working with Environment California, Ms. Jahagirdar coordinated the CALPIRG Student Chapters’ Water Watch Community Organizing Program. Ms. Jahagirdar graduated with distinction from Yale University with a Bachelor of Science. 323-309-6120 (cell) Zach Moses is a 19-year-old sophomore at Iowa State University. Born in Johnston, Iowa he will caucus today for the first time. As a ‘Caucus Rock Star’ with Iowa PIRG’s Rock the Caucus campaign he’s worked to mobilize his peers by helping to organize events in front of the student center to stop fellow students in between classes to ask them to pledge to caucus. He also used Facebook to organize a caucus party for his friends at a local restaurant to answer questions they had about the process, and discuss ways to mobilize young voters to turn out on January 3rd. 515-419-9886 (cell) Stacey Wilson is a sophomore at Drake University. A Wisconsin native, she fell in love with Drake University and its welcoming community from her first visit. This year she has worked to translate her love for the campus community into action. As a ‘caucus rock star’ with Iowa PIRG’s Rock the Caucus campaign, she has made numerous classroom presentations to highlight the importance of youth participation at the polls/caucuses and to activate her peers. 920-450-4618 (cell) # # # Iowa PIRG is a student organization that works to solve public interest problems related to the environment, consumer protection, and government reform. Iowa PIRG’s New Voters Project is the state’s premier non-partisan youth voter mobilization program. Since 2004, Iowa PIRG’s New Voters Project has used time tested and academically reviewed methods to register nearly 54,000 18-30 year olds to vote and made 95,000 personalized voter turnout contacts via phone or face to face to encourage young people to vote. Due in large part to our work in 2004 voter turnout among 18-29 year old Iowans increased by 8 percent, to 59%, over 2000 turnout. Rock the Caucus is a joint campaign of Iowa PIRG, Rock the Vote, and Iowa Secretary of State Michael A. Mauro to mobilize thousands of young Iowans to take part in the Iowa caucuses. |
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For Immediate Release: Contacts: In response to a column posted today by the Des Moines Register and statements recently issued by several presidential candidates, we as Iowa student leaders are urging all of the presidential candidates to encourage youth turnout, instead of discouraging youth participation in the Iowa caucuses. The full statement is below. It is has recently come to our attention that some presidential candidates are suggesting that students in Iowa should not caucus. We're shocked that any national figure would advocate for youth disenfranchisement. This goes against the very grain of our democracy and the core values of our nation. We live here in Iowa for the majority of the year and make our homes here; we are active participants in our communities- volunteering, giving back and contributing intellectual and financial resources to the state. To say that students who didn’t grow up in Iowa, but who now live here, shouldn’t have the choice to participate in the caucuses is blatant voter disenfranchisement. We have been working hard to encourage our peers to be active participants in their democracy because college students and young people should be more involved in politics. The Secretary of State’s office is clear that college students have the choice and the right to vote and caucus in Iowa. We all know that more young people need to get involved in the political process and we are asking you to take the following steps to ensure that this happens: First, make it clear through your actions and issue a statement that you support all young Iowans – including students – right to vote and caucus in Iowa whether we are from Iowa or attend college in Iowa. Second, come in to our communities and actively seek us out and engage us on the issues we care about. Sincerely, Barrett Anderson, Student Government President, University of Iowa
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Statement of Stacey Wilson, Drake University Sophomore For
More Information, Contact: It has recently come to my attention that a few politicians and journalists, such as renowned Register columnist David Yepsen, believe out of state college students would “taint” the Iowa caucuses if they returned to exercise their democratic right. As a sophomore at Drake University I have been working hard to make Iowa my home. I pay rent, I volunteer at a local school and I support local businesses. Like it or not, I am an Iowa resident. For eight months of the year, I live in Iowa. I consider this state my home. I can count on one hand the number of times I have been to my hometown in the past months. Why should I vote where my parents live instead of where I live? As I further my education and learn more abut the importance of politics and voting, I know that to make a difference it is key for young people such as myself to vote. Where else would I vote besides the city I love and have made my own home? I am incredibly offended that the state I love would say that because I vacation for a few weeks in my hometown, that my vote would “taint” the results of the caucuses. Just because my birthplace isn’t Iowa doesn’t mean I don’t know the impact which the caucuses could have on the nation. I am so excited about the election that I am working as part of Iowa PIRG’s Rock the Caucus campaign to mobilize youth voters. Personally, I am not only offended by the recent implications that I should not caucus, but I am outraged. It is my right and responsibility as a citizen of the United States and Iowa to do so. Students are an increasingly important part of the electorate. Asking tens of thousands of us not to vote simply because we may or may not leave the state for three months of the year is blatant disenfranchisement. Would we ask the same of a homeowner in Des Moines who vacations in Florida for the winter? Instead of asking us not to vote, our political leaders should be trying to figure out how to engage young people directly in this upcoming election – by talking to us about the issues we care about, like global warming and college affordability. We are the future of this country, we will be making the big decisions for our country in years to come. Don’t stifle our voices and tell us we are not welcome in our own state. As the race heats up, cool heads should prevail – let students have their voices heard. Stacey Wilson, a sophomore at Drake University, is a student leader with the Iowa Student Public Interest Research Group’s Rock the Caucus campaign, a non-partisan effort to mobilize young Iowans around the caucuses. |
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On December 6th, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a 21st Century energy bill that will harness American ingenuity and put us on a path to cleaner, smarter new energy future for America. |
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For Immediate Release: October 25, 2007 Contacts:
"Rock the Caucus will mobilize a new generation of caucus-goers in Iowa," stated Iowa Secretary Michael A. Mauro. "Through this exciting new partnership – which pairs high schools and college campuses with non-profits and the state – we can set our youngest citizens on a lifelong path of political engagement." Rock the Caucus will secure pledges from high school seniors and college students to caucus and bring their friends to the caucuses. In high schools, Rock the Vote, the Iowa Secretary of State, and participating teachers and administrators will participate in a Mock Caucus and implement the Rock the Caucus curriculum to teach new potential caucus-goers how the process works and encourage them to bring their friends along; on college campuses, Iowa PIRG will recruit hundreds of "Caucus Rock Stars," student leaders who will get 20 of their peers to pledge to caucus and help to turn them out to the caucuses in their hometowns or near their college campus. "Across the nation, young voters turned out in large numbers in the 2004 and 2006 general elections – the first step to continuing that momentum in 2008 is mobilizing young voters in Iowa's first-in-the-nation caucus," said Heather Smith, Executive Director of Rock the Vote. "We're thrilled to work with Iowa Secretary of State Michael A. Mauro and Iowa PIRG to tap the voting power of young adults in Iowa and continue the recent trend of growing young voter participation." For more information about Rock the Caucus visit www.rockthevote.com and www.iowapirgstudents.org. Young Iowans, according to recent polling, appear to be up for grabs among the leading contenders on both sides of the aisle: young Democrats are most supportive of Hillary Clinton (40%), Barack Obama (23%), and John Edwards (15%), and young Republicans are most supportive of Mitt Romney (22%) and Fred Thompson (24%), followed by Rudy Giuliani (9%), John McCain (9%), and Mike Huckabee (9%). Given the fluidity of voter choice among the Iowa electorate, all candidates have ample opportunity to court young voters as the caucus nears. "Young people will vote if they are asked to," said Sujatha Jahagirdar, Iowa PIRG New Voters Project Program Director. "It's up to the candidates to sit up, take notice, and reach out to young voters." Polling from Rock the Vote finds young adults are engaged in the 2008 elections, but need to hear from candidates on top issues, including education and college affordability, jobs and the economy, health care, and Iraq. "Young voters need to hear real answers and concrete plans this election. By hitting the pavement in Iowa, we'll ensure that this demand is heard loudly and clearly at Caucus time," concluded Jahagirdar. For more information about Rock
the Caucus, see: About the Secretary of State: About Rock the Vote: About Iowa
PIRG's New Voters Project: |
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On September 7th, 2007, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed the College Cost Reduction and Access Act by broad bipartisan votes of 79 to 12 and 292 to 97 respectively. The bill now goes to the President who has said he will sign the legislation into law. The College Cost Reduction and Access Act is the most meaningful higher education reform in more than 15 years. The bill addresses the financial challenges of access and affordability that face American college students. It provides billions of dollars a year in additional grant aid to low-income students through the Pell Grant program. It will also help students address the burden of rising student debt through lower interest rates and a new repayment system. The bill also trims excessive subsidies that benefit a handful of banks and directs them to millions of students and families who are working to pay for college. The College Cost Reduction and Access Act will:
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For Immediate Release: New Report Predicts Global Warming Disastrous for National Parks Youth on the Campaign Trail to Ask Presidential Candidates: What’s Your Plan? On the heels of a new report that predicts disastrous consequences for the country’s national parks as a result of global warming, young people in Chicago and throughout the country are bringing their concerns about global warming directly to all of the Presidential candidates. “Global warming will have a huge impact on the world that I inherit,” said Kim Delangag, mid-west regional What’s Your Plan? campaign coordinator. “It is very important to me to know what all of the candidates’ plans are to deal with this problem.” This weekend young people will be hot on the trail of Mitt Romney as he attends events in Forest City, Clear Lake and Ionia, Iowa to ask him “What’s Your Plan? To stop global warming?. Students will also trail Barack Obama in Chicago and all the candidates at the debate in Charleston, South Carolina. The question that students will pose to candidates this weekend is part of a new national campaign called What’s Your Plan? that calls upon all the Presidential hopefuls to pay attention to young people and address key youth issues such as global warming, college affordability, health care, and financial security. Since the campaign launch, young people have spoken to almost all of the Presidential candidates including: Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, Barack Obama, John Edwards, Duncan Hunter, John Cox, Bill Richardson, Chris Dodd, John McCain, Tommy Thompson, Ron Paul, Dennis Kucinich, Hillary Clinton, Sam Brownback, Mike Huckabee and Joe Biden. See photo gallery The new report, released by the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association, highlights the possibility of more wildfires in Yosemite, flooding in the Everglades, and disrupted ecosystems in the Smoky Mountains as a result of global warming. “With more floods, drought, and air pollution, global warming will have enormous consequences for the word young people will inherit,” stated Sujatha Jahagirdar, the Student PIRGs’ New Voters Project Program Director. ”Young people are very aware of this fact and are more interested than ever in how the candidates plan to tackle this problem.” According to a recent poll published by the New York Times, 58 percent of young people say that they are paying attention to the 2008 elections, compared to just 35 percent at this point in 2004. The Student PIRGs predict that youth voter turnout will continue to increase in 2008 – and if the candidates offer up detailed policies on youth-specific issues and communicate them directly to young people, young people will vote even more. # # # What’s Your Plan? is a project of Iowa PIRG's New Voters Project and allied youth organizations. Since 2003, the project registered more than 600,000 young voters and made more than 650,000 personalized Get Out the Vote contacts leading up to Election Day to turn out young voters. www.whats-your-plan.org
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On July 11th, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the "College
Cost Reduction Act of 2007" (HR 2669) by a vote of 273-149. The bill
will substantially increase the purchasing power of the Pell Grant, the
nation's premiere need-based grant program which benefits millions of
low income students, increasing the maximum grant amount by $100 for
five years beginning in 2008-9. It will make student loan debt more
affordable by cutting the interest rate on student loans in half, to
3.4%, by 2012, and by capping loan repayment amounts to a reasonable
percentage of a graduate's income. HR 2669 goes a long way toward
solving the college affordability and access crisis in the country. |
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The U.S. House of Representatives voted to increase the size of the maximum Pell Grant by $260, to $4,310. This is the first time the size of the Pell Grant has been increased since 2002. The Pell Grant is the federal government’s premier need-based grant aid program, providing aid to more than five million low-income students. Over the last five years, while students have paid more for college, the maximum Pell Grant has remained frozen. As a result students have had to make up the gap between tuition and aid with more work and larger loans. This increase will start to provide students with the aid they need to access an affordable college education. To fully restore the Pell Grant to its historic value, we’re continuing to call for the maximum to be increased to $5,100 in the coming budget cycle. |
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On
January 18th, by a vote of 264 to 163, the
U.S. House of Representatives passed the Clean Energy Act. The U.S.
PIRG-backed measure closes some tax loopholes for big oil companies, recovers
billions in lost royalties for drilling in public waters, and shifts more than
$14 billion to investments in clean energy. For more information, read http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7006189616. |
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On January 17th, by a vote of 356 to 71, the U.S. House passed, by an
overwhelming bipartisan majority, legislation to lower the interest rates on
student loans over the next five years. According to an analysis by the Student
PIRGs, the move would save the average low or middle-income borrower starting
school in 2007 $2,300 in debt. For more information, read http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/18/us/18loans.html |
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Now that we have caught the attention of the politicians with the amount of students we registered to vote, it is time to use that to our advantage by getting policies passed to help us win the fight against global warming. We are working with UI facilities management, UISG, Environment Coalition and Engineers for a Sustainable World to educate the students here at Iowa. We are going to be working towards a goal of general education, targeting the residence halls, and getting students directly involved in making a difference with their environmental future! |
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Congratulations to the chapter at University of Iowa! We accomplished all of our goals and exceeded a few as well. The chapter registered 1275 students, beating our goal by 75 students! For our Get Out The Vote efforts we talked with students to remind them to vote, explain the process and direct them to their specific precincts. We actually spoke with 1960 students! |
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In a relaxed open forum and debate, the two local state senatorial candidates agreed on the need to allocate more money to Iowa's state universities but differed on where the source for the funds lie. Touting investing in privately owned wind farms and increased energy efficiency, Bolkcom said the state isn't doing enough to combat global warming and said "Iowa is a pretty wasteful state when it comes to energy consumption." |
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In a relaxed open forum and debate, the two local state senatorial candidates agreed on the need to allocate more money to Iowa's state universities but differed on where the source for the funds lie. Touting investing in privately owned wind farms and increased energy efficiency, Bolkcom said the state isn't doing enough to combat global warming and said "Iowa is a pretty wasteful state when it comes to energy consumption." |
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U of I students organized a forum to educate the campus and Fall River community about Hess's plans to build a liquid natural gas (LNG) import terminal. The mayor of Fall River, a state Representative, an environmental consultant, and a member of the Chamber of Commerce all came out to the forum to speak about the various adverse impacts the LNG project would have on Fall River and the surrounding communities. |
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As part of the Campus Climate Challenge, Smith students ran the Million Monitor Drive. As part of this competition between Smith and several neighboring college, they challenged every student on campus to change their computer settings to save more energy. By the end of the semester, the Smith chapter had collected over 400 pledges from students who had committed to changing their computer settings. In addition, they had all of the dorm environmental representatives helping their dorm mates change their energy settings. The drive generated a ton of local media stories, including coverage in the school newspaper and the Daily Hampshire Gazette. |
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As part of the Campus Climate Challenge, Smith students ran the Million Monitor Drive. As part of this competition between Smith and several neighboring college, they challenged every student on campus to change their computer settings to save more energy. By the end of the semester, the Smith chapter had collected over 400 pledges from students who had committed to changing their computer settings. In addition, they had all of the dorm environmental representatives helping their dorm mates change their energy settings. The drive generated a ton of local media stories, including coverage in the school newspaper and the Daily Hampshire Gazette. |
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On October 22, Water Watch organizers, volunteers, and community water stewards organized water cleanups across the state for Make A Difference Day. Well over 300 people, dozens of local elected officials, and members of the media around the Commonwealth removed trash, debris, and invasive species that were endangering their local waterways. As part of the Make A Difference Day events, Water Watch organizers joined in with thousands of other AmeriCorps members participating in service projects in local communities across the country. |
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This week we concentrated and targeted the residence halls here at the University of Iowa and we were awesome! Abrianna Gross, abrianna-gross@uoiwa.edu, coordinated the week and it was amazing! We had stations at Burge, Hillcrest and Mayflower and we ended up with a weekly total of nearly 400 registrations! We had 12 new volunteers help and they are all returning to help out with the campus blitz next week! The campus blitz, coordinated by Brant Miller, brant-miller@uiowa.edu, is being sponsored by 5 other student groups including Iowa PIRG. We are set to register 1000 people in just one week and exceed our goal of 2000! Way to go! Just a few more weeks to go- 19 days until Election Day! |
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This week we concentrated and targeted the residence halls here at the University of Iowa and we were awesome! Abrianna Gross, abrianna-gross@uoiwa.edu, coordinated the week and it was amazing! We had stations at Burge, Hillcrest and Mayflower and we ended up with a weekly total of nearly 400 registrations! We had 12 new volunteers help and they are all returning to help out with the campus blitz next week! |
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Des Moines – Today Iowa Secretary of State Michael A. Mauro,