This reports builds on from the previous report "Parliamentary Privilege--The Candidates" and examines the backgrounds of Members of Parliament (MPs) in the new House of Commons. The following findings are discussed: (1) Almost a third (32%) of MPs in the new House of Commons was privately educated. This means that the new House is only…

When U.S. Sen. Barack Obama launched his bold bid in 2007 for the presidency of the United States, the contingency of college-aged voters was paramount to deciding the outcome of the election. As in past big election years, college students mobilized in large numbers, that year mostly rallying to Obama's call to help him lead a major turnaround in…

The recent midterm elections brought New England two new governors. Rhode Island elected its first woman chief executive in Gina Raimondo (D). Massachusetts elected Charlie Baker (R), a former Harvard Pilgrim CEO and official in the Weld and Cellucci administrations. Otherwise, the New England corner offices cautiously welcomed back incumbents:…

The nation's next President will face a host of challenges, among them the economy, health care, an aging population, energy, the environment, and security at home and aboard. In this open letter, the leaders of higher education coordinating and governing boards across the country urge the 2012 presidential candidates to make improving the…

During the three presidential debates this fall, both John McCain and Barack Obama opened by thanking their university hosts. If not for their locations, it's likely one would not have heard the words "college," "university," or "higher education" even uttered in the debates. Indeed, it wasn't until the final debate that Senator McCain mentioned…

Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has announced she will retire as soon as a replacement is nominated and confirmed. Article discusses O'Connor's ruling and comments on education-related cases, possible judicial nominees, and pending or upcoming cases related to higher education.

The authors evaluate the positions of the 2008 Presidential Primary Candidates, and rate the quality of information provided by their campaign websites. Personal insights on the issue are offered as well. (Contains 3 tables.) [This document was published by the Educational Policy Institute (EPI).]

In June 1997 a 25-minute television interview program, "The SAU Report," was born at Southern Arkansas University. In January 1998 a 15-minute radio news program titled "SAU Magazine" was produced by Advanced Radio Production students. As 1998 began, with coverage available for SAU student broadcasts, it made sense to encourage…

Analyzes selected 1992 Year of the Woman political ads in the light of the 1980s theory and practice which suggests that women should present both their public and private worlds to voters. Finds that women used more appeals from the private world, in fragmented, polyphonic narratives. (SR)

Scholars can learn much from analyzing discourse within a statewide political debate. A study used W. R. Fisher's theory of narrative rationality to analyze the first intra-party debate (April 16, 1990) between Republican candidates for Governor of Arkansas, Sheffield Nelson and Tommy Robinson, to ascertain the narrative rationality employed by…

Examines voters' evaluative structures used in making decisions about political candidates, specifically regarding election level and candidates' incumbent-challenger status. Concludes that incumbent positioning affects perceptual criteria formation for candidates. Reports that voting behavior predictions can be made when candidate idiosyncracies…

Finds enhanced recall of political television commercials from content domains of family and appearance in the case of women as opposed to men candidates, and enhanced recall from the domain of campaign activities in the case of men as opposed to women candidates. Finds that men's attack ads on women elicited greater emotional reaction than…

Reports evidence that George W. Bush's financial and political success has been linked to the two richest university endowments in the United States--Harvard University and the University of Texas System, specifically the University of Texas Investment Management Company. Notes that officials of both universities' management companies denied any…

Never before has a college degree been more essential to an individual's prosperity in the United States. Nor have colleges ever been asked to play a more crucial part in preparing citizens for a global economy. Yet finding a way to erase persisting inequities in who earns a college degree has proved difficult. With a new generation that is more…

Analyzes concession speeches by defeated presidential candidates from 1952 to 1992 to show consistent patterns of strategy, style, and content. Explains that the candidate's dilemma is resolved in the concession speech by an elaborate periphrasis that converts the combative energy of defeat into metaphors of sport, chivalry, and epic quest. (TB)