News

News

E-School to research with SAIC

By Prateek Vasireddy | September 25, 2008

The Engineering School is building a working relationship with Fortune 500 company Science Applications International Corporation that is expected to involve scholarships for students, collaborative research and a cyber-security speaker series.SAIC ? a scientific, engineering and technology applications company ? is partnering with the Engineering School through a five-year master research agreement, according to SAIC spokesperson Melissa Koskovich.Koskovich described SAIC as a company that uses its ?deep domain knowledge to solve problems of vital importance to the nation and the world,? focusing on national security, energy and the environment, critical infrastructure and health.

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City continues battle against lack of affordable housing

By Anne Rasmussen | September 25, 2008

With the City of Charlottesville concentrating on the issue of affordable housing, Mayor Dave Norris has expressed concern that the University has a negative impact on the local housing market, primarily through the high volume of students living in city rental housing.

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Weil addresses genealogies, race

By Matt Denton-Edmundson | September 25, 2008

Francois Weil, a French historian and author of a forthcoming book about genealogy and race in 20th-century America, spoke at the University yesterday about his new work.For decades, Weil said, genealogy served to further discrimination through its connection to racism and eugenics.

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Research team creates

By Sarah Wooten | September 25, 2008

After nine years of research, a laboratory team led by Chemistry Prof. James Landers recently accomplished its goal of packaging the process of DNA analysis into what Landers calls a ?Lab on a chip.?The team, which consists of graduate and undergraduate students as well as professors, has been transferring the types of chemical and biochemical processes used to analyze samples of DNA onto a single device, facilitating quicker analysis.The processes the lab team has put onto microchips include extracting DNA from a sample, which could be a ?root of hair, a blood stain on piece of clothing, a saliva sample, [or] cheek swab,? Landers said.This is followed by a polymerase chain reaction, a technique of capturing DNA after it has been released from the cell and then using the microchip to identify target sequences of DNA and amplify the researcher?s section of interest, Landers explained.This allows researchers to identify a part of the human genome to create a ?DNA fingerprint.?By putting the processes on microchips, the genetic analysis uses less of the sample and decreases the amount of time researchers must spend identifying whether the portion of targeted DNA is present within the sample, Asst.

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Casteen addresses declining economy at faculty meeting

By Betsy Graves | September 24, 2008

In its first meeting of the semester yesterday, the Faculty Senate discussed the introduction of the new Human Resources Restructuring System and the effects of the economy on University finances.In his report on University affairs, University President John T.

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Abandoned bag raises suspicion

By Cavalier Daily Staff | September 24, 2008

Police and explosive device personnel responded yesterday morning to a report of a ?suspicious piece of abandoned luggage? in the Dawson?s Row area, near the Office of African-American Affairs, University Police Chief Michael Gibson said.Once officials arrived at the scene, the area surrounding the luggage was cordoned off with yellow caution tape.

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City asks University to raise wages

By Anne Rasmussen | September 24, 2008

In light of affordable housing issues in Charlottesville and economic troubles nationwide, the City of Charlottesville has recently raised city workers? base wage and is encouraging the University to do the same.

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Pell grants seek increased funding for

By Kate Colwell | September 24, 2008

The Federal Pell Grant Program recently predicted it will need an additional $5.9 billion in 2009, as compared to 2008, to support the financial needs of college and university students.Pell grants are need-based grants that promote access to postsecondary education for low-income undergraduate and some post-baccalaureate students.

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Council votes to renew ad-hoc group

By Alexandra Hemenway | September 24, 2008

Last night Student Council passed a piece of legislation that renewed the contract for the ad hoc committee on international student financial aid.?I think this committee did fantastic work last year working on an issue that in the past hasn?t gotten as much attention as it truly deserves,? Council President Matt Schrimper said.

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Knetwit to provide new online study resource for students

By Dalia Mortada | September 24, 2008

Unveiled last week, a new Web site service called Knetwit will serve as a networking site for students and professors who want to upload their class notes, papers and other resources for others to use.The social networking and information-sharing site is free to join and use, and the more a person?s material gets downloaded, the more points a student earns to be redeemed for cash or merchandise from the Knetwit store.The creators of the site, Benjamin Wald and Tyler Jenks, call Knetwit ?knowledge-based social networking,? and Wald said it takes social networking one step further.

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City may have to redraw voting precincts

By Tom Christensen | September 23, 2008

Increased voter registration in the City of Charlottesville in anticipation of the upcoming presidential election has the city facing the possibility of having to redraw voter precincts.

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Third parties compete for votes

By Emily Poe | September 23, 2008

McCain-Palin. Obama-Biden. Nader-Gonzalez? Perhaps to the surprise of some, there are four campaigns aside from the Democratic and Republican ones vying for the White House this November.

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Admission commission criticizes standardized testing

By Chelsea Germano | September 23, 2008

Institutions of higher education should place less of a focus on standardized testing when it comes to admissions decisions, according to a Commission on the Use of Standardized Tests in Undergraduate Admissions report published by the National Association for College Admission Counselling.The report notes that external factors can and will affect how well students score on standardized tests and also states that these tests do not holistically measure students? capabilities.?Access to test preparation will always be differentiated based on family income, school setting, and other variables external to the student,? the report states, outlining the faults it finds with standardized testing.

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University Judiciary Committee works to resolve case overload

By Stephanie Kassab | September 23, 2008

Since returning to Grounds this fall, University Judiciary Committee members have been working toward settling a large case overload from last semester.

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University, others are participants in

By Leeza Kuznetsova | September 23, 2008

College and high school students now have a new way to keep track of important deadlines, following the recent launch of a free, nationwide master calendar and information system for higher education institutions.More than 1,500 four-year colleges and universities, including the University, are now involved with the ?College Life is Cool? Web site, www.theclic.net, which provides students, high schools, colleges and community programs access to information about scholarships, financial aid and application deadlines, according to CLIC network CEO Donna Michelle Anderson.?The CLIC is a useful resource for students because it allows them to access information about any college from just one Web site,? she said.The site is also useful, Anderson said, because it helps students judge and compare different aspects of the college application process, from scholarships and financial aid packages to the individual schools themselves.

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Education grant will fund Curry School students

By Kris Garriott | September 23, 2008

Over the next four years, selected students enrolled in the University?s Early Childhood Special Education Program will be able to alleviate fifth-year tuition costs by tapping into an $800,000 U.S.

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Financial aid group releases proposals

By Katie Bo Williams | September 22, 2008

Rethinking Student Aid, a group of higher education policy experts, published its findings Thursday regarding two years of meetings about simplifying and improving the federal financial aid system.The report focuses on improving both financial aid and the student loan system, said Rethinking Student Aid member Kathleen Little, senior executive director of College Board Financial Aid Programs.

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Facebook could play role in admissions

By Prateek Vasireddy | September 22, 2008

Though some students may believe the practice commonly described as ?Facebook stalking? is limited to their own generation or potential employers, a Kaplan survey has found that social networking profiles are also sometimes reviewed by undergraduate and graduate schools? admissions offices.

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NAACP reacts to letter about affirmative action

By Anne Rasmussen | September 22, 2008

A letter issued by the U.S. Department of Education?s Office for Civil Rights regarding affirmative action has recently been met with protest by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.The OCR?s letter, released Aug.

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Financial crisis affects job prospects

By Emily Poe | September 22, 2008

In light of the recent economic troubles facing the U.S. business market, the Commerce School is stepping up its efforts to prepare students for the job market, especially those interested in investment banking.Tom Fitch, assistant dean of career services at the Commerce School, said Commerce Career Services is trying to give students who want to go into investment banking more options outside of the big banking or ?bulge bracket? firms because a number of those firms have recently filed for bankruptcy.?We might be pointing [Commerce students] in the directions of more alternative types, locations and sizes of firms,? Fitch said.