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Herbert London, president of Husdon Institute, and Anne Neal, president of ACTA, discuss what they call the decline of higher education at a news conference in Washington. SHFWire photo by Shea Northcut

WASHINGTON – Economics, U.S. history, intermediate-level foreign language, mathematics and literature – these subjects are not required at a majority of American liberal-arts universities, according to a study released Monday.

The American Council of Trustees and Alumni released the study “What will they Learn?” comparing more than 700 universities through a detailed review of online catalogs rather than by reputation. Only 16 schools received an “A” (average tuition  $13,200), and more than 100 schools failed (average tuition $28,200).

“Too many schools across the country allowing are college students to graduate with great gaps in their knowledge,” said Anne Neal, ACTA president, at a press conference. “We shouldn’t let education be a hit-or-miss situation.”

The study found that less that 5 percent universities require economics, and less than 20 percent require broad surveys of American history or government.

Some of the schools acing the test include Baylor University, Texas A&M and the University of Arkansas. At the other end, Harvard and Georgetown universities received “Ds,” and Northwestern and Johns Hopkins universities received  “Fs.”

Graduation rates were also at opposite ends of the scale. Vanderbilt University received a “D” in the study but has a graduation rate of 91 percent. East Tennessee State University  received an “A” but graduates 43 percent of its students.

The study evaluated seven elements comprising a liberal arts education: composition, literature, foreign language, U.S. government or history, economics, mathematics and natural or physical science. To receive an “A,” universities had to require six or seven of the core subjects as part of their curriculum.

Some other experts agreed there has been a downward shift in education. Herbert London, president of the Hudson Institute and founder of New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, spoke about the deterioration of education before the study was released.

In his new book, “Decline and Revival in Higher Education,” London provides anecdotal illustrations of what he termed a decline. He said it started in the post-Vietnam period when student radicals “dominated” their institutions.

“Today, freshmen bring almost nothing in, and seniors take even less out,” London said. “The consequence is that you don’t have the level of intelligence you once did.”

Gary Rhoades, general secretary of the American Association of University Professors disagrees. He said it is not that higher education is declining, but the demand for higher education is increasing, and there are not enough educators on campuses.

More than 18.6 million students were enrolled in higher education institutions in 2008, according to the Census Bureau.

“We are a knowledge-based economy,” Rhoades said. “If you are going to increase the percent of students in higher education, then you need to increase human capacity to teach and advise them.”

Budget woes have forced many public university systems to raise tuition. Students at California schools will pay 30 percent more this year than last. At other universities,  increases are in the 3 percent to 4 percent range.

A 2008 study by the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities found that state support for public universities had risen by less than 1 percent over 20 years, while tuition had risen at more than twice the rate of inflation.

Changes in the Consumer Price Index have been near zero for much of the last year.

London said the revival of higher education must come with the activism of the people who help pay the bills – parents, alumni and trustees.

“You find the academy is changing because of the skepticism and the financial pressures that exist,” London said. “People have come to the realization they are no longer confident that this is the institution you can count on.”

ensus Bureau Director Robert Groves emphasizes the phrase “Well Done America” for helping the 2010 census come in $1.6 billion under budget. Census data will be made public Dec. 31. SHFWire photo by Shea Northcut

WASHINGTON – Census officials announced Tuesday that the 2010 survey is $1.6 billion under budget because of strong citizen participation.

The 22 percent savings from a $7.4 billion budget is credited to two central things – a high mail-back rate of census forms and the lack of emergencies, such as a major storm or flu epidemic. Census Bureau officials also said they had better plans than in previous years, and enumerators were more experienced and more productive than they imagined due to a larger hiring pool.

“Paying relentless attention to detail, setting ambitious goals and creating precise metrics to measure performance are principles to make this census a resounding success,” Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said.

Roughly 255,000 community-based organizations – such as religious groups, businesses and nonprofits – partnered with the Census Bureau to encourage people to fill out and return census forms. The bureau used a higher advertising budget to advertise in more languages and to target communities with low response rates in the past.

Of 565,000 temporary census workers who visited homes or telephoned homes that had not returned a form, only 0.2 percent collected inaccurate data, according to Census Bureau Director Robert Groves. The bureau is rechecking the work of those approximately 1,000 workers.

The high level of accuracy saved the bureau $600 million.

The main mission of the decennial census is to provide accurate data to help determine how $400 billion in

federal aid is allocated to communities for such things as education, senior services and roads. It is also used to draw boundaries for congressional districts.

To ensure accuracy, a new field verification operation was used to check addresses of forms mailed in from locations other than homes. Forms were placed at drug stores and other locations to ensure everyone had the ability to respond.

“We are going to stay out in the field until we have a resolution on every address, and we understand the population characteristics in every way we can,” Groves said.

After all major surveys are collected, a final high-quality survey system will be used, a sampling of 187,000 households, or one in 700, across the U.S. to double-check data.

“Interviewers are going to look differently than our enumerators by asking in-depth questions to make sure we have counted that house correctly and will check our census,” he said.

Survey results will be presented to the president and the country Dec. 31. Other more detailed findings, including counts of race and ethnicity, will be released in the following months.

Groves said the bureau is already thinking about the next census in 2020.

“We are heavily focusing for 2020 on how we can radically reduce the cost of the decennial census in the United States without harming the quality. … We are thinking outside of the box,” Groves said.

Tim Duncan and Stephen Heitzman of Houston represent Phoenix Exploration Company. They have had to delay offshore drilling, costing money and resulting in job losses. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

WASHINGTON – Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, joined oil company workers to rally against the oil drilling moratorium at the Capitol Wednesday, saying there are “smarter and better ways to do this.”

Owners of small oil businesses from the Gulf Coast said the halt on exploratory deep-water drilling means further unemployment for all workers.

Cornyn said the moratorium – imposed in May by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar after the April blowout of the BP well – will worsen the country’s 9.5 percent national unemployment rate. This shortsighted moratorium, set to end Nov. 30, will have long-lasting effects, he said.

“A smarter way is one that protects the environment and the people in it, while it doesn’t kill jobs at the same time,” Cornyn said. “We need to be using American energy … not energy from abroad.”

Former Rep. John Peterson, R-Pa., said that, if exploration and production of oil and gas does not occur in the Gulf soon, contractors will move to other parts of the world, leaving costly effects for all Americans – not just for those who are unemployed.

“Oil and gas and all forms of energy are to our economy what blood is flowing through our bodies,” Peterson said. “The Obama administration is choking the artery that provides affordable, available energy to America. … When they do that, our economy could have a heart attack.”

The U.S. imports about 60 percent of its oil and gas energy.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks at a rally outside the Capitol Wednesday alongside oil business owners from Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas who are being affected by the moratorium. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

More than 50 workers from Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana gathered on the Capitol grounds in Gulf-like steaming heat, holding blue signs that said “My Job Matters.”

Stephen Heitzman, president of Phoenix Exploration Co. in Houston, was one of them.

Heitzman’s 4-year-old company has 50 employees – 35 in Texas and 15 in Louisiana. The freeze on oil drilling has slowed down all activities and shut down some businesses in the Gulf of Mexico. He said he was here to fight for his 50 employees who may lose their jobs as a result of the moratorium.

“We are all here to support the effort to let our congressmen know that the activities of one company shouldn’t affect everyone else in the same industry,” he said. “The United States lives on the energy we all provide because we are an energy-based economy.”

The American Energy Alliance organized the rally. It is the grassroots arm of the Institute for Energy Research. Both groups favor less government involvement in the energy business.

Thomas Pyle, AEA president, said he hopes the rally will force policy changes for oil workers.

“We are here to help shine the light on real impacts this is having on small businesses,” Pyle said. “We all pay at the pump, energy is embedded in everything and policy makers need to see the long-term impact this will make on our economy.”

Max Moen, 10, is an autistic child who is about to start fourth grade. His mother, Mary Moen, testified that their family was frustrated over waiting lists as long as six to 12 months at facilities that offered autism treatments when Max was first diagnosed. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

WASHINGTON – Genes and the environment – these are two things researchers are looking into as the cause of autism.

Despite popular belief that genetics are the main cause of autism, researchers are finding links between genetics and environmental factors that trigger the disability. But there is still more research needed to confirm the connection.

Four experts and a parent discussed autism research at a Senate subcommittee hearing Tuesday, emphasizing the need for continuing this research.

Isaac N. Pessah, director of University of California Davis Center for Children’s Environmental Health and Disease Prevention, said there are genes associated with autism, but effects of the gene may only be expressed in a given environment.

“When you look at the percent of cases which have these genetic malfunctions, for each gene, it’s less than 1 percent and no greater than 20 percent,” Pessah said. “There is a large fraction of autism that hasn’t been attributed to genetic contribution.”

More than 80,000 chemicals in use today are consistent with the neurological disorders found in autism.

Pessah explained how molecular systems associated with autism are the same as the “environmental toxicants” of concern to human health. Some toxicants include lead, tobacco, PCBs and mercury.

Linda Birnbaum, director of the National Institute of Environmental and Health Sciences and National Toxicology Program, said research on environmental factors is crucial for families dealing with autism.

“The importance of understanding the environmental triggers of disease is that you can change your environment, but at this point you can’t change your genes,” she said.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 3,000 chemicals are classified as high-production volume, meaning more than a million pounds per year are produced or imported. More than 40 percent of those chemicals have not been tested for toxicity.

Paul Anastas, EPA assistant administrator for research and development and science, said most companies do not test chemicals because the results must be turned over to the government.

Scientists are trying to identify classes of compounds that can trigger a variety of disorders to which children are susceptible – one in six American children has a developmental problem.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said it is crucial for scientists to identify and regulate these chemical classes rather than banning one chemical at a time. Banning them quickly will prevent more children from developing autism, she said.

“Children are more susceptible to environmental dangers than adults,” Klobuchar said. “They are exposed to toxins easier than adults because their immune systems are still developing. … It’s not going to be solved overnight, but at this point, everyone is aware of  the connection, and we need to keep this research going.”

Mary Moen, a former teacher and the mother of an autistic son, Max, 10, of Minneapolis, said her family thought there was a genetic link when Max was diagnosed at age 3. He has a 48-year-old aunt with suspected autism.

Max will enter the fourth grade soon at his neighborhood school after spending some time at a school with a program for children with autism.

“I do not believe we can come to simple conclusions when it comes to the cause-and-effects of such a complex disorder as autism,” Moen said. “While there is an urgent and growing need for resources for early identification and intervention … it is also imperative that we focus resources on continued research so that we can one day identify its cause.”

Bride-to-be Amanda Matthews, 24, drags many dresses to try on to a spot staked out by her team of seven. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

WASHINGTON – As a bride prepares for her wedding day, she has one mission in mind: Find the perfect dress.

This was the goal for hundreds of brides as they stormed through the doors of Filene’s Basement after hearing, “3-2-1 … go!” at the Running of the Brides here Friday.

From traditional lace to elaborate beading to poofy ball gowns to form-fitting dresses and from white satin to cream chiffon – brides chose their ideal gowns from 1,700 discounted dresses. Designer dresses normally priced from $900 to $10,000 sold for $249, $499 or $699.

After racing through the entrance trying not to fall – several people did – teams wearing matching shirts and carrying signs listing their desirable dress sizes cleared the racks in less than a minute. Dresses ranging from size 2 to 26 flew left and right as people grabbed as many as their hands could hold.

Bride-to-be Amanda Matthews, 24, a doctoral student in molecular medicine at George Washington University, developed a strategy with team “Woermanda” (a combination of Amanda and future last name Woerman). The seven members included school friends, a bridesmaid and the mothers of both the bride and groom. They all wore dark purple shirts with the team name on the front and their first names on the back. Matthews wore spandex shorts and a leotard, the better to change clothes in public.

“I picked go-getters that can be aggressive and competitive. … I even have a veteran who did this last year,” Matthews said. “Even though I’ve been having butterflies for the past week, I think this will be fun and a great bonding experience.”

Brides make piles of dresses to try on in hopes of finding the perfect one. SHFW photo by Shea Northcut

Lining up Thursday at 9 p.m. gained “Woermanda” the fourth spot in line when the doors opened at 8 a.m. The team scouted the store the night before and celebrated with Georgetown cupcakes (as featured in the TLC series) provided by her fiancé, Matt Woerman. They had two lawn chairs, other snacks and bridal magazines to last the night. Mother-of-the-bride Jan Matthews, 55, traveled from Idaho Falls, Idaho, because she said she “wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

“By doing this, we can get a lot more than we could have ever afforded otherwise,” Jan Matthews said. “It’s a memory I know we will never forget.”

When Amanda Matthews started trying on the dresses in a corner the team staked out containing a dressing room and rack for the dresses, each team member assumed her or his role.

Her bridesmaid held the mirror. Her mom zipped dresses up and down. The veteran and her husband traded dresses with other brides. Everyone was feeling the heat as two hours passed and dress after dress came on and off.

But it wasn’t all about the competition for Matthews. She made a “bride best friend,”  Mide Banwo, 32, of Washington, who was trying on dresses a few feet away.

“We traded dress sizes, and the next thing we new, we both found the perfect dress,” Matthews said.

Matthews is a new “bride best friend” with Mide Banwo, 32. They traded dresses and found the perfect fit. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

After completing the initial try-on rounds, re-examining the maybes and analyzing the final round of five dresses, Matthews decided on not one, but three dresses – one at $499 for the ceremony, a reception gown at $249 that will be easier to dance in and a third for $249 to sell on eBay. She hopes to finance a celebration dinner for her team. This brought her total to $1,056.82.

“This experience is something I can’t even put into words,” Matthews said. “It was overwhelming at times, but I am walking away with three dresses for a thousand dollars … you just can’t beat that.”

Even though her wedding is not until May 2012, Matthews said this experience helped make it “much more tangible.”

Five Filene’s Basement stores brought in more than 100 workers, including security guards, for the sale, which was to last until 9 p.m. Friday. Dana Booker, Filene’s store manager, said the store would re-open for normal business Saturday.

“It’s a lot of work, but you get involved in the excitement of it all,” Booker said. “When you see those brides, and they get their dresses, it’s all worth it.”

The Running of the Brides originated in Boston in 1947. It traveled from Chicago last week and is going to Boston in August.

Watch hundreds of brides and their teams race to find the perfect dress:

Watch bride-to-be Amanda Matthews journey to find her perfect dress:

Karen Novack, Capital Segway tour guide, instructs Deb Baker, 45, of Tipp City, Ohio, about how to ride a Segway. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

WASHINGTON – From the White House to the steps of the Capitol all the way to the Lincoln Memorial, tourists can see Washington in an unconventional way – on the wheels of a Segway.

D.C. attracts more than 16 million tourists a year, and about 500 each week cover 6.5 miles of the capital’s streets and sidewalks in two hours on a Segway.

Karen Novack has been a guide for four years at Capital Segway, one of several companies that offer Segway tours here.

She arrives 30 minutes before each of her tours, usually one or two per day. Prepping the Segways is one of her main tasks, making sure their batteries are charged and the two tires are full.

Novack, 29, said she originally wanted to do a walking or biking tour for better exercise. But once she stepped on the machine, she decided it was too much fun to pass up.

“D.C. is a really big city, and the Metro can’t take you all the places you want to go,” Novack said. “This is a great way to see everything in a short amount of time, and it adds adventure to your normal tour.”

Karen Novack talks in front of the White House using a microphone. Tourists use headphones to hear her while riding on a Segway. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

The machines were introduced to the public in 2001 and are used by police departments, at military bases and for those with handicaps. They use gyroscope technology, meaning riders shift their weight to move the machine and balance.

Riders lean forward to speed up and backward to back up. With a slight tilt to the left or right, riders can turn around to see over their shoulders. Segways weigh 105 pounds. The batteries last six hours, and the machine can travel up to 24 miles on one charge.

Deb Baker, 45, an information technology technician, and her daughter, Michelle Baker, 20, a college student, of Tipp City, Ohio, came to visit a friend, but wanted to see the city. They agreed it was well worth the $65 fare ($70 on weekends) just to ride a Segway. The hardest part at first was finding their balance, they said.

“Once you catch your balance, it seems natural to ride,” Deb Baker said. “It was fun, and I would do this again in any city I visit.”

Traveling in the street or on the sidewalk at up to 12.5 mph, tourists at least 16 years old can see more than 20 popular sites, including the White House, Smithsonian museums and the Washington Monument. Novack said with only eight people per tour, she uses her main passion of acting to keep things exciting and interesting.

Segway tour groups see more than 20 popular sites including the Washington Monument and the Jefferson Memorial. Of all tourists visiting Washington in 2008, 44 percent took a tour or went sightseeing. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

“You can’t just recite the facts, or they’re going to get bored or zip away,” she said. “You definitely have to cater the tour to who is on it … some people want to just ride them and go fast, and others want to see everything.”

Although she doesn’t use a script as she does for acting, Novack said each guide trains for a month to learn the ropes. This includes memorizing the tour route and city history, shadowing other guides and knowing the proper timing of a tour.

After becoming comfortable with the route, she said she is able to include her own monologues.

One of them includes how “the first elevator in the Washington Monument was steam powered and considered somewhat dangerous, so men only were allowed to ride in it … women and the children, for safety, would walk the 897 steps to the top.”

Although temperatures can top 100 degrees in the summer and drop below freezing in the winter, Novack said the job is well worth it.

She uses multiple modes of transportation – commuting to her job by car and biking around town. She likes her car best but has become fond of the Segway.

“I never saw myself doing this 10 years ago,” Novack said. “I don’t know what the next stage holds, but I might have to purchase a Segway if I’m not giving tours.”

Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman says the NTSB is asking Metro to take a look at its track circuits to make sure it is safe. By making rail agencies aware that failure modes exist, systems can be replaced and prevent future accidents. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

WASHINGTON – Rail transit systems need to make more than 20 changes in the way they operate to ensure the safety of millions of people who use them every day.

The National Transportation Safety Board adopted recommendations Tuesday for transportation agencies nationwide, following a yearlong investigation into the deadliest crash in the history of the Washington Metro system.

Recommendations included removing track circuit modules from service – the devices that should have detected two trains were too close to each other – having the Federal Transit Administration collect and review reports from employees in all divisions of transit agencies and for the U.S. Department of Transportation to provide safety oversight of rail transportation systems.

Rail transit agencies are now supervised by states. The Obama administration is supporting a bill to have the federal government monitor rail transit.

NTSB will publish the final draft of its report in three to four weeks. Its recommendations are not binding on transit agencies.

NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman said the safety board has a responsibility to look back at the causes and look forward for direct leadership.

“We do have an opportunity and the obligation to take every step possible to ensure that the lessons of this tragedy are well-learned and that the circumstances are never repeated,” Hersman said.

Kenneth Hawkins, 52, the brother of crash victim Dennis Hawkins, says his family is still coping with the pain of his brother’s death in the 2009 crash. He attended the daylong NTSB meeting on the accident. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

On Monday, June 22, 2009, at 4:58 p.m., two Washington Metro trains collided, killing nine people and injuring 52. Both were going in the same direction on the same track.

Metro has had six accidents in the past decade. Hersman said that “because the necessary preventive measures were not taken, the only question was when would Metro have another accident.”

The board looked into Metro’s the train control system, signal and train controls and safety culture and oversight.

Ruben Payan, an NTSB senior rail investigator, explained the main problem stemmed from a parasitic oscillation, meaning ­­­­­­errors in train detection. He said these errors might have existed at least 20 years before the accident. The crash could have been prevented by  using updated testing procedures, Payan said.

“Five days before the accident, the midnight crew had the opportunity, had they done a three-shunt test to see the track wasn’t functioning,” Payan explained. “The following day, the daytime crew was doing their scheduled maintenance test, but used the old procedure, so they missed the opportunity to identify the track circuit as malfunctioning.”

NTSB also found other safety problems. For instance, there were thousands of incidents per week with malfunctions in track circuits. Metro was not testing equipment that could have identified the irregularities that led to the crash.

Another issue was Metro’s overall safety culture.

The investigation found that, on the day of the accident, the train that was hit by the oncoming train was being driven in manual mode instead of automatic and was going under the speed command of 55 mph. This was considered a violation of safety rules.

The draft report said Metro’s local safety oversight board was ineffective, that the Metro Board – mostly made up of local elected officials – did not provide adequate oversight, that the chief safety operator didn’t have enough resources and authority and that Metro placed a low priority on addressing malfunctions in the train control systems.

Kenneth Hawkins, 52, the brother of Dennis Hawkins, 63, who died at the crash, attended the daylong meeting and said his family has not found normalcy in their lives. He said Metro has not done its part to acknowledge the accident was its fault.

Interim general manager Richard Sarles says that Washington’s Metro will evaluate each recommendation and is already making changes. SHFWphoto by Shea Northcut

“We have felt like we are being punished for something we didn’t do, and there has been no one out there to be an advocate for us,” Hawkins said. “Those nine lives are gone, but now there are 226,000 individuals that ride the Metro every day.”

Richard Sarles, Metro’s interim general manager, said Metro has no higher value than safety for customers and employees. He said Metro is issuing a contract to buy new rail cars to replace the old 1000 series rail cars that crumpled in the accident. But those cars won’t be ready for use until 2013.

The system, which straddles Washington and suburban Maryland and Virginia, has allocated $30 million for safety improvements over the next three years.

“We are going to take a look at every recommendation and take each one to heart and I am going to do as much as I can to move forward,” Sarles said.