Information technology, or IT, has entered into almost every part of modern life, and higher education is no exception.
Yet while many businesses and governments continue to invest in IT products and services, higher education in the United States seems to be following a different path.
Research suggests that many U.S. colleges and universities have limited their spending on IT. Some experts argue this is not only harming the schools and their programs, but also the experiences of their students.
A group called the Campus Computing Project studies how American higher education uses information technology. Since 1990, it has published a yearly report on technology-related issues on college and university campuses.
In October, the group released its latest findings, after contacting IT leaders from 242 public and private schools across the country. It asked those responsible for operating campus IT services about how much school administrators supported their work. Their answers were less than favorable.
Many of the IT leaders noted that their departments have faced serious cuts to their budgets in recent years. And about two-thirds said their schools have done little to provide them with the financial resources necessary to recover from those cuts.
Over 79 percent of those leaders questioned said budget cuts made it difficult for them to keep their employees from seeking jobs elsewhere.
​The importance of campus IT
Kenneth Green is the founding director of the Campus Computing Project. He says that information technology is linked to higher education in more ways than most people understand. For example, before students even think about attending a college or university, they often research the school by visiting its website.
But that is only a small part of IT’s usefulness to a school, Green said. He added that more and more professors are using technology to improve their educational materials and connect with other educators. Schools use online databases to collect information about their students. And students use the internet to do research, register for classes, and even pay for their college education.
Green suggested that a big part of the problem is budget issues that are out of the control of school officials. This is especially true at public education institutions, which depend on money from the government. He noted that during the recession of 2008, most state governments reduced their spending on higher education.
The U.S. economy has greatly improved since then, but an increase in financial support for higher education has not followed, he added.
 “We have this … exploding demand … and not enough money,” Green told VOA. “At a college or university, you have … competing groups saying, ‘Over here, over here! We need money to do this.’ And … leadership has to make some hard choices.”
Green said it is not as if school officials undervalue the importance of strong, modern IT systems. But it is difficult to keep IT systems operating if the best workers feel they can find better jobs elsewhere.
​Where is the money really going?
However, Adam McQuinn argues that if schools really understood the importance of IT, they would not choose to spend money in unnecessary ways.
McQuinn is with the Information Technology Innovation Foundation, a non-profit research group not involved in the Campus Computing Project study. He notes the study identifies issues that have been developing in higher education for years. But instead of dealing with those issues, many schools have increased spending in areas other than IT.
For example, a 2017 George Mason University study found that colleges and universities added a large number of administrative employees between 2001 and 2011. That number increased 50 percent faster than the number of classroom teachers added during the period.
McQuinn said that many of these administrative positions do not directly relate to student learning or the success of students. And they come at the sacrifice of important services, such as IT.
Instead, colleges and universities should accept that investment in IT products and services can actually reduce operating costs, he said. That is because technology can remove the need for workers to do things like record keeping, preparing documents and requesting money for research.
“One of the major problems that we see here is that different institutions are treating IT as a cost center rather than a strategic investment that can pay off,” McQuinn said.
He added that some schools have tried to spread the cost of things like IT by increasing other costs for students. But with the cost of U.S. higher education rising, schools should be trying to reduce financial barriers, he said. And there should be more efforts like a recent Department of Education program that pays for improvements to IT security training systems at community colleges.
The Campus Computing Project’s Kenneth Green said that schools need to get a better picture of how well their IT services are operating. His study found that only about 20 percent of the 242 colleges and universities have a process of examining the benefits of technology on their campuses.
“We talk about the power … of technology,” Green said. “But it’s still the case that a lot of the decision making is done with opinion or epiphany. We don’t do a good job, at least in the United States, about gathering evidence and doing research about our investments in technology.”
I’m Pete Musto. And I’m Dorothy Gundy.
 
Pete Musto reported this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
We want to hear from you. How important do you think technology is in higher education? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.
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Quiz
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Words in This Story
 
campus(es) – n. the area and buildings around a university, college, or school
favorable – adj. expressing approval
online – adj. done over the Internet
institution(s) – n. an established organization
strategic – adj. useful or important in achieving a plan
benefit(s) – n. a good or helpful result or effect
epiphany – n. a moment in which you suddenly see or understand something in a new or very clear way(2018/11/18 08:02)

 
Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories.
On today’s show about English words and expressions, we are going to talk about bread.  
Now, most countries around the world have some sort of bread in their food culture. 
No matter what shape or flavor it has, bread sustains people. It not only helps them to survive but also to feel satisfied and comfortable.
Maybe that is how the word “bread” got its slang meaning. You see, “bread” -- and the raw form “dough” – both can mean “money.”
In the song “I Get Around,” the Beach Boys sing about “making real good bread” to attract women. And they do not mean a baguette!
I get around,
From town to town,
I'm a real cool head,
I'm makin' real good bread ...
 
If you make a lot of “bread” at a job, your employer is paying you well. On the other hand, if you are out of bread, you do not have any way to pay for your expenses. You are broke!
Using bread and dough this way may sound a little outdated. But you will hear it used that way. So, it's good to know. And bread meaning money is used in several English expressions.
Take for example, this very current, common and useful expression -- breadwinner.
Even though “bread” here means "money," the word breadwinner does not mean someone who has won money in a competition.
A “breadwinner” is a person who makes money for others. They are the ones who pay the bills in a family. They support or provide for dependents. So, we can also call a breadwinner a “provider.”
Let’s hear it used in this example.
A: I saw Elsa the other day. She looked so tired. What’s going on?
B: She has a lot of pressure on her right now. Her parents are both really sick. So, she is now the breadwinner for her whole family!
A: Oh, wow! Doesn’t she have a brother in college?
B: Yeah. And her grandfather lives with the family. So, she has to provide for all of them.
A: No wonder she looked so tired. She has to support a lot of dependents on one salary.
To throw another food expression into the discussion, the breadwinner in a family is also the person who brings home the bacon. These days, some people also use “cheese” to mean money. Put bread, bacon and cheese together and you have a lot of money not to mention a really tasty sandwich!
Now, if you are the sole breadwinner for your family, it is important that you keep your job. It would be cruel for someone to take the bread out of your mouth. That does not mean they stole your sandwich while you were eating it.
This expression means they took away your ability to make money -- your livelihood. And that would be terrible for your whole family! If you lose your livelihood you could end up on the breadline.
A "breadline" is a line of people seeking food from a charity or government agency. In the 1930s during the economic depression in the United States, it was common to see hundreds of people in big cities waiting on breadlines.
So, being “on the breadline” describes someone who depends on food donations to survive.
And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories. We do have some other “bread” expressions but they will have to wait for another time.
I’m Anna Matteo.
 
All the way from Washington
Her breadwinner begs off the bathroom floor
We live for just these twenty years
Do we have to die for the fifty more?
All night, He was the young American
Young American, young American
 
Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. At the end of the show, David Bowie sings “Young Americans.”
In your language, does “bread” also mean money? Are the breadwinner in your family? Let us know in the Comments Section!
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Words in This Story
 
flavor – n. the quality of something that you can taste
sustain – v. to provide what is needed for something or someone to exist, continue, etc.
slang – n. words that are not considered part of the standard vocabulary of a language and that are used very informally in speech especially by a particular group of people
raw – adj. not cooked
dough – n. a mixture of flour, water, and other ingredients that is baked to make bread, cookies, etc.
broke – adj.  not having any money
outdated – adj. no longer current
sole – adj. to be the only one
livelihood – n. a way of earning money in order to live(2018/11/18 08:00)

 
In the picturesque Himalayan mountains of northern India, the Book Café looks like a normal cafe. But it is part of a bold social experiment.
Jai Chand works at the café. On a rainy day, he takes orders from customers -- many of them young college students.
But he and others working at the café are unlike most employees. Found guilty of major crimes and sentenced to life in prison – they are convicts.
However, they are serving their sentences at one of India’s “open” prisons.
At the Shimla Kaithu Prison, a few prisoners, such as Jai Chand, can walk out of the jail without supervision. Then they return to the prison after a day's work.
“I hope I once again get the opportunity to be a part of society. I hope I too will be able to laugh and play with my children."
At first, some people worried about prisoners interacting with society and operating the café. But it did not take long for the Himalayan town of Shimla to quickly accept the prisoners.
College students are among the many customers who drop by the café for reasonably priced food prepared in the prison. Some take what they buy to eat later. Others stay and read from newspapers, magazines and, of course, books.
True to its name, the Book Café has shelves and shelves of books for customers to read.
VOA spoke with one of the students who goes to the café. Dressed in a sharp-looking suit, he says the customers find the café’s workers to be kind and normal.
"I could not believe that they ever had committed a crime. I think that they are normal persons and they are just leading their life."
Some distance away, three other life convicts sell rice and curry dishes from a food truck. Planning meals and dealing with customers has completely changed the life of one of these convicts.
Bhupinder Singh was found guilty of murder charges and has spent 18 years in prison. Singh says that working outside the prison has awakened him.
"When I was in jail only my body was living. I was mentally dead. Since coming here, now along with my body, my mind also works. I meet people. I can dream of a better future. When I am released, I have learned a skill that I can use."
The success of this work program has led to more prison convicts working outside of jail, says Somesh Goyal. He is the Director General of Prisons in Himachal Pradesh.
Goyal explains that they choose the prisoners for the program based on their behavior as well as their importance to their families. So, well-behaved prisoners who were also the main breadwinners for their families are the first to be selected.
He says the program is helping the prisoners overcome mental issues that often come from prison life.
The program, Goyal explains, gives the prisoners back their humanity. The prisoners say they feel more human and normal. Also, people in society with whom they interact, begin to see them as human and normal too.
"They interact with people; they meet family members; they can keep a mobile phone also. So, it helps them integrate with the society and feel human. And wherever they go and work, those people also think they're as human or as normal as people outside the prison." 
Perhaps, with more programs such as this, other prisoners can reclaim a place in society once their debt to society is paid.
I’m Anna Matteo.
 
Anjana Pasricha reported this story for VOA News. Anna Matteo adapted her report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
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Words in This Story
 
picturesque – adj. very pretty or charming : like a painted picture
bold – adj. showing or calling for courage or daring
convict – n. a person convicted of and under sentence for a crime
interact – v. to act upon one another
sharp – adj. stylish, dressy
breadwinner – n. a member of a family whose wages supply its livelihood
integrate – v. to make (a person or group) part of a larger group or organization(2018/11/18 07:55)

 
The 67th Miss Universe beauty pageant will take place December 16 in Bangkok, Thailand.
The competition will include young women from around the world representing their countries. But one South American country, Chile, will not be represented by a native Chilean.
Instead, Andrea Diaz, a native of Venezuela will have that honor.
Diaz grew up in Valencia, Venezuela. She began training as a model at age 12 at a school there. At 19, she won a pageant organized by her town’s baseball team.
As Diaz moved along her career path, she also moved away from home. She went first to Panama, and later to Mexico, for modeling jobs. In 2015, she settled in Chile, where most of her family members now live.
The 27-year-old woman told the Associated Press, “I represent the new Chile. This is an inclusive country where immigrants come in search of opportunities.”
Thousands of people leave Venezuela each day to escape a lack of food and medicine in the country. Its economic crisis has created an almost 1 million percent inflation rate. Many beauty pageant hopefuls have left Venezuela and have found work in modeling and media fields.
Diaz is one of several Venezuelan beauty pageant competitors representing countries other than their homeland. Next month, a Venezuelan competitor will represent Portugal at the Miss World event in China. And, a recent Miss Earth pageant had two Venezuelan models who competed for other countries, including Jessica Russo.
Russo represented Peru just one year after moving to the country. She told the AP, “My dream of being a beauty queen was not going to stop just because I arrived in a new country.”
The 22-year-old competitor did not make it into the Miss Earth finals. But she is not giving up. She says she hopes to one day win a competition for Peru, the country where her mother was born.
Beauty pageants are followed almost as closely as baseball in Venezuela. The South American country is a world leader in international pageants. Seven Miss Universe and six Miss World winners have been from Venezuela.
Critics say beauty competitions are sexist and outdated. But many Venezuelans argue that pageants have helped hundreds of women gain careers as models, actors, news announcers and more.
I’m Jonathan Evans.
 
Manuel Rueda and Eva Vergara reported this story for the Associated Press news service. Jonathan Evans adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.
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Words in This Story
 
pageant – n. a beauty contest
opportunities – n. chances(2018/11/18 07:55)

 
Seven women took legal action Thursday against Dartmouth College in the American state of New Hampshire.
The women say three science professors at the school sexually attacked, abused or harassed them. They say the school permitted the professors, all men, to create a culture within their department that supported extreme alcohol use, partying and other conditions that led to sexual crimes.
The accused professors are William Kelley, Paul Whalen and Todd Heatherton. They worked in Dartmouth’s Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.
The accusers say the professors harassed and touched women sexually, often while partying at drinking places or at the professors’ homes.
Kelley and Whalen are each accused of attacking a student after a night of drinking. They also are accused of trying to get women to have sex with them and punishing those who refused.
The lawsuit says the seven plaintiffs are all scientists and students. It says they were “sexually harassed and sexually assaulted by the Department’s tenured professors and were expected to tolerate increasing levels of sexual predation.”
Dartmouth’s president, Philip Hanlon, praised the women for coming forward. He sent an email to the college community Thursday. It said the college “remains open to a fair resolution of the students’ claims through an alternative to the court process.”   
However, Dartmouth has denied accusations that it ignored reports of sex abuse that go back as far as 2002.
The school launched an investigation into the three professors in October 2017. It never released the findings but said it was preparing to dismiss all three. Heatherton retired after being told he would be dismissed. Whalen and Kelley also later resigned.
The Associated Press could not reach Whalen and Kelley for comment.
Heatherton apologized for his poor behavior at conferences. But he said, through a lawyer, that he never socialized or had sexual relations with students. He also said he did not know of such behavior by the other two professors, nor would he have approved it.
His lawyer added, "Professor Heatheron is extremely concerned about being grouped together with the other...professors."
The lawsuit describes an environment in which women’s careers were dependent on men interested mainly in drinking and having sex with the women. Those who refused to go to parties were often professionally ignored, the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit also says the three professors would try to “groom” incoming students to make it easier to abuse them. The professors would make comments about students’ physical appearances, give them special attention and then repeatedly ask them to go drink at local places or during professional conferences. If the women agreed, the professors would then seek to get them drunk and have sex with them, the lawsuit says.
Kristina Rapuano is one of the seven plaintiffs. She claims that, in 2014, Whalen forcibly put his hands inside her clothing when she visited his office.
About a year later, Rapuano went to a conference with Kelley. She says Kelley “got her drunk” and raped her. The lawsuit does not say whether Rapuano went to police.
Rapuano also says Kelley continued to pressure her sex. When she refused, Rapuano said Kelley became angry and stopped giving her with academic guidance. He also tried to interfere with her research, Rapuano says.
Rapuano finished her doctoral degree at Dartmouth this spring. She told the Associated Press, “For me, it became a situation where I felt trapped and I couldn’t get away from it because getting away from it meant leaving the career that I had worked so hard to get.”
Vassiki Chauhan is another plaintiff. She is still a student at Dartmouth.  She claims that Whalen raped her at his home. Chauhan said she sought medical attention after the rape. The lawsuit does not say whether she went to the police.
Chauhan says that everyone within the department knew about the three professors’ behavior. But no one spoke up or took action, she says.
Dartmouth College is a private university in the small town of Hanover, New Hampshire. It is one of the eight so-called Ivy League schools, and the ninth-oldest university in the United States. It was an all-men's school until 1972. 
I’m Ashley Thompson.
And I'm Caty Weaver.
 
The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.
Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.
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Words in This Story
 
harass - n. to annoy or bother (someone) in a constant or repeated way
party - v. a social event in which entertainment, food, and drinks are provided
lawsuit - n. a process by which a court of law makes a decision to end a disagreement between people or organizations
plaintiff - n.  a person who sues another person or accuses another person of a crime in a court of law 
assault - v. the crime of trying or threatening to hurt someone physically
tenured - adj. involving the right to keep a job (especially the job of being a professor at a college or university) for as long as you want to have it
tolerate - v. to accept the feelings, behavior, or beliefs of (someone)
(sexual) predation - n. the act of preying on someone to abuse them
alternative - n. offering or expressing a choice
groom - v. to prepare someone for a particular activity or purpose 
 (2018/11/18 07:41)