Safe Spaces

As the new school year begins and I begin my work with 18-45-year-old students, one thing I hear most from students: Am I receiving value in my education and is there security and inclusivity in my learning?

Notwithstanding security; will these students be inspired and supported by their teachers and their administrators? “What will they learn and how will they establish good habits for study and physical and mental health.” Will they be happy? Will they be safe?

What is safe? Who is accountable? The student? The teacher? The bureaucracy? I believe all are accountable.

“The idea of a safe space – in the broadest terms, the attempt to make sure all students are made to feel welcome in or outside the classroom – has become a favorite target of critics who claim to worry about the preservation of free speech on campus.”

The coddling of students who feel fragile, instead of teaching students to find resources in themselves to deal with distress and anxiety, some schools offer late night cookies and puppies. To treat students as customers who must be kept happy at all costs, can be a simpler, and more profitable model than challenging the student to figure it out and deal with it.

With mental health and suicide crises emerging on some campuses, the model of taking steps to protect and nurture students emotionally and physically is a good one.

Thus, we see the problem parents, teachers, and administrators have in creating a safe and challenging space.

For different people at different times, safety can mean different things, but the baseline is certainly physical security. Students today are protecting themselves more, which is a good thing. What I worry about in this model of safe spaces is in fact encouraging the isolation of groups of students from questions and issues that might take them outside their comfort spaces.

Today in our culture groups are siloing themselves in bubbles that protect them from competing points of view; this through social media and economic segregation. Our campuses should be safe but also places that encourage intellectual diversity with scholarly exchange and academic freedom.

Respect, inclusion, academic freedom, all promote an encompassing “safe space”. Students and their families make huge sacrifices and commitments to seek learning. It is the responsibility of teachers, administrators, and civic leaders to make this happen.

LABOR DAY 2019 - Happy Labor Day! Thanks to all who labor while some of us get a few last hours of summer. And so sorry for all those in Dorian's track — Godspeed for the hours ahead.

On this Labor Day 2019 America has half as many union members today as 35 years ago.

The percentage of U.S. workers who are union members fell from 20.1% in 1983 to just 10.5% in 2018, according to the Pew Research Center.

Dying union membership has been most pronounced in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — all states where manufacturing employment has plummeted, and President Trump won in 2016.

The main reasons for the decline, according to Brookings:

•          The shift from manufacturing to a services-based economy.

•          More people are getting college degrees, and workers with a high school degree or less have typically been more likely to have union jobs.

•          The rise of tech, with the attraction of more high-paying, nonunion jobs for the highest-skilled workers.

•          Deregulation, which made it easier for nonunion employers to compete.

•          The spread of right-to-work legislation, which allows for some workers to receive the benefits of unions without paying dues.

•          Aggressive employers who have used tactics like delaying union elections, hiring consultants to help fight unionization and publicly opposing unions.

Public sector unions have maintained their strength over the past several decades, according to Brookings.

But a recent Supreme Court decision preventing public sector unions from collecting fees from nonunion employees could hurt membership.

If you’re fortunate enough to have Labor Day off from work, the most important thing on your to-do list today is to actually take the day off. Studies have shown that people send only 40 percent less email on holiday Mondays compared with regular Mondays. (Thank you, smartphones and tablets.) Not only that but taking time to let your brain rest and recover “literally makes us more creative, better at problem-solving, better at coming up with creative ideas.”

So, great, we’re all out of work mode and ready to enjoy the day. But what to do? Here are a few suggestions on how best to spend your day off.

Embrace laziness

Yes, yes, you’re busy, I’m busy, we’re busy-ing ourselves to exhaustion. But if you have today off, take a conscious stand against all this busyness. Being busy — if we even are busy — is rarely the status indicator we’ve come to believe it is. Nonetheless, the impact is real, and instances of burnout, anxiety disorders and stress-related diseases are on the rise.

Forgive someone

What does holding onto grudges really get us, aside from amusing anecdotes at parties? And what could we gain from giving them up? As it turns out, quite a lot: A 2006 study suggested that “skills-based forgiveness training may prove effective in reducing anger as a coping style, reducing perceived stress and physical health symptoms, and thereby may help reduce” the stress we put on our immune and cardiovascular systems.

Do that one thing you’ve been putting off

Yeah, yeah, you’ll get to it sometime — it’s the little fib we all tell ourselves to get out of doing the things on our to-do list that are hanging over our heads. But today is a great day just to get it done! Send that email, finish up that task at home, send that holiday thank-you note you still haven’t gotten around to.

Do absolutely nothing (My Favorite)

Not much more to say here! Give yourself permission to plant in front of the TV today, read a book, recharge your batteries and get a good night’s sleep.

ON THIS DATE – World War II started 80 years ago today — on Sept. 1, 1939 — when Hitler's Nazi Germany invaded and bombarded Poland, triggering a nearly six-year world conflict that left more than 70 million people dead.

An International Herald Tribune editorial the next day, "Hitler Draws the Sword," nailed it:

The curtain seems to have lifted on what may be the worst drama in the history of our modern civilization.

At a commemoration in Warsaw yesterday that's being attended by Vice President Pence, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier recalled World War II as a "German crime."

In Poland and across Eastern Europe, many feel that their people’s suffering has never been adequately recognized, or that they have been unfairly tarnished for their behavior at that time.

Politicians are now exploiting those grievances in a new era of nationalism.

For Americans and others, World War II might seem a black-and-white story of good defeating evil, with the Allies fighting far from home to defeat Adolf Hitler’s genocidal regime and open a new era of peace and liberty.

But from the Baltics and Poland to Hungary and Russia, where fighting, deportations and mass executions happened, there are many shades of gray: heroic resistance and martyrdom, but also collaboration.

POLITICS 101 - Three questions should define this Fall, 2019 on Capitol Hill:

Will House Speaker Nancy Pelosi allow a vote on President Trump's top legislative priority: the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement? White House officials are quietly optimistic and say that Pelosi seems to have been negotiating with Bob Lighthizer in good faith.

Will Congress pass any major gun legislation to respond to the epidemic of mass shootings? Most officials in the White House and on the Hill think that any legislative fixes would be modest and narrow.

How will Congress avoid a government shutdown on Sept. 30 when spending bills expire? Congress is expected to pass a smaller spending bill by Sept. 30 to fund a few departments: possibly Labor, Health and Human Services, and Defense. Lawmakers will likely wrap the rest of the government's spending into a short-term bill (a continuing resolution) to stave off a shutdown and buy each side more time to negotiate.

MARKET MONTH (AUGUST) – Stocks: Wall St. pregamed this week’s gains with four straight weeks of losses, and August was only the second monthly decline for stocks this year.

The trade war? Not great for stocks. U.S.-China uncertainty and concerns over global economic growth sent investors from risky equities into the warm embrace of…

Bonds: Government debt prices jumped, sending yields to historic lows. The 30-year Treasury yield dove under 2% for the first time. And the dreaded yield curve inversion became its most inverted since 2007.

$17 trillion of global bonds have sub-zero yields, meaning investors are willing to pay someone to store their money safely. And finally...

Currencies: China’s yuan registered its biggest monthly drop relative to the dollar in more than 25 years in August, down 3.8%. A weaker yuan would boost the competitiveness of Chinese exports and somewhat mute the effects of U.S. tariffs, but currency depreciation is a dangerous road to travel.

BIRTHDAYS THIS WEEK – Birthday wishes and thoughts this week Salma Hayek (53), Jessica Naccache …famous health care administrator, Bob Newhart (90), Keanu Reeves (55), Lily Tomlin (80).

COLLEGE CHRONICLES - For the past several decades, college costs have steadily increased, rising fastest at four-year public universities.

According to the College Board’s 2018 Trends in College Pricing Report, from 1988 to 2018, sticker prices doubled private nonprofit four-year schools but tripled for in-state students at four-year public universities. During the 2018-2019 school year, published in‐state tuition and fees at public four‐year schools averaged $10,230.

But these costs can be significantly higher for out-of-state students. The College Board estimates that out-of-state tuition and fees at public four-year institutions rose by $620, from $25,670 during the 2017-2018 school year to $26,290 during the 2018-2019 school year.

The difference in cost for out-of-state and in-state students can be significant, including at some of the country’s most respected public institutions. At the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus, estimated tuition and fees for the 2019-2020 school year is $15,558 for in-state freshmen and sophomores and $17,522 for in-state juniors and seniors. But for out-of-state students these costs are $51,200 for freshmen and sophomores and $54,794 for juniors and seniors.

The school also estimates that for all students, room and board is about $12,000 for a standard double room and that books and supplies costs a little over $1,000 per year.

It is typical for public universities to charge out-of-state students significantly more than in-state students, and many schools use the extra funds to subsidize costs for in-state students and to provide scholarships.

According to the University of Michigan’s website, the school is “the only public university in Michigan that covers 100% of demonstrated financial need of eligible Michigan residents” and roughly “70% of all in-state U-M undergraduate students receive some form of financial aid.”

The school states that qualifying in-state students from families that make $65,000 get free tuition for up to four years of full-time study. In-state students from families that make up to $180,000 qualify for some tuition support.

Here are the typical financial aid packages offered to qualified Michigan families:

Families making between $65,000 and $95,000

Percent of applicants who qualify for aid: 97%

Average scholarship and grant aid: $15,309

Average tuition after scholarship and grant aid: $1,387

Families making between $95,000 and 125,000

Percent of applicants who qualify for aid: 89%

Average scholarship and grant aid: $9,583

Average tuition after scholarship and grant aid: $7,113

Families making between $125,000 and 150,000

Percent of applicants who qualify for aid: 68%

Average scholarship and grant aid: $6,011

Average tuition after scholarship and grant aid: $10,685

Families making between $150,000 and 180,000

Percent of applicants who qualify for aid: 63%

Average scholarship and grant aid: $4,533

Average tuition after scholarship and grant aid: $12,163

At public universities like the University of Michigan, the percentage of out-of-state students, who often do not qualify for the aid reserved for in-state students, is increasing. According to The Washington Post, in 2006 64% of University of Michigan freshmen were from Michigan. In 2016, just 51% were from the state.

Over the past several decades, the cost of earning a college diploma has increased dramatically, exacerbating a student debt crisis that’s resulted in millions of Americans collectively holding over $1.5 trillion in student loans.

According to the College Board’s 2018 Trends in College Pricing Report, from 1988 to 2018, sticker prices tripled at public four-year schools and doubled at public two-year and private non-profit four-year schools.

These private non-profit four-year schools have some of the highest four-year graduation rates, and graduate some of the highest-earning students, but they also have the biggest sticker prices.

During the 2018 - 2019 school year, the reported tuition at private non-profit four-year schools is an average $35,830. But in reality, many students end up paying far less.

Here’s how. College “sticker prices” include tuition, fees, room and board (TFRB) and do not account for scholarships, grants and tax benefits. The College Board broke down what the average net price of college is today – taking scholarships and grants into account – and found that students typically pay less than the published price.

In fact, the average net price of tuition and fees in 2019 is $14,610 at private nonprofit four-year schools. These students typically receive an average $21,220 in grant aid and tax benefits.

Similar discounts are also in effect at public colleges. During the 2018 - 2019 school year, the reported sticker price for in-state students is $10,230 at public four-year schools, but the average net tuition and fees is closer to $3,740.

It’s good news for students startled by the sky-high prices they see in college brochures, though they should still be aware of the ways in which many college students end up spending more than they anticipated.

Many students underestimate the cost of living expenses when they go to college, and according to a survey from researchers at Temple University and the college affordability-focused Wisconsin HOPE Lab, more than a third of students struggle with basic needs such as food and housing.

Prospective students also often overlook graduation rates when they are considering colleges, but they can be an important measure of a school’s quality and cost. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, just 40 percent of first-time full-time bachelor’s students earn their degree in four years, and only 59 percent earn their bachelor’s in six years. With more than half of students struggling to graduate in four years, most students are forced to take — and pay for — extra years of college.

Four-year graduation rates tend to be highest among private four-year schools, and at many large public institutions students must wait to register for the classes they need to graduate in four years until there’s space. The result is that even if the stated yearly tuition at one of these schools is less expensive than another school, the overall cost to the student may end up being more.

For this reason, students may want to estimate what six years of tuition and fees will cost them at schools with low four-year graduation rates and be mindful of planning their schedules and making the most of AP and other college credits.

BARLEY SANDWICH - College football's savior: A decade ago, West Virginia was dealing with a binge-drinking problem at football games. Though alcohol wasn't sold in the stadium, its re-entry policy allowed fans to leave at halftime, lubricate themselves and return for the second half.

The solution: In 2011, West Virginia began selling beer inside the stadium and banned re-entry. The results were so good (revenue was up, alcohol-related incidents were down) that more universities followed suit, warming to the idea of in-stadium beer sales as a form of public safety.

Meanwhile, average attendance for FBS schools began to decline and has now fallen for five straight years, causing even more schools to embrace beer as a way to get butts in seats.

Add those two things together and you can see why the Southeastern Conference lifted its longtime ban on alcohol sales in public seating areas starting this season.

⚽️ Dollar Beer Night magic: In 2017, Phoenix Rising of the USL Championship (one tier below MLS) launched Dollar Beer Night as a way to get fans out to midweek matches. It has turned into something much more.

The team has yet to lose or tie on Dollar Beer Night, extending their record to 13-0-0 on Friday. Merchandise is now being sold, the national media (hi) is paying attention and Bud Light even sent the Bud Knight to enhance the fun.

Per ESPN: "The club's limit is four beers (48 oz.) per purchase but no limits on purchases and most fans, at least early in the evening, carried one or two. But as the night wore on, more fans opted for convenience, buying three or four at a time."

⚾️ MiLB's craft beer boom: The craft beer industry has exploded over the last decade and now makes up 13.2% of the beer market by volume. A perfect match for these local operations? Minor league baseball teams.

The small size of most craft breweries "matches up well with the marketing budgets of Minor League Baseball," Bart Watson, chief economist of the Brewers Association, told Front Office Sports. "Teams are always trying to find a deeper local connection and the same goes for breweries."

That would explain the growing trend of minor league teams going beyond simply offering beer on tap and partnering with local breweries to serve up their own exclusive brand of team beer.

NFL Football Preseason Rink Rats Picks:

AFC East - New England Patriots                 AFC North – Pittsburgh Steelers

AFC South – Houston Texans                       AFC West – Los Angeles Chargers

AFC Wildcards – Kansas City Chiefs, Cleveland Browns

AFC Champs – Los Angeles Chargers

NFC East – Philadelphia Eagles                    NFC North – Chicago Bears

NFC South – New Orleans Saints                  NFC West – Los Angeles Rams

NFC Wildcards – Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings

NFC Champs – New Orleans Saints

Super Bowl Champs – New Orleans Saints

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL POWER RANKINGS –

The top five teams heading into the last four weeks of the season: 1). New York Yankees, 2). Los Angeles Dodgers, 3). Houston Astros, 4). Atlanta Braves, 5). Washington Nationals.

The top five bad teams heading into the final four weeks of the season: 1). Detroit Tigers, 2). Detroit Tigers, 3). Detroit Tigers, 4). Detroit Tigers, 5). Detroit Tigers.

SWAMI’S WEEK TOP PICKS –

NFL Football Pick of the Week – Thursday 9/5, 8:15 PM (ET), NBC: Green Bay Packers (0-0) vs. Chicago Bears (0-0). Season 100 for the NFL kicks off and who better to start than The Pack and Da’ Bears. Bears are three point favorites (46.5). We like Da’ Bears as well and to cover, Chicago 24 Green Bay 17. (Season to Date 0-0)

NFL Football Pick of the Week – Sunday 9/15, 4:00 PM (ET), CBS: Kansas City Chiefs (0-0) vs. Oakland (Las Vegas) Raiders (0-0). After watching Hard Knocks, Coach Gruden is in for a long year. Chiefs win 38 – 24.

College Football Pick of the Week – Saturday 9/7, 7:30 PM (ET), ABC: #6 LSU Tigers (1-0) vs. #10 University of Texas Longhorns (1-0). The game of the second weekend in college football, Texas in an upset 31 – 28. (Season to Date 2-0)

College Football Pick of the Week – Saturday 9/14, 7:30 PM (ET), ABC: #1 Clemson Tigers (1-0) vs. #22 Syracuse University Orangemen (1-0). It will be rocking in the Carrier Dome, Syracuse gave Clemson a game last year, but like last year, not enough my friends: Tigers win 45 – 35.

DIII College Football Pick of the Week – Thursday 9/5. 7:00 PM (ET), HGTV: #6 John Hopkins Blue Jays (0-0) vs. #24 Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets (0-0). Both clubs coming off excellent 2018 campaigns, who has a good start to 2019? Blue Jays do, 45 – 30. (Season to Date 0-0)

DIII College Football Pick of the Week – Saturday 9/14. 12:00 PM (ET), HGTV: The St. Lawrence University Saints (0-0) vs. Norwich University Cadets (0-0). Both clubs coming off disappointing 2018 campaigns. This first win is important: Saints win a tight one 28 – 27.

SCIAC Pick of the Week (Football) – Saturday 9/7, 11:00 AM (PT), LeoSports: #11 Whitworth Pirates (0-0) vs. University of La Verne Leopards (0-0). The Northwest Conference invades the SCIAC and it is not pretty; Pirates win 48 – 17. (Season to Date 0-0)

SCIAC Pick of the Week (Volleyball) – Saturday 9/14, 1:30 PM (PT), HGTV: University of California at Santa Cruz Banana Slugs (4-0) vs. University of La Verne Leopards (1-3). A young Leopard club looks for a big victory in their Invitational, having the best FAR helps; La Verne wins 3 – 2.

MLB Pick of the Week – Saturday 9/7, 7:10 PM (ET) FS:  Cleveland Indians (79-58) vs. Minnesota Twins (85-52). Cleveland’s last chance at catching the American League Central leaders, sorry, Twinkies win 6 – 3. (Season to Date 6-3)

MLB Pick of the Week – Saturday 9/14, 4:05 PM (ET) MLB: Atlanta Braves (85-54) vs. Washington Nationals (77-59). Nats have been one of the best teams in the National League since the All-Star break, they win this one, 4 – 3.

English Premier League Pick of the Week – Saturday 9/14, 7:00 AM (PT) CNBC: Manchester United (1-2-1) vs. Leicester City (2-2-0), Man U needs to get on track, they do here with an important road win, 2 – 1.  (Season to Date 0-3)

2019 Season to Date (22 - 18)

OUT AND ABOUT – If it is August that means it is time for the annual St. Lawrence University derelicts convention. This year Scott Graham ’75 was the host, a lodge in Collingwood Ontario was the convention site.

Great to see the boys and their lovely wives:

Left to right: Scott “Cat” Morrison ’76, Jeff Dillon (Renfrew, Ont.) ’76, Scott Graham ’75, Paul “Caper” Gallagher ’77 (we think), Murray Cawker (looks the same as he did forty years ago) ’76, Joe O’Rourke (did not recognize him, ha,ha) ’76, Ken Brousseau (Lay Back) ’76.

Millie Morrison reports a great weekend, no arrests or injuries (reported), and no golf scores were made public.

Next Blog:  Words of the Month and Visicalc.

Until next time Monday September 16, Adios

Claremont, California

September 2, 2019

#X-8-397

3,828 words, nine minute read

CARTOON OF THE WEEK – The New Yorker, Mark Thompson

RINK RATS POLL – What is your safe place?

_____     Home

_____     Work

_____     With Family/Friends

_____     DraftKings

_____     I never feel safe

_____     Hoot Owl

_____     Don’t know

QUOTE OF THE MONTH – “No work is insignificant. All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”

—Martin Luther King, Jr.

Rink Rats is a blog of weekly observations, predictions and commentary. We welcome your comments and questions. Also participate in our monthly poll. Rink Rats is now viewed in Europe, Canada, South America and the United States.

Posted at Rink Rats The Blog: First Published – May 3, 2010

Our Tenth Year.

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