This article isn’t an endorsement of Andrew Jackson University, rather it is our way of shining the light on the various happenings across academia.

Probably the most important concern for students and their parents when it comes to college is how to pay for it. Indeed, even when scholarships and grant money is offered tuition bills can run into the tens of thousands of dollars. Thus, when we learned that a school based in Alabama has a program in place that charges no tuition, our interest was naturally piqued.

As a backgrounder, Andrew Jackson University or AJU is a for-profit, online or distance learning school. AJU offers Associate’s, Bachelor’s, and Master’s degrees in Business and Criminal Justice, with Communication, Public Administration, Health Care Management, and Psychology among the other degrees offered. Formed in 1994, the university has been accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC).

Sponsored Tuition Program Now Available

In a novel way of helping students cover the cost of their tuition, AJU has developed a sponsored tuition program where private companies cover tuition costs in exchange for enrollment in their programs. Three companies are currently acting as sponsors; I chose one of them when I signed up which involved me sharing minimal personal information about myself (email, phone, address). You are required to pay a $75 application fee to enroll and, if accepted into the program you’re responsible for covering the cost of your books and certain fees.

AJU President Don Kassner explained the university’s zero tuition program in a recently released press release by saying, “Most universities spend a tremendous amount of money to recruit students. Many spend as much as thirty-five percent of their revenue on marketing and advertising. They have to keep their tuition high to recover these costs. We eliminated these costs by structuring relationships with strategic partners that refer potential students to us. Therefore, we can operate a quality, degree granting institution without the escalating tuition and excessive fees deemed necessary by many schools.”

AJU’s sponsored tuition program is currently limited to one hundred students per month, but the university has plans to increase that number gradually over time.

(Source: Andrew Jackson University)

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Tags: Alabama, Andrew Jackson University, associates degree, Bachelor's Degree, Birmingham, distance learning, internet, masters degree

Today’s students prefer to read what they want online. 

Way back during the days when I attended college, the student newspaper was a hot mover. Everyone knew where they could find the most recent issue and if you didn’t snag your copy soon after the news stands were filled with them, then you were out of luck. Yes, the library always carried back issues and various pages could be found scattered on tables in the student center. Still, to get a fresh copy with the ink still wet you’d have to move pretty fast.

Here in the 21st century, the student newspaper is under siege. It isn’t difficult administrators withholding funding that is causing the problem, rather it is the way that people get their news: the internet is taking its toll on the college newspaper, much as it has been on your local daily. In a few more years, will the dead tree media depart from your local campus? It could, if a report in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer is on the money.

Community College Newspapers: R.I.P.?

College students don’t read anymore. Well, that is not an entirely accurate statement as many college students do read, but they are reading what is posted online instead of what has been printed. True, many classes require students to purchase textbooks, but the bulk of student’s private reading is through social networks (MySpace and Facebook, for example), forums, blogs and news sites.

In Washington State, many community colleges have axed their newspapers for a variety of reasons including staff turnover and funding, but also because no one is reading them.  At North Seattle Community College, the student newspaper — The Polaris — took a break for the summer, but when the students returned in September, the newspaper stayed on break.  Never mind that the college doesn’t even have a journalism department — the newspaper apparently died because of lack of interest.

The Dead Tree Media

Of course the death of dead tree media begs an important question: why can’t college newspapers make the transition to online media as so many daily newspapers have done? Likely, many won’t and for the following reasons:

• Journalism departments at some colleges are non-existent or poorly staffed.
• Staff turnover, always a problems with student newspapers might be just as common with online versions of the same.
• For most students, working on a college newspaper is an extra-curricular activity.  Balancing studies, social life, and work keeps people busy with other pursuits.
• Oversight could be an issue. Inasmuch that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled several times in favor of free speech for college students, university administrators may be hesitant seeing instantly updated college news posted to the web. Just think about this: posting an unflattering photograph to the newspaper’s website could cause some ruckus. Perhaps that is why some schools would simply prefer to allow their student papers to die.

Start Your Own College News Blog?

Of course, there is an easy way around this problem, one that anyone can handle: start your own blog based on what is happening on campus and you’ll soon attract a healthy following. Isn’t that what student news should be all about anyway?

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Tags: blogging, blogs, college newspapers, Facebook, Google News, internet, MySpace, North Seattle Community College, online journal, online news, print daily, print news, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, student news, The Polaris