Starting this week, we begin a regular feature that will take a look at what’s going on at other schools in the Ivy League.
Harvard University
Harvard resume padders celebrated after Dean of Undergraduate Education Jay M. Harris proposed revising the Latin honors system to award more summa cum laude distinctions to the top five percent of the class, rather than to a subjective number within the top four to five percent it currently awards the honor to — if approved, the policy will be implemented for the Class of 2012.
Princeton University
It’s the battle of the two Princetons as Princeton University and Princeton, New Jersey face difficult town-gown relations after a five-year plan to establish new arts facilities and streamline traffic flow was abandoned during a joint Borough Council and Township meeting Monday night. Members of the Committee said the project, known as the Arts and Transit Neighborhood, failed in part because Princeton refused to compromise on its plan to shorten its train route.
Columbia University
Columbia students studying in Egypt as part of the Amheida project — a program sponsored by NYU that let them participate in the excavation of the ancient city of Amheida — returned safely to the Big Apple on Tuesday. The Columbia and Barnard students in the nation experiencing widespread protests were first flown to Dubai on Monday, before making their way to New York early Tuesday morning.
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth students are taking the law into their own hands, revealing plans for a student-run program on Tuesday to reduce alcohol and assault-related crimes on campus. Known to students as Green Team, the program will pay members $40 per supervising shift, with each shift lasting about four hours. The Green Team hopes to alleviate the “bystander effect” in which party bystanders fail to take action due to a sense of divided responsibility.
Brown University
Motivated and internationally minded Brown Bears can now begin working towards their master’s degree in their junior year of college, disproving the myth that Brown students can’t study. Brown’s Office of International Programs launched on Wednesday “Brown Plus One,” a program that will let juniors start earning a master’s degree from either the University of Edinburgh or the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
University of Pennsylvania
Two sections at The Wharton School will give students free iPads and $25 in iTunes credit to purchase necessary educational applications for use during the course. Necessary education applications? We predict a sharp increase in the number of Fruit Ninja and Doodle Jumps downloads among business majors.
Cornell University
Cornell will share a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture with five other universities to create a training program that will encourage the development of bioenergy and bio-based products to students by creating an interactive curriculum. Some tools will include hands-on activities, lab kits for students, and SMART boards in classrooms. The goal is to increase enthusiasm for science, technology, engineering, and math among students.