Education

SUNY Oswego has received the largest donation in its 150 year history. The gift comes from a couple who have already dedicated much of their life's work to the university.

Three dozen private college presidents nationwide received more than a million dollars in pay for one year, according to a study released this week. Among them is Syracuse University Chancellor Nancy Cantor, who will be stepping down in 2014.

Albany received an earful from hundreds of students, parents educators and community members Wednesday about recent cuts in funding for education. The "Educate New York Now Express" has been rolling across the state, picking up supporters and support for their plea to lawmakers to reinvest in public education.

Onondaga Community College is joining forces with St. John Fisher College in Rochester to offer students a "two-plus-two" partnership agreement.  That means students spend their first two years at OCC, then transfer to Fisher to get their degree.

The New York State Board of Regents is considering a proposal to create two new education tracks that would better prepare high school students for jobs in the manufacturing and technical sectors. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) says adding these diplomas would help increase graduation rates in New York state as well as bolster the economy.

A new center dedicated to bridging the divide between man and machine was launched Tuesday at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy. The new Center for Cognition, Communication, and Culture (CCC) will focus on improving ways humans can interact with and learn from computers.

Student debt levels rose by five percent last year according to a study by the Institute for College Access and Success.

Educators across the country agree schools need more students to excel in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Yet hooking students on these subjects remains a challenge, especially for generally low performing schools with few resources.

With dropping enrollments and less money coming from the state, many school districts across New York are looking into joining forces. That is the case in the Mohawk Valley near Utica, where a school merger is on the ballot this week.

The research on this is pretty clear: between the ages one and five, the human brain develops faster than at any other time. In Chemung County, a project called the School Readiness Project sends nurses to the hospital whenever a baby is born.