News Sources: Economic Stimulus Talks

President Bush has jump-started the talks between the White House and Congress over how to give a needed boost to the slowing US economy, announcing he wants to pump about 140 bln usd into the hands of consumers and businesses.

Philip N. Jefferson - Associate Professor of Economics, Swarthmore College - Former research economist at the Federal Reserve Board. Has researched small business employment and effect of the money supply on economic performance. Expert on the Fed and its chairman.

Ann Owen - Associate Professor of Economics, Hamilton College - Economics professor Ann Owen served as an economist for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors before joining Hamilton College. She has published several papers on long-run growth and income distribution. Owen is a frequent media commentator on issues related to Federal Reserve decisions, Social Security, and various economic indices for outlets including MarketWatch, Associated Press, The New York Times, UPI, Atlanta Journal Constitution and the Baltimore Sun. She also serves as director of the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center at Hamilton College.

Steven E. Schier - Position:Dorothy H. and Edward C. Congdon Professor of Political Science, Carleton College - Schier's interests are primarily in methodology and American politics, including the role of interest groups, elections, fiscal policy, generational politics, and political parties. Schier also publishes widely on the federal government. He is co-author of Payment Due: A Nation in Debt, a Generation in Trouble, and author of Congress in Default, which looks at why Congress has failed to solve the federal budget deficit.

Slalom for a Sheepskin

Middlebury College's winter term graduates have a unique way of leaving campus. As part of a congratulatory weekend for these graduates, they stage a "ski-down" procession in cap and gown. This year's event will take place on Saturday, Feb. 2, at the Middlebury College Snow Bowl in Hancock, Vt.

Global Warming and Coral Migration

Global warming may cause coral species along Australia’s western coast to migrate to cooler waters, says Cornell College geology professor Ben Greenstein. His research on previous coral migrations suggests that such movement could provide a safe haven for temperature-sensitive species as the oceans warm.

News Sources: Race, Gender and the Democrats

On a year when Democrats are buoyed by the prospect of retaking the White House, tensions are mounting in the white-hot race between the camp who want to elect the first woman president and the one that wants to elect the first black president. Can the wounds be healed or are the Democrats headed for a scorched-earth campaign between two constituencies that are core part of its base? Reporters looking for experts to interview on this topic can find them online at the collegenews.org database of news sources and subject matter experts from America's leading liberal arts colleges, including the following (click on names for contact information):

Alice Almond Shrock - Professor of History, Earlham College - Shrock has devoted years of research to the role and influences of women in America's political development. She has been resident scholar with the U.S. House and the British House of Commons. She is widely interviewed and has lent analysis to National Public Radio and Voice of America.

Marcus Pohlmann -Professor of Political Science, Rhodes College - Pohlmann is author of Racial Politics at the Crossroads and Black Politics in Conservative America.

Stephen Medvic - Assistant Professor of Government, Franklin & Marshall College -
Medvic has provided political analysis for numerous media outlets including CNN, The Washington Post and Fox News On-line. He is the co-editor of Shades of Gray: Perspectives on Campaign Ethics.

Sundance Festival to Feature Film on Swarthmore Prof

A documentary featuring Swarthmore College linguistics professor K. David Harrison will have its world premiere at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival later this month. The film, entitled "The Linguists", follows Harrison and Gregory Anderson as they document disappearing languages around the world

Morehouse a New Chapter in Genarlow Wilson Story

Genarlow Wilson says he's having "a rebirth" after the Tom Joyner Foundation agreed to fund his education at Morehouse College. It's a far cry from the day when a 17-year-old Wilson was sent to prison for receiving oral sex from a 16-year-old girl. The sentence’s harshness was denounced nationwide by civil rights leaders, and the offense was subsequently reduced to a misdemeanor.