Wal-Mart's $10-Million Diplomas

Students quit college for all kinds of reasons. They can't pay; they have to work; they struggle academically. When they're the first in their families to pursue higher education, the hurdles can seem higher. Just getting to college does not guarantee success. Numerous studies have found that first-generation students are much less likely to graduate. They enroll less prepared and less confident than their classmates whose parents have degrees, and their performance is worse, according to data from the Higher Education Research Institute and the U.S. Education Department.

Full text article by Sara Lipka is available via The Chronicle of Higher Education, 2/14/10.

Rise of the Super-Rich Hits a Sobering Wall

The rich, as a group, are no longer getting richer. Over the last two years, they have become poorer. And many may not return to their old levels of wealth and income anytime soon.

Full-text article by David Leonhardt and Geraldine Fabrikant is available via The New York Times, 8.20.09.