A new study of 7th through 12th graders across the country reveals the disturbing news that nearly half of all students experience some form of sexual harassment, with negative effects manifesting themselves in physical ways. more ›

Horace Mann, the elite private school located in the Bronx, prides itself on its approach to diversity—but a recent assembly where students were asked to participate in a poetry exercise resulted in some students using racial slurs and sexist comments, a second assembly to discuss what happened and possibly most embarrassing, a NY Times article about the debacle. more ›

College admissions officers at some of the country's most elite schools are sick and tired of slogging through long-winded personal essays from applicants, so they're capping them at 500 words. Because, really, no one wants to read four pages about your meaningful time volunteering with the crippled ferrets at the animal shelter in BuFu, Ohio. more ›

Remember earlier this month when a bunch of Rutgers students used actual money to bring Snooki of Jersey Shore to their school? Paying her more than Nobel winning author Toni Morrison? Ha, kids these days right... well now some other students at the school want to undo it all by inviting Bruce Springsteen to the campus. There's even a Facebook campaign, titled “College Ave Freeze Out: Let's Bring the Boss to Rutgers!” Let's move past the fact that this is such a predictable choice—New Jersey people want to book Bruce Springteen!—and see what Facebook campaign head Daniel Oliveto has to say. more ›

Earlier this month, America's youth—specifically those currently enrolled at Rutgers University—paid Snooki of Jersey Shore an absurd amount of money to come fist pump at the school. More than the university paid Toni Morrison, in fact. (Kids today! Etc.) Now Senator Joe Kyrillos is prepping a proposal in the state Senate that would essentially, hopefully, lead to better choices. more ›

As we've frequently noted, teenagers, as a whole, comprise an unruly, dangerous mob that continues to threaten the every fabric of our society. We ban them from public spaces, we install sonic devices that drive them away with frequencies only their ears can hear, and we crack down on them for peddling candy on mass transit. But let's face it: teenagers are a symptom, not a cause. To nip this menace in the bud, schools have been suspending elementary students in record numbers, according to a new NYCLU analysis. more ›

We know what a shock the bust of the Columbia drug ring must have been to you, so it would be a pity to further dishearten you about the state of our universities. But in the interest of journalistic integrity we must inform you that there are other college kids out there who do drugs. Even right here in our very city! One NYU student told the Daily News, "Drug use is everywhere. It's different from the 1960s, when our parents experimented with drugs...now it's more practical, part of going to school." more ›

Remember how there were "cool" teachers in high school? Well, a NJ science teacher described as "kool" and "a god" by students was arrested for allegedly giving students alcohol in his house and for pot possession. Frank Melchiorre, who lives in Chatham Borough, was suspended from his position at Governor Livingston High School in Berkeley Heights. Reaction on the Frank Melchiorre Appreciation page on Facebook? "oh no....." more ›

In a culture of iPads and Twitter and the inability to step away from a screen for five minutes lest you miss something, the New York Times is shocked to find that about 75% of college students still prefer textbooks over e-books. Mainly because you can actually take notes in textbooks, and don't need to constantly be worried about power sources. How quaint! But then sophomore Jonathan Piskor had to get all prep-school on us and say, "I believe that the codex is one of mankind’s best inventions." We'd switch to e-books in a heartbeat if we never had to hear a college kid try to impress us with Latin ever again. more ›

The former St. John's dean who is accused of embezzling over $1 million from the school is facing new charges that she used scholarships to force students to work for her off-campus for the most menial of duties. We imagine this wasn't as bad an indentured servitude as it was for Karla Giraldo, but maybe worse than what LeBron James got. more ›

With the NYC 2010-2011 school year's arrival yesterday, students got to experience the Department of Education's decision to cut busing for 7th and 8th graders firsthand. Most of the affected student live on Staten Island, where it was a real mess. One mother of a student at Totten Intermediate School told the Staten Island Advance, "We got there an hour before classes started because we knew it was going to be a nightmare. We were trying to beat out the traffic because we knew all the parents would be driving their kids." Indeed: When she left, the "line of cars waiting to drop off students was backed up farther than she could see." more ›

That holier-than-thou attitude most New Yorkers carry about being healthy because we walk everywhere and have so many food options may have to change, as a study shows that city efforts to curb childhood obesity have not changed. In fact, city kids may be even heavier than the national average. Last year, NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley said, "When four out of 10 school kids are overweight or obese, the city has a problem." And despite the city's efforts, the number remains the same. more ›

According to a 1982 Supreme Court decision, all children, regardless of immigration status, have the right to attend public school in America. That's why the State Education Department sent out a memo reminding public schools to adhere to a bit of a "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy when it comes to student immigration status. The memo [PDF] states, "school districts may not deny resident students a free public education on the basis of their immigration status..., at the time of registration, schools should avoid asking questions related to immigration status or that may reveal a child’s immigration status, such as asking for a Social Security number." more ›

For a while, it seemed like things were improving in the city's public school system. Test scores were up and the disparity in performance between white kids and minorities was small. But the 2010 test scores smashed that dream, showing a 25% drop in passing rates from last year, and a gaping divide in performance between the city's white and Asian students and black and Hispanic students. Michael J. Petrilli of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, told the Times, "On achievement, the story in New York City is of some modest progress, but not the miracle that the mayor and the chancellor would like to claim." more ›

Because many more students than expected have have decided to attend NYU this fall, some students may be living in hotel rooms. The Washington Square News reported, "250 students guaranteed housing for the fall semester have yet to be issued room assignments. As of Friday, August 6, 98 of the 250 students could not fit into any NYU residence hall. The other 152 students may be split up from housing pairs to fill remaining beds that are still empty." more ›

Estimates for yesterday's student walkout, protesting the proposed Student MetroCard elimination, vary: The AP says 1,000 showed up while the Daily News says it was closer to 400. Still, the students, who chanted "This is what democracy looks like," were cheered on by a few politicians, like State Senator Pedro Espada (D-Bronx), who was outside the Fordham Leadership Academy for Business and Technology in the Bronx; the News reports that he said, "You have my pledge ... we will make this a priority." more ›

Good thing the state is up for that school funding, because these kids look like they need all the help they can get. On this year's state math exams—administered to students in the 3rd through 8th grades in order to advance to the next grade—many students were given partial credit for bad math, wrong answers and even writing no answer at all. more ›

NYU has been cracking down on filming rules following the death of one of their film students, and now a lawsuit against the school filed by his parents. John Hunt Lamensdorf died last year after being electrocuted on set for another film student's project, and many questioned the lack of a dedicated safety course in the school's curriculum. more ›

On a recent budget-slashing spree, Gov. Paterson has proposed eliminating the state’s $20 million contribution to the city’s Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP), leading city teens to voice their displeasure with a 200-person rally in City Hall Park on Thursday. The program, which placed a record 52,000 14-24 year-old youths in summer jobs last year, is facing cutbacks of more than 33% for the coming summer. more ›

Three teenage boys in Queens were arrested for attacking another teenager last week, and prosecutors say the assault was racially motivated. 15-year-old Victor Echeverria was allegedly playing basketball after school at JHS 194 when the three boys came up to him and told him to leave. They then called him a "spic" and a friend who tried to help him a "terrorist" while kicking Echeverria in the stomach. Echeverria's father told the Daily News, "We're afraid to send him back to school because we don't know what could happen." The attackers have been charged with assault and menacing as hate crimes. more ›

CUNY isn't just the perfect setting for racist shouting matches and questions of diversity among its faculty; it's also a very popular destination for transfer students! For its upcoming fall 2010 semester, CUNY has received more than 16,000 transfer applications from students at other schools, an increase of 77.5 percent compared to last year. This may be because CUNY only charges $4,600 at the four-year schools and $3,150 at the two-year colleges, according to the Post. CUNY Senior Vice Chancellor Jay Hershenson seems to agree, telling the tabloid, "Affordability plus an enhanced CUNY reputation . . . simply trumps going into debt." Sure, but do cool bands like Man Man play at CUNY? more ›

Two high school students were arrested for slashing a 20-year-old woman's hand and stabbing an 18-year-old man in the face and back in the Columbus Circle subway station yesterday afternoon. According to the Daily News, cops cuffed Independence High School students Nathaniel Flores and Rafael Anderson, both 17, for the incident, which occurred in an underground walkway in the station at around 3 p.m. The tabloid notes that the victims—identified as Devon Baldwin and Kalimah Tresdale—knew the suspects, and The Post reports the victims are also high school students. more ›

Parents are planning a city hall “bake-in” in protest of new regulations that ban homemade treats from their kids' school bake sales. The city's rationale is that brownies and cookies made from scratch carry an uncountable calorie load, whereas Doritos, packaged cookies and other food items on a list of permissible items, disclose their nutritional content. "We don't really want to be told what to buy, especially when it's junk food from Kellogg's," one mom told the Daily News. more ›

Remember those students from Queens who were returning from a college visit when they were pulled over, searched, and cuffed by New Jersey state police officers—sparking allegations of racial profiling and excessive force? Cops denied that the students' skin color had anything to do with the Jersey Turnpike traffic stop, insisting that they only pulled over the van because they received a 911 call warning them that van passengers were carrying guns. Well, it turns out one of the students in the van made that 911 call, according to officials. more ›

In its latest assault on the Department of Education’s Rubber Room (a long-term city holding area for bad teachers) the NY Post has published a list of its top offenders. That is, those who have been there the longest, get paid the best and have committed the most disgusting and reprehensible crimes (fondling, lewd comments, sexual assault, etc.). One put his hands down the pants of a special-ed student in 2003. One impregnated a student, who he met when she was 13. And we all know Rubber Room poster boy Alan Rosenfeld, who loves looking at his students’ rears. All get generous salaries and don’t work at all; in total they cost the city $540,000 each year. With out further ado, the “dishonor roll” as well as comments from the Schools Chancellor and Teachers Union President are after the break. more ›

A judge has ruled that public school teachers cannot wear political buttons in the classroom—despite the pleas of educators who say it's their constitutional right. Gotham Gazette reports a Manhattan judge upheld a ban on political buttons, backing existing regulations mandating that "while on duty or in contact with students, all school personnel should maintain a posture of complete neutrality with respect to all candidates." Some teachers claim the ruling violates their right to free speech, and argue that older students are mature enough to understand that a "button is not part of the curriculum," or an endorsement from the school itself. Though he ruled against buttons, the judge allowed teachers to share political materials in areas closed to students. more ›

Today's update on Alan Rosenfeld, the ex-teacher who landed in a Department of Education teacher reassignment center (aka Rubber Room) nearly a decade ago for lewd behavior towards students, features weird and outlandish quotes from some of his victims. We also get more info on how the educator ogled students, some as young a 13, at his school, a neighboring school and from the women's bathroom. more ›

News has gotten out that three laptops which contained social security numbers of 1,400 students, alum, and prospies were stolen from a Columbia University office last week. It turns out this isn't the first time the school has massively and mistakenly divulged the sensitive information of its affiliates—back in 2007 Columbia leaked over 5,000 names and social security numbers via a Google Doc! “I’m not terribly surprised, given that it’s happened before, but at the same time, I can’t believe they let it happen again,” wrote one undergrad in an email to Bwog. more ›

Five middle school and high school students are suing the Police Department over allegations that cops and school safety officers wrongfully arrested them and used excessive force. The plaintiffs in the class-action case — who range in age from 13 to 15 years old — say that "inadequately trained and poorly supervised police personnel engage in aggressive behavior toward students when no criminal activity is taking place and when there is no threat to health and safety," and often "confront and arrest students over minor disciplinary infractions such as talking back, being late for class or having a cell phone in school." more ›