C ampus & City Pell Grants safe
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Police meet with community after robberies Mass. 3rd worst until 2015, new in training PD, report suggests study suggests By Nora Philbin Daily Free Press Staff
By Brian Latimer Daily Free Press Staff
While government agencies tighten their budgets as the U.S. economy recovers from recession, the Federal Pell Grant’s foreseen shortfall in 2014 is now unlikely, and students will still receive government-subsidized financial aid, according to a report by the Congressional Budget Office Wednesday. Officials had anticipated $5.7 billion dollars in Pell Grant shortfalls by 2014, but with $9.3 billion in extra money not used in 2013, the organization should be safe until 2015, said Libby Nelson of Inside Higher Ed, who analyzed the discrepancy between shortfall and surplus. “This was based on projection on how many students will be on the program receiving grants,” she said. “CBO’s latest analysis turns out this event significantly overestimated in the past and now there is money left over from this year’s appropriation.” The surplus may be a result of fewer students receiving Pell Grants than originally expected, Nelson said. “There have been quite a few eligibility changes that kick students out and create a drop-off in students applying,” Nelson said. However, despite the continuation of Pell Grants, it will be more difficult for students to meet the requirements needed to receive a grant in coming years due to changes put into effect in July 2012, she said. Restrictions on eligibility for applicants for Pell Grants have become more rigid, Nelson said. Students without a high school diploma or a GED were previously eligible for a grant, but that policy no longer stands. “Prospective students used to be able to take a test to prove they can benefit from college education, but people cant do that any more,” Nelson said. “Other policy changes are that the total semesters you could receive a grant was reduced from 18 to 12.” Prospective students and those enrolled in college can only receive a Pell Grant once per academic year instead of obtaining multiple to accelerate graduation, Nelson said. Daniele Paserman, a BU economics professor, said decreasing funding for student aid programs lowers chances for students to receive a grant. “That we are not going over the fiscal cliff opens good news to current students and prospective students worried about how to finance their higher education prospects,” Paserman said. “Much of the research on how financial scholarships affects attendance and enrollment shows that there is an effect if you decrease financial aid and how it affects probability to enroll.” Paserman said with a surplus, there is a chance more students can receive Pell Grants, but higher education costs have been rising at a pace faster than that of inflation during the past thirty years. “For the last couple of years the actual amount granted to students has been upgraded because there is an automatic index for inflation,” he said. A number of students said they believe the surplus should be put to use for the benefit of students.
Grants, see page4
In response to a recent string of robberies in the Brookline and Boston University area, Brookline Police Department officials hosted a community meeting Wednesday night to address residents’ concerns. While Brookline Police are concerned about recent Brookline-area crimes, including a string of armed robberies and attempted armed robberies in which BU students were victims, the overall crime rate has decreased, said Brookline Police Chief Daniel O’Leary. “It is difficult to drive crime to zero, but I would say that we have done a pretty good job of keeping it down,” O’Leary said at the meeting. “The last four years have been our lowest [crime rate] since 1994.” About 60 Brookline residents attended the meeting, held at The Edward Devotion School on Harvard Street. During the meeting, Brookline Police officials presented data on the area’s crime rates over the past 11 years. Though robberies have increased by 1.8 percent in the past year, violent crime has decreased, according
By Zoe Roos Daily Free Press Staff
KENSHIN OKUBO/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Brookline Police Department Chief Daniel O’Leary discusses recent robberies and assaults at a Brookline community meeting Monday night.
to the presentation. “Since Sept. 1, there have been six robberies in Brookline,” O’Leary said. “There have been more on the other side of Commonwealth Avenue, and we have worked with the BU Police Department on those and went to a community meeting at BU.” Seven victims in the six robberies were Brookline residents and two of the six robberies are still active cases, O’Leary said. Arrests have been
made for the four remaining robberies. BU students were among the victims in a string of eight robberies and attempted robberies and one stabbing in the area near West Campus and North Brookline during the 2012-13 academic year. BUPD Chief Tom Robbins said Brookline residents should be impressed with Brookline Police and how officers have handled the crimes.
Brookline PD, see page 4
Pope’s resignation could cause change, BU officials say By Margaret Waterman Daily Free Press Staff
Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation, announced Monday, which came as a result of a lack of mental and physical strength, may result in the Catholic Church choosing a pope to better represent the current demographics of its membership, a number of Boston University professors said. “Most Catholics at this point in time are mostly in developing countries so they are non-white,” said Susan Eckstein, a professor of sociology and international relations. “At some point there will likely be a selection of a pope that isn’t from Europe, isn’t white and is more representative of the changing social base of the church itself.” At a small gathering of cardinals Monday morning, Pope Benedict, 85, announced in Latin he would be stepping down. He told cardinals he is no longer able to lead the world’s Roman Catholic population due to his advanced age. His resignation will be effective as of Feb. 28, making him the first pope to leave the position before death in six centuries. The last pope to resign from the
papacy was Pope Gregory XII, who resigned in 1415 amid internal struggles and the Western Schism. Pope Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger, was appointed pope in 2005 after the passing of Pope John Paul II. Eckstein said the Catholic Church now has the opportunity to choose someone outside of Europe. Such a change might stem from similar changes in the electing body and could revitalize the church, but could also upset certain Catholics who would oppose an appointment of another race or ethnicity. Nancy Ammerman, a sociology of religion professor, said the Pope’s resignation will provide the Catholic Church with the opportunity to choose a non-european pope. “This does provide the Roman Catholic Church with an interesting opportunity,” she said in an email. “The Church is growing significantly outside Europe, and this would be an opportune moment for the cardinals to turn to the South for a new pope.” Ammerman said the incoming pope still must contend with the aftermath of the Catholic Church’s sexual abuse scandals and the disillusionment of lay Catholics in the U.S. and in Europe.
Ray Hart, a professor of theology, said the pope’s resignation was significant in its rarity and because of what Pope Benedict contributed to the church. “Ratzinger was the first eminent technical academic theologian to ascend to the papacy in many generations,” Hart said in an email. “He was the first pope to understand the rampant nihilism in the late-modern context that horizons all forms of Christianity.” Luke Walsh, a School of Education freshman who identifies as Catholic, said he hopes the new pope will continue Benedict’s attempt to modernize the church. “It’s going to be cool to see if the new pope follows his lead and tries to keep the church modern and applicable to our everyday life,” Walsh said. He said while Benedict’s resignation will not change the Catholic belief system, it could change the church in other ways. “I would hope that with a new pope, focus could turn towards transparency and a realignment with the principles that make the Catholic Church so important to so many people — a commitment to service, love,
Pope, see page 4
When it comes to funding police training programs, Massachusetts is the third worst state, and is underperforming particularly in the category of juvenile justice and sexual assault, according to a recent study. The study, released Tuesday and conducted by Strategies for Youth, a Cambridge-based legal research training organization, discovered very little funding was being allocated to new officers learning how to properly communicate with teens. Executive Director of Strategies for Youth and co-author of the study, Lisa Thurau, said teaching officers and juveniles how to better communicate can lower arrest rates. “We want young people to recognize what behaviors will set off a police officer so as not to escalate the situation and we are trying to train police to do the same,” she said. “We are trying to bring all the science of the teen brain to them so they can understand normative behavior and avoid criminalizing it.” Thurau said the program has been met with success, but finances have caused a hindrance in implementing the program to all Massachusetts police forces. “Mass. allocates $187 per officer and we are the third lowest in the country right now, so only the wealthy departments can afford to get their officers all the training that they should have,” she said. Terrel Harris, communications director for the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, which oversees the Commonwealth’s Municipal Police Training Committee, acknowledged that there is a significant financial issue. “The Patrick administration has worked to increase funding for police training,” he said. “We tried to implement a surcharge on auto insurance policies as a designated revenue stream for police training. The Legislature had no appetite for it.” Harris said not until recently have police perceptions changed regarding juveniles. “The police professions have recognized that it was the initial interactions and perceptions between officers and teenagers that set the stage for the outcome,” he said.
Police, see page 4
Blogger documents the trials, tribulations of riding T with humor By John Ambrosio Daily Free Press Staff
Sit around any bus or train stop in Boston and you are sure to here the usual complaints about The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority — the trains are always late, the infrastructure outdated, the fare hikes too severe. Channeling this frustration creatively, Ali Wisch decided to begin poking fun at the MBTA and her fellow passengers with a Tumblr blog, TheMBTARuinedMyLife.com, which is closing in on 2,000 followers since its creation in late January. “Once I started taking the T every day, I noticed patterns of lateness and unhappy passengers, and I’m also grumpy in the morning so that doesn’t help,” Wisch said. “I would have seats stolen from me and I was delayed and got in trouble at work a few times. I was frustrated and had
nowhere to vent, so I created the blog.” Wisch, a 27-year-old Brighton resident who works on Newbury Street at a marketing firm, has been posting gifs and images that reflect the trials and tribulations she faces on her daily commute from Chiswick Road Station to Arlington Station on the Green Line. Wisch said her daily commute has been a constant source of inspiration and has given her no end of material to work with. “Pretty much every day something will happen to me on my way to or from work, and I’ll have a few ideas of gifs I want to look for,” she said. Wisch muses on her blog about topics including T delays, lack of room on buses and trains and the demeanor of MBTA employees.
MBTA, see page 4
PHOTO ILLUSTARTION BY MICHELLE JAY/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
Students are amused by a relatable blog called thembtaruinedmylife.