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It seems that the faculty performance evaluations of the instructor were said to be “lukewarm.” As a result, Indiana State University (ISU) decided not to renew the untenured, junior faculty member in the Department of African and African-American Studies. But in an effort to hold on to his teaching position, he sought intervention from the federal courts. In Omosegbou v. Wells, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit heard his 2003 argument that the position was a property or liberty interest, deserving of Constitutional due process and freedom protections.

What should students and families look at in making a “safe” school choice? Security On Campus, Inc. (SOC), a national watchdog organization, has developed a list of five factors high-school seniors and their parents should be looking for at prospective schools.

Alcohol, and its impact on collegiate life and college students, remains a vexing and constant problem. Consider these recent approaches and issues. A New Attack on Alcohol Students at the University of Georgia began the new academic year under new initiatives aimed at addressing student drinking. The new policies were developed after the death of a student, earlier in the year, in a residence hall after a night of partying.

Trouble in the Cards for Food Service Manager A supervisor in the food service division at North Carolina State University has more trouble than he can deal with. Officials there have accused him of using school computers to play in online poker tournaments. State auditors say that this is a violation of NCSU computer policies and state law. The auditors’ office started its investigation after it got a call on an abuse hotline.

What: In an effort aimed at forcing students to pay their college bills, higher-education institutions tell students that they cannot get an official copy of their academic transcripts if any money is still owed.

What ever happened to the principles of open meetings and open student government? In recent years, there has been a notable increase in legal challenges to student governments that try to do their student business behind closed doors. Most often the complaints about a lack of access come from other students, usually student newspapers denied access to meetings, prevented from seeing budgets or other documents, or never even being told that a meeting was scheduled in the first place!

After the deaths of two University of North Carolina- Wilmington students, the entire UNC system adopted a program of increased scrutiny of applications. Both student murders took place in late Spring 2004. One murderer, a student, had lied on his admissions application. The second killer was a student expelled when officials found out about his criminal past. In the wake of these deaths, state lawmakers introduced legislation requiring criminal background checks on all new students, but it never got out of legislative committees.

Q.We were having an outdoor activity on campus last week when lightning could be seen off in the distance. The lightning appeared to be far away and it was not raining, so we considered continuing our event. But some in attendance objected, so we ended the program and went indoors. Advice on what to do next time we see lightning?