Dr. Rajeev Dhawan:
“The State of the Economy”
The war with Iraq is a done deal. The
question is not if we will go to war but when we will go to war. War
worries are affecting the economy. The job market looks bad. The income
growth is coming back after the near zero growth following the September
11 attack. Consumer confidence follows the stock market but has never
really recovered completely after September 11. In a good economy we would
add 200,000 jobs in a month and in today’s economy we have not added
200,000 jobs in the last six months. The elections also affect the
economy. The reason we have not heard of cut backs in the last few months
is because of the election. Major companies will wait until the elections
are decided to announce cut backs and layoffs. These events have a direct
effect on the voting population.
The Atlanta metro area has lost more than 80,000 jobs
in the last 15 months. Three areas of growth in Atlanta in the 1990’s were
transportation, tourism, and telecommunications. These items are gone.
There are no new jobs for people. New York, Chicago, San Jose, Detroit,
Atlanta, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, Los Angeles, and St. Louis are
the top ten metropolitan areas that are suffering from the economy. The
smaller areas are still surviving and are growing. The top employers in
Atlanta that are still rising are the retailers and service type
businesses. The smaller businesses are still growing in spite of the down
turned economy. The recover in Albany will be faster than in the metro
areas.
Interest rates for homes is at an all time low.
Everyone should refinance their homes while the rates are low. The newer
homes are selling better than older homes. Free advice is bad advice. The
stock market is a gamble. The forecasters are mixed in their advise of how
and how much to invest. The prices must come down and then we will buy the
stock and with that growth the prices will rise. The main issue for the
economy is war.
*** |
Returning to
school as
a “Nontraditional Student”
By Caroline Ford
Students who are married, 25 years or older, a parent
or have been out of school for a few years may naturally fall out of the
loop. A student who meets any of the above criteria is considered to be
nontraditional.
In the fall of 1999, I decided to return to school
after being out for 13 years. I am a single-parent of three wonderful
children and I have a full-time job. I am 33-years of age and I am working
on my Associates Degree in Office Administration.
Upon my decision to return to school, scholarship,
work, childcare and other family needs were a big concern for me. When I
made the decision to come back to school, it affected my whole life style
and my entire family. Many changes had to be made. I had to rearrange my
work schedule and take morning classes just to make sure the children had
a way to school. It has not been easy being a single-parent and coming
back to school, but it is worth every effort I put into it.
A real main focus for nontraditional students is
confidence. They are unsure if they can compete academically. The life
experience will serve them well. Nontraditional students always seem to be
short on time. They are so involved with other thing, especially taking
care of children, as well as myself. Going to school and getting my degree
are my goals right now and I am going to do it.
Many people who got married or started working right
out of high school are now finding themselves going back to college. They
need to retool themselves on one or more areas. A lot of students just
want to explore something that interests them. You may have any of a
variety of reasons for thinking about college now. Perhaps you want a
better job. A diploma or degree from one of America’s great colleges or
universities will certainly help you find a rewarding one. Or maybe not
having a degree has created a yearning for something more. Perhaps you
always knew that you could have been a good student, if only you could
focus. Now you may feel ready. You don’t have to have any reason for
returning to college other than an interest in seeing what fascinating
information might be waiting for you in various classes. (Continued
on page 2) |
