California legislation inspired by college admissions scandal goes to Gov. Gavin Newsom

California lawmakers have sent the governor a package of reforms sparked by the recent college admissions scandal, including a bill approved Wednesday that would require special admits at public universities to be approved by three administrators.

A quartet of measures approved by lawmakers were introduced after federal authorities charged 50 people with being part of a fraudulent scheme in which parents allegedly made large payments to buy their children entrance to elite universities on phony athletic admissions or rigged scores on exams.

“This scandal not only undermines the public’s trust in the college admissions process, but it further perpetuates the opportunity gap in our college system,” Assemblyman Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento) said.

The state Assembly on Wednesday gave final legislative approval to a bill from McCarty that would require California State University officials to have at least three senior administrators approve special admissions starting in the 2020-21 academic year. The bill, which is based in part on recommendations by a University of California audit, requests that the standards also be adopted by the UC system, which is semi-autonomous.

Campuses would also be required to document which employees were involved in evaluating student applications and to put in writing the rationale for every admission by exception.

“The college admission process is one that needs checks and balances, which this bill will provide,” state Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Orinda) said during debate over the bill.

McCarty said California was the “epicenter of the national scandal” with 25 of the 33 families in the initial indictment coming from the state.

Universities give “admission by exception” to students who fall short of the minimum admission requirements but have a special talent, such as athletic or performing arts skills, or are deemed disadvantaged.

Last year, the CSU system, which was not implicated in the scandal, enrolled 1,410 students by exception, including 924 students who were not disadvantaged. The number represents just over 1% of the new undergraduate enrollment in the prior year.

The measure sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom also requires that students admitted for athletic or fine arts programs participate in the programs for at least a year.

That provision is a response to reports that some students were given special admission because of faked athletic resumes and ended up not participating in any competitive sports events.

In one case, UCLA admitted a teenager from British Columbia with a soccer scholarship, but he didn’t play the sport and authorities allege he was given a special admission based on a $100,000 bribe to the soccer coach.

UC officials said they immediately launched a review of their admissions policies once the federal investigation was announced. UC has not taken a position on the McCarty bill, according to spokeswoman Sarah McBride, but work has begun to improve policies for special admissions.

“As the preeminent public higher education institution, we hold ourselves to the highest standards and have been taking proactive steps to strengthen our admissions practices and procedures, including admission by exception,” McBride said.

A separate measure sent to Newsom prohibits those found guilty in the college admissions scandal from benefiting from illegal charitable contributions or business expense deductions on their income taxes.

“The criminal actions have victimized hard working and low-income students who were denied admissions because of the actions of those involved — and they were able to do so at the expense of the California taxpayers,” said Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva (D-Fullerton), who introduced the bill.

The bill was supported by the University of California, which said in a letter to lawmakers that it includes appropriate safeguards “and encourages a culture of fairness and equity on college campuses across the state.”

Lawmakers also approved legislation by Assemblyman Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) that would require the two state university systems to report to legislative committees whether they provide preferential treatment in admission to applicants on the basis of their relationships to donors or alumni to the institutions.

“If we’re allowing CalGrants and other state-funded benefits to go toward a school, we need to ensure every applicant has a level playing field during the application process,” Ting said.

Ting said the many legal advantages wealthy families have in the college admission process, including private tutoring, can discourage other families “who already feel the odds are stacked against them.”

Separately, the Legislature approved a McCarty resolution, ACR 64, that asks the state’s two public university systems to study whether to phase out the use of the Scholastic Aptitude Test, or SAT, and the American College Test, or ACT, as a basis for college admission.

McCarty noted some of the students involved in the recent scandal were admitted after others fraudulently took their admissions tests for them or gave them other improper help.

“For every student admitted through bribery and fraud, there was an honest and talented student that was rejected,” McCarty said.

The CSU system did not take a position on any of the bills approved by the Legislature, but has started to evaluate its own policies, according to spokesman Michael Uhlenkamp.

“We are conducting an internal review of admissions practices across all of the campuses and will be reporting that back to the CSU Trustees and the public likely in November,” he said.

The system is also holding ongoing internal discussions on the role of standardized tests, Uhlenkamp said, noting that first-time freshmen with GPAs above 3.0 who apply to nonimpacted campuses or programs are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores.

As governor, Newsom sits as an ex officio member of the CSU and UC boards. UC oversees UCLA, which has been at the center of the admissions scandal.

Newsom has been highly critical of those involved in the controversy.

Ask the Expert: What colorectal cancer screening options are available?

Q. What colorectal malignancy screening alternatives are accessible?

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The fourth alternative for screening is conventional colonoscopy. The colonoscope is a propelled camera and intense light source inside a long, adaptable tube that is guided through the colon. Exhaustive purging of the digestive organ is required, and most patients get sedation amid the test. Colonoscopy is played out like clockwork. The American College of Gastroenterology views colonoscopy as the favored CRC "counteractive action" test. A colonoscopy can anticipate colon tumor by discovering pre-carcinogenic polyps and expelling them before they transform into disease. Converse with your family specialist about which screening technique is best for you. Walk is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month — you have choices so get screened.

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ACT Exam Question No 14

Question No 14:

Fix the idiom.

Teachers around the world appreciate that young readers, throughout the Harry Potter books, have discovered the joy of reading.

Answer:

Teachers around the world appreciate that young readers, through the Harry Potter books, have discovered the joy of reading.

ACT Exam Question No 7

Question No 7:

The Gateway Arch
The skyline of St. Louis, Missouri, is fairly unremarkable, with one huge exception, the Gateway Arch that stands on the banks of the Mississippi. Part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, the Arch is a really cool monument built to honor St. Louis’ role as the gateway to the West.

Construction on the 630-foot high structure began, in 1961, and was completed four years later in 1965. The monument includes an underground visitor center that explores westward expansion through galleries and a theater. Two passenger trams take visitors to the Observation Room and the Museum of Westward Expansion at the top. In 1947, a group of interested citizens known as the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Association held a nationwide competition to select a design for a new monument that would celebrate the growth of the United States.

Other U.S. monuments are spires, statues, or imposed buildings, but the winner of this contest was a plan for a completely unique structure. The man that submitted the winning design, Eero Saarinen, later became a famous architect. In designing the Arch, Saarinen wanted to “create a monument which would have lasting significance and would be a landmark of our time.”

The Gateway Arch is a masterpiece of engineering, a monument even taller than the Great Pyramid in Egypt, an on its own way, at least as majestic. The Gateway is an inverted catenary curve, the same shape that a heavy chain will form if suspended between two points.

Covered from top to bottom with sleek stainless steel coating, the Arch often reflects dazzling bursts of sunlight. In a beautiful display of symmetry, the height of the arch is the same as the distance between the legs at ground level.

A. NO CHANGE
B. Began (in 1961)
C. Had begun in 1961
D. Began in 1961

Answer: D

ACT Exam Question No 5

Question No 5:

Batman
Pow! Bam! Zap! Batman triumphs again, foiling evil-doers like the Joker, Penguin, and Catwoman to save the citizens of Gotham City. This superhero created in 1939 and known world wide, continues to be one of the most popular comic strip characters ever Batman was the brainchild of comic book artist Bob Kane. Who was just 22 years old when he was asked to create a new superhero for DC Comics. Superman was a phenomenal success, and DC Comics wanted another hero, just as powerful, to appeal to its readers.

Kane’s idea for Batman reportedly came from Leonardo da Vinci’s famous sketch of a man flying with bat-like wings and the masked heroes of the Shadow and Zorro series. Kane’s Batman was a big success right from the start. The masked hero soon moved from comic books to its own newspaper strip, and in 1943, Batman episodes were aired on the radio. In 1966, live-action Batman shows hit the TV screen, giving ABC network the ratings boost it badly needed. The series was wildly popular, and the syndicated show still airs today on channels such as the Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon.

Why was Batman so popular? The answer may lie in the background Kane gave his character. Batman is really Bruce Wayne, a millionaire who witnessed the murder of his parents as a chilD. He vowed to avenge their deaths and the bringing of criminals to justice. He didn’t have any supernatural powers. Instead, he devotes his life to training his body and mind to fight crime and used his wealth to develop high-tech tools and weapons, like his famous Batmobile, to aid him in his quest. Thus Kane created a superhero who is
just as human as the rest of us, one who suffered and has dedicated himself to righting wrongs. In Batman, Kane gave us an image of our own superhero

A. NO CHANGE
B. Accordingly,
C. For instance,
D. Furthermore,

Answer: A

ACT Exam Question No 3

Question No 3:

1. Today, bicycles are so common that it’s hard to believe they haven’t always been around.
2. But two hundred years ago, bicycles weren’t even existing, and the first bicycle, invented in Germany in 1818, was nothing like our bicycles today—it was made of wood and didn’t even have pedals.
3. Since then, however, numerous innovations and improvements in design have made the bicycle one of the most popular means of recreation and transportation around the world.
4. In 1839, Kirkpatrick, Macmillan a Scottish blacksmith, dramatically improved upon the original bicycle design.
5. Macmillan’s machine had tires with iron rims to keep them from getting worn down.
6. He also used foot-operated cranks similar to pedals so his bicycle, could be ridden at a quick pace.
7. It hadn’t looked, much like a modern bicycle, though, because its back wheel was substantially larger than its front wheel.
8. In 1861, the French Michaux brothers took the evolution of the bicycle a step further by inventing an improved crank mechanism.
9. Ten years later, James Starley, an English inventor, revolutionized bicycle design.
10.  He, made the front wheel many times larger than the back wheel, putting a gear on, the
11. pedals to make the bicycle more efficient, and lightened the wheels by using wire spokes.
12. Although this bicycle was much lighter and less tiring to ride, it was still clumsy,
13. extremely top-heavy, and ridden mostly for entertainment.
14. It wasn’t until 1874 that the first truly modern bicycle appeared on the scene.
15. Today their built, used, and enjoyed all over the world.
16. 14) H. J. Lawson, invented by another Englishman, the “safety bicycle” would look familiar to today’s cyclists.
17. This bicycle had equal sized wheels, which made it less prone to toppling over.
18. Lawson also attached a chain to the pedals to drive the rear wheel.
19. With these improvements, the bicycle became extremely popular and useful for transportation.

A. NO CHANGE
B. Looked not
C. Didn’t look
D. Wasn’t looking

Answer: C