The University of La Verne sits on 26 acres of suburbia between the city of Los Angeles and the mountains. The college has just over 1,600 students, most of whom live in three drab and boxy-looking dormitories. A decade ago, one was exclusively male, one female, and one coed. But faced with a surge in women students (who made up 65 percent of the student body last year, up from 58 percent a decade ago), the school had to convert two thirds of the male facility for women’s use. “Everyone knows guys are scarce on this campus,” says Nick Solis, a sophomore, who adds that the women in his coed dorm have taken to using the men’s room out of convenience. Read the rest of this entry »

SOLEDAD O’BRIEN: The SAT, the ACT, their dreaded ritual for high school seniors. Well now, George Mason in Virginia is offering a little relief, letting students apply without having to submit test scores. Joining us this morning is Andrew Flagel. He us is the dean of admission at George Mason. Alex Kingsbury is from “U.S. News and World Report.” Read the rest of this entry »

Archival recordings and recent interviews are woven together in this hour-long documentary that tells the story of the New York Police Department from the 1940s to the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. From Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia’s famous, “sock ‘em in the jaw,” speech to new police officers in 1942, to first-hand accounts of a 1964 Harlem riot in which the police fired thousands of rounds of live ammunition, to the gripping story of police officers running for their lives after the collapse of the World Trade Center towers, this program opens a window into the NYPD’s fascinating history and the complex relationship between the police and the citizens of New York .

With a score that includes music from cop shows like “Car 54 Where Are You” and clips from films including “Shaft” and “Serpico,? this program is a compelling examination of the one of the world’s leading leading law enforcement organizations before and after 9/11. Among the topics covered - corruption scandals, struggles by police officers to win union representation, and conflicts between the police and New York’s African-American and immigrant communities. Read the rest of this entry »

A reader asks:

Since the deadlines for early decision are soon approaching, I decided to get a head start on my college applications. However, I have no idea what to write about. I have a 102 (weighted) average, a 1350/1600 on my SATs, and a good number of extracurricular activities, but I am completely stupefied when it comes to the admissions essay. There are so many topics to choose from that I don’t know which one will set me apart from “the pack” and get me that much closer to admission into an Ivy League school. Please point me in the right direction! Read the rest of this entry »