Sunday, March 28, 2010

“Smart spending will ease education quest for returning students (Richmond Times-Dispatch)” plus 1 more

“Smart spending will ease education quest for returning students (Richmond Times-Dispatch)” plus 1 more

Smart spending will ease education quest for returning students (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Posted: 28 Mar 2010 09:04 PM PDT

When it comes to retraining, updating skills or finally finishing an abandoned degree, working adults can feel stuck in the search for extra education.

It can be hard to figure out how to get time away from work and personal obligations, even for online or evening classes.

Most difficult of all, school can be expensive, whether you hope to qualify for a promotion or explore a new career.

Americans always are interested in extra education -- from single courses to advanced degrees -- but even more so when the economy goes south, said Timothy Sloate, director of research at the University Continuing Education Association.

"During times of economic recession, enrollments tend to go up," Sloate said. "That's fueled by people who lost their jobs and are trying to gain more skills to get a new job [and by] people who still have their jobs and are looking to improve their skills."

Here are some tips on making the quest less intimidating and more affordable:

Boss buy-in: Before you even fill out an application form, develop a clear plan and schedule a meeting with your boss to talk it through.

Explain what you hope to accomplish. Emphasize how the classes will make you a better contributor to the team. "Employers will always respond positively when there's a clear benefit for the company," said Jennifer Grasz, a spokeswoman for CareerBuilder.com.

Keeping surprises to a minimum will help: Be clear about when and how often you would need to shift your work hours or be allowed to leave promptly.

Money for nothing: Even community-college classes can be costly if your budget is tight. But there's free money to be had -- if you know where to look.

First, check whether your employer offers tuition assistance. Some major corporations cover the full cost of classes. Others will reimburse you if you make a specific grade, or they'll let you use pretax dollars.

Next, fill out the FAFSA, or Free Application for Student Aid.

Many schools and many groups that offer scholarships require it.

Even if you plan to take a light load, you may be eligible for aid. And if you have kids in college, mention them, because that can improve your position.

"Maximize all the free money you can get, and use your own resources," said Patricia Nash Christel, spokeswoman for student lending company Sallie Mae.

Most federally supported loan programs require students to carry at least half the credits of a full-time student, so you likely will narrow your options by taking just one class at a time.

And outright grants from the federal government are limited to the poorest students.

But Sallie Mae's searchable database lists $16 billion in private scholarships, some available to students taking a single class.

About one-fourth is for students returning to school after a hiatus. And many private scholarships support students with certain backgrounds or goals.

So do your research before assuming you'll have to foot the whole bill.

Paying your way: Once you've tracked down all possible scholarships and assessed how much you can afford to pay, schedule a meeting with your school's financial aid office.

Some colleges allow you to pay in installments, interest free.

Also consider changing the beneficiary on your family's 529 college-savings plan -- to yourself.

"If you have many, many years before your child goes to college, you can decide to fund your own educational program while you build up the savings," said Sallie Mae's Christel.

Tax benefit: If your classes are required to maintain or improve your skills, or are mandated by law or regulators, you'll be able to deduct that expense on your taxes.

But most aren't, accountants say.

Instead, you can deduct up to 20 percent of out-of-pocket tuition and fees if you file solo and have adjusted-gross income less than $60,000, or if you file jointly with income less than $120,000, said Mark Luscombe, an analyst at CCH, a publisher of tax information.

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Poll official to guest in Sun.Star online chat (Sun Star)

Posted: 28 Mar 2010 10:43 AM PDT

AS PART of its voters' education, Sun.Star Network Online at chat.sunstar.com.ph will host an online chat with one of the commissioners of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to give light on issues concerning poll automation.

The only Cebuano member of the poll body, Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal plays a key role in the first-ever automated elections to be implemented this May 2010.

Click here for Election 2010 updates

Larrazabal, the youngest poll commissioner at the age of 38, heads the steering committee on automation.

The online chat will be held on March 29, Monday. The discussion will start at 4 p.m. and run for one and a half hours with Larrazabal taking questions from Sun.Star website visitors.

To join, click on the online chat icon found at Sun.Star website's top left portion of the homepage or go to www3.sunstar.com.ph/chat.

Larrazabal was appointed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo last September 2009 as replacement to Leonardo Leonida, who failed to get the nod of the Commission on Appointments (CA).

Leonida was supposed to replace commissioner Romeo Brawner who died in May 2008.

After securing the confirmation of the CA on October 2009, Larrazabal assumed office and since then vowed a successful conduct of the automated polls.

He was the regional election director of Eastern Visayas and chairman of the Comelec Regional Election Directors Organization at the time of his appointment.

"Commissioner Goyo," as he is fondly called now, joined Comelec in 2004 as the provincial election supervisor of Bulacan and then became regional director of Bicol. He was also assigned as the provincial election supervisor in Basilan.

The commissioner, who was born in Leyte, obtained his law degree from the University of San Carlos, Cebu City in 1997.

Larrazabal will serve his term as commissioner up to 2011.

The poll official is the nephew of Cebu Doctors' Hospital president and owner Dr. Potenciano Larrazabal Jr.

He is the youngest son of former Leyte governor Adelina Yrastorza-Larrazabal and the late Ormoc City mayor Emeterio Larrazabal.

His appointment was the second time that an election commissioner came from the Eastern Visayas. Jaime Opinion was the first who served in 1980 to 1987. (Kathrina Alvarez/Sunnex)



Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.
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