New Persuasion

Filter for Good

While doing some research this morning I came across a website representing a campaign called "Filter for Good."  According to the website,

Brita and Nalgene have partnered to present FilterForGood. Take the pledge to make a small change in your life that could be part of a big change nationwide.

If you're ready, take the pledge. Still not convinced? Learn the facts about why reducing bottled water waste is so important.

And, if you purchase a FilterForGood refillable bottle, you'll also be supporting the Blue Planet Run Foundation, a nonprofit organization working to provide safe drinking water to 200 million people for the rest of their lives by 2027. For every FilterForGood refillable bottle purchased between August 10th and December 31st, 2007, a donation of $4, up to a maximum of $25,000, will be made to the Blue Planet Run Foundation.

This site offers some really great statistics about why bottled water waste is a concern and what we can do as individuals to help the big picture.  This shows that our society is aware of the environmental issues gaining media attention as well as ways in which we can make a difference.  I think that emphasis on the environment is only going to become more and more important over the upcoming decades-- especially because of the continuous coverage of the impact humans have on global warming.  It is good to know that companies are teaming up to give us options as consumers without taking away the convenience element that we love.

Firsts

Here at McGinn MS&L we find it important to keep track of the first time important things occur in our society.  These changes tell us a lot about things that may be surprising or even overdue, and are a great indication of where we stand.

Some recent firsts that are significantly important are:

Ø      On July 25, 1978, Louise Joy Brown, the world's first successful "test-tube" baby was born in Great Britain.

Ø      For the first time at least since World War II, there were more failed marriages than lasting ones at the 25-year mark: Slightly more than half of the men and women who got married in the late 1970s were separated or divorced -- or widowed -- before they reached their 25th anniversary.

Ø      The 2008 edition of “America’s Best Black Colleges” marks the first time U.S. News & World Report has released a stand-alone ranking of historically black colleges and universities.

Ø      John Edwards appeared in the first MySpace/ MTV candidate forum. The Democratic presidential hopeful was the first in a string of candidate dialogs planned by those two stalwarts of modern culture.

Ø      The number of violent crimes increased by a larger amount than expected last year, extending the first significant rise in murders and robberies in a dozen years.  Robberies surged by 7.2% and murders rose 1.8%.

Ø      The number of people living past 100 in England and Wales reached almost 9,000 last year for the first time ever.  The number of Centenarians had increased ninety-fold since 1911 when there were only 100 total in the country.

What does this all mean?  Well, advances in technology have made things like the "test-tube baby" and the record number of Centenarians possible.  It also is the main factor behind the MySpace/ MTV political influence which signals a huge shift in society and the things that we emphasize as a nation.  Technology is changing everything about our world and we are taking notice.  It's great to see that we are taking advantage of our ability to communicate to mass audiences and political leaders are taking the time to speak to these audiences-- young and old.

The rise in the number of murders and robberies could be because of a larger issue, such as Hurricane Katrina or the terrorist attacks on September 11th.  We are starting to realize that we should stop and enjoy life, and how important is really is to remember that everyone is an individual with their appreciation for the world around them.  This could be the reason for the record number of failed marriages as people begin to explore what they find most important in life.  We are encouraging individuality and uniqueness, as well as embracing positive changes such as the first edition of U.S. News and World Report releasing a ranking specifically for the nations Black Colleges and Universities.

As new firsts emerge and these changes continue to become an integral part of the way we live, it's important to just stop and take in these shifts before years go by and we never even realize they occurred.

Are We Bad Parents?

My best friend Kelly is a kindergarten teacher.  She has 29 children in her class.  Normally, she says that maybe 2 or 3 are disruptive, don't listen, and don't respond to threats.  This year, Kelly has 14 kids like that.  What's different?  Kelly thinks it's the fact that this is the first group of kids she's had born after September 11.  She speculates that this event affected parents so much that they never set limits, they never said no to their children.  (And here in the Washington area, 9/11 was followed by the sniper - which didn't help matters much.)

One of my sisters - she has six kids - once told me to never feel sorry for my children.  If you feel sorry for them, they got ya.  Over the years, I've come to think she's right - and now we have a nation of people feeling sorry for our kids because of scary incidents like 9/11 or the sniper. 

Which may explain the growing success of a book by psychologist David Walsh: No: Why Kids—of All Ages—Need to Hear It and Ways Parents Can Say It. Walsh says our kids are suffering from a discipline deficit disorder.  What I find fascinating about the book is that teaching professionals are pushing it.  From U.S. News & World Report:

In Minnesota, Walsh's home state, a "Say Yes to No" coalition of educators and PTA parents sent "tool kits" touting the book...to 2,500 principals before school began last week...School principals from Indiana, South Carolina, and several other states are getting set to work No into teacher training sessions.

Kelly told me that on her back to school night, she was firm with the parents about setting limits and saying no to their children.  Again, our teachers are telling parents how to behave.  When and how did we stop parenting?

Luxury in the Dorm

This past weekend I had the occasion to visit a dorm at George Washington University.  I hadn't been in a dorm in years and was shocked at how nice it was.  Each room in this particular dorm had its own kitchenette and bathroom.  Some rooms have their own washer and dryer.  Apparently, this is the norm.  When I was in college we were crammed into tiny rooms with no amenities and  sharing a bathroom with 6 other girls was the norm.  We shared the laundry room with the entire dorm. 

Apparently, today's college students have grown up with certain standards and aren't going to lower them just because they are in college and away from the comforts of home.  In fact, they expect those comforts to follow them there.  When deciding where to go to college, dorms and dining halls play as much a part as do the classes and football team.

A recent article in the LA Times studied this trend:

Back-to-school shoppers will spend $5.4 billion this year, a figure that has nearly doubled since 2003, according to the National Retail Federation. On average, about $1,500 of that will come from each freshman gearing up for life in a residence hall that is nicer than most parents  ever imagined.

The trend toward the four-star dorm is a convergence of several factors: a generation of
students who have grown up sharing neither the bedroom nor the bathroom with siblings, parents who are accustomed to high tuition costs and don't object to paying a few hundred more per month for better accommodations, and universities competing for enrollment and using posh new residence halls as marketing tools.

Callaway Villas, in College Station next to Texas A&M, is a gated ACC complex of three-story town houses plus a 16,000-square-foot clubhouse, a resort-style pool, basketball courts, a sand volleyball court and shuffleboard. Living units have faux-hardwood floors, ceiling fans and, for those light sleepers, white-noise generators.

Another trend that I find amazing is that more and more schools are furnishing dorms with
double beds!  An article in today's Washington Post explains:

University officials hoping to keep students on campus and compete with off-campus housing are trying new room designs and all manner of amenities to appeal to the millennial generation, especially those seeking the comforts of home while in school. Some have given single rooms to students not used to sharing. Others have offered maid service and microwaves. Now they're giving them a larger space on which to lay their heads.
At AU, the move toward double beds came after complaints by students that the twins were too small and too childish, said Rick Treter, director of residence life. When a dorm designed with suites of larger single bedrooms was built, the double beds were the ticket.

I think this is just another trend showing that luxury really is everywhere in society.  Gen Y
students have grown up expecting certain things and living quarters are no exception. They are not willing to compromise and expect college dorms to be no different than what they are used to.  Colleges have taken notice and in order to attract the best students, have outfitted dorms accordingly.  I can only imagine what they will think of next.

Want to Know about the Fish You're eating? Ask the U.S. Government

When I eat seafood, I don't normally think about the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA).  But the good folks at Resource Shelf recently pointed me to a new service from NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service - FishWatch.

Seafood lovers can find out the latest information on some 30 species of fish - with more on the way.  There is information about the sustainability of different species and the health hazards and health benefits of eating seafood. 

This is a great example of transparency and information sharing that could not have been done before the Internet.  Certainly the timeliness of the information and data they collect would not have been available so quickly.  It's also a wonderful illustration of how scientific information can be presented in a way that feels helpful and not overwhelming.  It's what using the Internet is all about. 

Information Therapy - User Generated Wellness

Managed Care. Magazine recently ran an article about Information Therapy. What is information therapy?

"... the practice of providing more and better information to patients so they can contribute more to their healing...the term information therapy applies to a wide range of uses and situations. For some providers, information therapy is literally a physician-written prescription telling a patient to read specific information, learn it, and apply it. For others, information therapy is used to help a patient make treatment decisions, such as whether to continue chemotherapy."

There's even The Center for Information Therapy - a non-profit which gives support to both doctors and patients. 

This is personalization at its best.  One doctor said, "The greatest untapped capacity in health care is the patient.  Engagement of the patient is powerful and allows for outcomes that aren't available with any other approach."

It sounds a lot like user-generated content - or in this case - user generated wellness.

Thanks to Resource Shelf for the link.

Flickr photo by Anti-Social Butterfly

Small Changes Can Make a Big Difference

Everyone knows that kids are easily persuaded.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out, and people that may or may not be parents already know this.  It seems like the last people to realize this are companies which market to kids.  Actually, it makes more sense to say that companies know everything there is to know about the young consumer market.  They just use what they know in a different way than many nutritionists and parents would probably agree with. 

I think that in America we are always skeptical.  We always think that there is a catch and that we are going to be taken advantage of.  We question what we read and what we hear and what we see.  We are always wanting to do our own research and ask people we know for advice instead of trusting a salesperson with their own agenda.  Basically, we have huge trust issues.  I think this is semi-depressing-- but in the end, I'm okay with this because the only person that will always be around to look out for me is...me. 

The New York Times did a great piece on companies marketing food ads to children.  The article focuses specifically on Kellogg's because of the organization's announcement that "it would phase out advertising to children under age 12 unless the foods meet specific nutrition guidelines for calories, sugar, fat and sodium."  Apparently, "Kellogg also announced that it would stop using licensed characters or branded toys to promote foods unless the products meet the nutrition guidelines."  These changes are going to take place over the next year and a half and will apply to approximately half of the products Kellogg markets to kids around the globe (this includes some of my personal favorites: Apple Jacks, Froot Loops, and the ever-tasty Pop-Tarts).

What are these standards? 

Well, for Kellogg's they are food products with:

• No more than 200 calories
• No trans fat
• No more than 2 grams of saturated fat
• No more than 230 milligrams of sodium
• No more than 12 grams of sugar

This is a great thing, but lets keep in mind this was all decided AFTER "threats of a lawsuit by two advocacy groups for children."  Funny how suddenly everyone scrambles to do the right thing when the bottom line is put in jeopardy. 

One thing I'm glad to hear about is that Kellogg isn't the only food company trying to changes its ways.  The New York Times article makes mention of Disney only allowing its characters to be used in food advertising if the products "complied with nutritional standards," as well as Kraft Foods halting advertising to products "to children under 12 that don't meet nutrition guidelines." 

I think that this is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the future of food advertising to children.  I feel that America as a nation is starting to understand the reasons behind our unhealthiness and we are beginning to realize the steps we need to take to start healthier habits.  One thing that we are really finding out is that good habits are established early-- and we need to teach our children about the proper ways to take care of themselves while they are very young.  This move by food companies shows that our expectations are changing.  We want the products we buy to work with us-- not against us. 

The typical consumer-company relationship that once existed is now morphing into something that many of us are more comfortable with.  I can't wait to see what is defined as "healthy" 20 years from now, and I feel that we will look back on these small decisions and see them as big turning points for the consumer.

Fun AND Sun

I know a huge trend right now is self-care.  We are starting to realize more and more that certain things are important and can extend our lives.  We are understanding more about certain types of cancers, foods to eat and to avoid, and ways to keep ourselves healthy that we didn't necessarily know about even just 20 years ago.

One topic that I have read so much about and seen so much media coverage on is skin cancer and skincare.  I have seen multiple news and magazine articles about the dangers of tanning beds, the proper amount and SPF of suntan lotion to apply daily, foods that can trigger sun sensitivity, times of day to avoid the sun, heredity issues, etc...  The list is endless. 

I was surprised to see an article in the Financial Times that ties in to this trend.  The article mentions that Speedo's Endurance + synthetic bathing suit fabric lasts 20 longer in chlorine and sunlight than regular nylon and has an SPF of over 50.  Other companies such as Mitty James have products like the "Towellling Top" that "has an UV/SPF rating of 45 [on the palest garment] and goes up to 100 on the darker pieces."

According to the Financial Times article, swimwear with SPF 'started in Australian market but is becoming more popular here'." 

Here are some websites to check out for more SPF swimwear products:

www.carvico.com

www.speedo.com

www.mittyjames.com

www.figleaves.com

www.sunseekersswimwear.com

www.laperla.com

The fact that so many products are making their way into the American market really says a lot about the way we value our health now.  We are starting to realize that negative effects of the sun and the ways that we can take action against aging and preventable health problems.  I think that this is going to continue to be a huge area of growth as more and more research emerges about the dangers of the sun.  It is a good thing that we are looking for ways to enjoy the outdoors while protecting ourselves.  We love to live our lives and we won't let much stop us from doing this the way we want to do it, but a few things that can make this easier for us is greatly appreciated.

Tweens Love Club Penguin

I had never heard of Club Penguin until a few months ago when I was listening to NPR's All Things Considered. It introduced me to a whole new world.  Literally days later, my 10-year old daughter Amanda asked if she could join.  Now she is hooked and schedules appointments with friends at school to meet online at a certain time of day.  I have to limit her time or she’d be on Club Penguin instead of doing her math homework, cleaning her guinea pig’s cage, or tracking down her soccer cleats for the 6:00 pm practice.

I may be old-fashioned, but I have mixed feelings about websites that target kids aged six to 12.  Personally I would rather have my kids outside playing tag or riding bikes or drawing with chalk on the sidewalk than inside, staring at a computer screen.  In cold or rainy weather, painting a picture or playing Scrabble appear more beneficial than meeting other children in a virtual world.  But Club Penguin, and other sites like Webkinz, is not going anywhere and as a parent I have to be realistic.  Kids use computers at school, at home, and at the library;  every day they are absorbing the skills they will utilize in high school, college, and eventually the working world.

Created by a couple of Canadian dads, clubpenguin.com is now the most popular website for kids and is aimed at both boys and girls.  Safety appears to be a top priority of the creators.  When registering, the website collects minimal information about children –  primarily age and sex.  The site tells children that they cannot share any personal information online, such as their address or the name of their school.  If they do, another “penguin” or online monitor will report them and ask them to leave the igloo.  For its safety standards, it is one of the few children’s websites approved by the Better Business Bureau.

Interacting with other kids – or penguins – is the primary goal of the site.  Club Penguin runs no ads and runs on subscription fees only.  For $5.95 a month, kids can create a penguin name and password and jump in.  Once online, Club Penguin is a virtual world of waddling birds with names such as Booger1427, MrYellow30, CutiePie, FuzziePuzzie, and TwoKool4u (I have changed a few to protect the identity of the “owners” but you get the idea). 

But what’s so great about it?  According to my Club Penguin expert, the site is fun for a couple of reasons:

Number one:  You can act like a penguin, not a kid!
Number two:  You can make new friends.
Number three:  Sometimes you meet those friends in real life at school and that is really cool.
Number four:  You can buy funny looking pets called Puffles, and also cool stuff with which to decorate your igloo.

Amanda likes to monitor other penguin’s behavior and recently reported a girl for being too bossy.  That penguin was immediately removed from the igloo, so I guess the system works!  She has 15 names on her buddy list and likes to play games with her Puffles, which are pink and blue pretend pets.  Kids can also play games like Jet Pack Adventure, which involves flying penguins with rockets on their backs who fly through the sky collecting coins.  Bean Counters is another game that depicts a tired looking penguin unloading sacks of something (penguin food?) from a truck to a platform.  With the winnings, kids can buy clothes, including warm weather gear like ear muffs and boots, or igloo decorations.  Igloos can get quite elaborate, with drum sets, dance floors, home stereo systems, and ice sculptures.

Webkinz is another popular site for kids.  This one requires the purchase of a real stuffed animal first, which includes a collar with a website password.  On a recent Girl Scout outing, three of Amanda’s friends had their Webkinz animals with them.  So if computer gaming increases the likelihood that children will engage in real play – whether that is with stuffed animals or by simply creating the social networks that emerge offline – perhaps these sites are just modern day versions of hide-and-seek or tag. 

I still limit the Club Penguin time to Fridays after school and weekends.  I think good old fashioned running around is still better than screen time.  Kids will have plenty of that when they grow up.  Or maybe I’m just envious – on a beautiful spring day, like today, I would most certainly give up my screen time in order to be outside, chasing a butterfly or playing tag.

Graduation

With many area schools celebrating years of their students' hard work right now, I thought it would be interesting to find out a little bit more about graduation.

• Apparently, The Class of 2007 includes more than 3.3 million high school graduates, about 1.5 million college undergraduate degrees, approximately 603,000 Master’s degrees, and more than 50,000 doctorates.
• Harvard was the first American college to hold a commencement ceremony in 1642.
• Graduation gowns reflect the general manner of dress in the late Middle Ages and Renaissance period.
• The four-sided graduation cap first appeared in the 16th century in Scotland. It originally was known as a “trencher” cap because it looked like an inverted serving board – a trencher – with a bowl on it. The term “mortarboard” developed in the 19th century.
• High-school graduates in the United States began wearing the now traditional commencement cap and gown in 1908.
• High school graduation is the No. 1 reason for purchasing graduation cards, and the average graduate receives 17.5 graduation cards. Sixty percent of all graduation cards are purchased for high-school graduates.
• College graduation is the No. 2 reason for buying graduation cards, and the average college graduate receives 7.5 cards.

I guess we as a society love to honor specific traditions and will never get tired of recognizing a friend or family member for time we consider well-spent.  Even though we are becoming more and more accustomed to sending out emails when we have words of encouragement or thanks, we still value the art of giving and getting a card every now and then.

Learn a new language?

Air France has recently introduced a program giving passengers a chance to participate in in-flight language instruction "classes."  Twenty-three languages are part of this pilot program which are available in 30 minute or hour long sessions. 

Lessons are at the beginner level and offered in partnership with Berlitz World Travellers.  JAL and Singapore Airlines also offer Berlitz Word Traveller as part of their in-flight entertainment options.

Springwise had a good analysis of why there is a demand for these programs:

As many consumers are demonstrating a value shift in status from passive consumption to mastering skills, smart companies are offering their customers the opportunity to add to their skill set. Similar initiatives include BMW's Performance Driving Schools, the Sony Digital University or the Viking Cooking School. Watch and learn!

As we live in an increasingly smaller world, becoming familiar with other countries and cultures is becoming more of a necessity as well.  Personally, if I were on the way to a foreign country where I didn't speak the language, I would gladly welcome the opportunity to learn a few new words.

Libraries Thrive

This week, the American Library Association released their 2007 report: The State of America's Libraries.  From the press release:

Ten years after some experts predicted the demise of the nation's system of libraries as a result of the Internet explosion, the most current national data on library use shows that the exact opposite has happened. Data released ...indicates that the number of visits to public libraries in the United States increased 61 percent between 1994 and 2004...

Some key points:

• Virtually every library in the United States - 99 percent - provides free public computer access to the Internet, a four-fold increase in the percentage of libraries providing such free access over the last decade.
• Overall circulation at public libraries in the U.S. rose by 28 percent during the decade 1994 to 2004.
• There was significant growth in circulation of children's materials, which grew by 44 percent between 1994 and 2004.
• Attendance in library programs for children was also up 42 percent for this same period.

Funny how things work out - libraries are valued in our society.  Books are valued.  The Internet is valued.  This growth in library usage says to me we are a society that puts a high value on education - both for ourselves and our kids.

Thanks to Gary Price's Resource Shelf blog for the pointer.

Handwriting is Here to Stay

We sent our 3 children to Catholic school, which meant that in the early grades, handwriting and cursive were an important subject.  My husband Dave, a software engineer, has ranted for years over this "waste of time."  He thinks handwriting is an outdated concept.   I actually think it's important to know how to write.  There's nothing like paper and pencil (or pen).  And I think it will be a long time before our signatures are no longer needed on important documents. 

I read with pleasure an article today in cnet news: Is the pen still mighty in the computer age?:

Your grandchildren may use a stylus on a tablet PC instead of a Bic on tablet paper, but they will continue to write...Printing is still one of the main teaching methods for reading and writing. Educators call it "writing to teach." Handwriting, which has evolved into a hybrid of script and print, should stay around for quite some time.

More on Creativity

"If you're not prepared to be wrong - you'll never come up with anything original." -Sir Ken Robinson, TED 2006 Conference

I came across this talk by Sir Ken Robinson from the TED 2006 Conference. Sir Ken wrote the book, Out of Our Minds: Learning to Be Creative, and could probably quit his day job to be a stand-up comic.

Take 20 minutes and watch - he speaks about creativity and education and how never the twain shall meet:

Judging Creativity

One of my favorite blogs is Logic + Emotion, Digitas Creative Director David Armano's personal blog.  He recently wrote about his son Max's coloring technique.  As you see from the picture, Max's teacher wrote: "Good!  Try Staying in the lines."  Which got David thinking:

Now, I understand that kids need to learn how to color in the lines.  It teaches them basic coordination and concentration.  But what does it teach them about themselves?  What does it teach them about skills that might serve them well one day in the real world?

Couldn't there be an assignment in addition to coloring shapes that maybe included handing them blank sheets of paper and asking them to invent and name a shape that no one has ever heard of before?  Maybe some kid would come up with a Sqoval, or a Tri-square, or even an Octocircle.  Who knows?  The point is that we do need to be taught to do things like coloring shapes at a young age, but shouldn't we also be taught how to invent, create and look at problems from a totally different perspective?

This is one area that sets creative people off.  Do not tell me to stay in the lines, because if you do I'll deliberately run right over them.  And isn't this also what happens between creatives in any field (advertising, television, writing, etc...) and their clients?  So Max is learning that for this assignment he needs to do X.  And his Dad argues that perhaps Max needs another assignment where he can do Y & Z too.  And isn't this what happens in the real world?  We save our big idea for another client, another time. 

And all this reminds my of my very favorite Peanuts strip featuring Sally and her "C" grade on a coat hanger art project.  I can't find the strip to show you but here's what she wondered:

• Was I judged on the piece of sculpture itself?  If so, is it not true that time alone can judge a work of art? 
• Or was I judged on my talent?  If so, is it right that I be judged on a part of life over which I have no control?
• If I was judged on my effort, then I was judged unfairly for I tried as hard as I could! 
• Was I judged on what I had learned about this project?  If so, then were not you, my teacher, also being judged on your ability to transmit your knowledge to me?  Are you willing to share my ‘C’? 
• Perhaps I was being judged on the quality of the coat hanger itself out of which my creation was made.  Is this also not unfair?  Am I to be judged by the quality of coat-hangers that are used by the dry-cleaning establishments that returns our garments?  Is that not the responsibility of my parents?  Should they not share my ‘C’?”

Which just shows you how hard it is to grade creativity. 

Wells Fargo Initiates the Conversation

I've written about Wells Fargo before.  They get their customers big time.

• They're in Second Life teaching teens about money matters through games and social activities.
• Wells Fargo encourages young couples to open wedding accounts.
• Wells Fargo has a launched a great mortgage product where they handhold the customer till they become creditworthy and Wells Fargo can extend a loan product to them! (via Customer World)
• Wells Fargo embraces diversity, and unlike other banks, does not discourage low-income customers and opens "stores" (not branches) in areas other banks won't go near.

Wells Fargo is there, as Tom Asacker puts it, "wherever and whenever your audience is most receptive to your message."

And now Colin Henderson at Bankwatch blog tells of a new conversation being started by Wells Fargo:

They [Wells Fargo] continue to impress me with small steps, yet meaningful steps in the social Internet space... The new blog is an industry first.  It is cutely (is that a word) entitled The Student LoanDown.  Its positioned and structured as a genuine conversation to listen and learn, and in turn better support students.  They will be bringing in guest bloggers to help them with that...The topic is ‘a blog about financing college, and managing debt’.

I'm not sure I agree with Colin that this blog will reach its intended audience - I think parents are more likely to go there than students (of course-that's speaking as a parent with two kids in college),and I think it's a little too cutesy so far, but it's early days and I do applaud Wells Fargo's efforts. 

One thing I did notice that will certainly hobble their efforts at communicating - from their about page:

As a bank, regulations prevent us from obtaining your personal information—hence the restrictions in our blog comments that prevent you from submitting your full name. Also, we can't capture your blog's URL in our comments due to concerns about phishing. We know these regulations are there for good reason: to protect consumers from fraud and to protect your privacy. So please, bear with us...If you'd like follow-up from us, please send us an email.

I think they need to put this info on a box on their main page - otherwise people won't understand. 

College Customers - What they Expect

Today's post comes from one of our interns, Patrick Pho (soon to be a full-time employee after he graduates this weekend):

This week my younger sister and I talked about her college applications. She’s a senior in high school back in Massachusetts where I’m originally from. Like many of her friends, she applied to a number of colleges and universities for this fall. The six colleges she applied to range from big schools like Northeastern in Boston, to smaller schools like Champlain in the woods of Vermont and Fitchburg State College (my current alma mater). Her college search efforts bring back memories of my own college search when I was in high school. I applied to around six colleges ranging from Syracuse & Boston University to the smaller schools like Franklin Pierce and of course Fitchburg State.

Talking with my sister about her choices - she got into five schools and was rejected by one - she had a number of factors in choosing a school. Size, location, campus environment, sports, their make up, and the many attributes that perspective freshmen (like my sister) look at. One thing is certain though- she wanted to be able to choose from a wide selection of schools - so she applied to a bunch of them. It’s definitely common to see students applying to multiple schools- I remember applying to a reach, a safety, and four others. That way I could choose from many and not get holed into the only school that accepted me. However, looking back at my own experience, I see that more and more students today are applying to more and more schools. It’s a trend that is changing expectations in college admissions.

Students are applying to more name colleges to increase their chances and choices. Last month The New York Times (subscription required) wrote a story about Michael Martin, a high school student, much like my sister, who applied to over 20 colleges and universities:

“An annual survey of college freshmen indicates that students bound for all kinds of institutions are filling more applications these days. In 1967 only 1.8 of freshman surveyed had applied to seven or more colleges, while in 2005, 17.4 percent had done so, according to the Cooperative Institutional Research Program at U.C.L.A.”

What happened to four to six colleges? I remember when I thought six was a big number of colleges to apply to. Like when I my friend Jimmy applied to twelve colleges, including Harvard and Boston College. My friend Liz applied to twelve as well, including Stanford. It appears that more and more students are following the path than my two friends went down. Students are super-sizing their applications in hopes of super-sizing their choice of colleges.

Colleges are recognizing this trend, and are adapting by increasing their acceptances. By doing this, colleges hope to increase or maintain their current yields. The College Journal reports:

“…while the increase in applications may make it harder to get in at some schools, the odds for many turned out better than anticipated. John Hopkins University, for example, received nearly 200 more applications [in 2005] than last year. But it has accepted over 700 students more than it did by this time last year. It’s also increasing the number of wait-list spots- to 2,000 up from 1,500 last year.”

Other schools have responded by doing the opposite, an update to the article quotes:

“Elite colleges including Brown University, Stanford University and the University of Pennsylvania say they have accepted a smaller percentage of applicants than ever before…  top colleges also say the huge surge in applications translated to an unusually competitive year.”

My cousin who is also applying to colleges for next fall, also applied to multiple colleges. She applied to a number of large colleges and got excited as the acceptances came in. Her first acceptance was to Penn State- she was walking around telling people she’s going to be the class of 2010 at Penn State, excited about getting accepted to a college. A couple of weeks later she was singing a different tune: UConn class of 2010. When I asked her about the change, she told me she was excited about getting into Penn State but when UConn (her first choice) offered her a place- she was more than happy that she had options- and she exercised them.

Students today want better choices in their college search. Today’s perspective high school students are shopping around more and more - becoming free agents of the college world. All in all, it’s changing the face of how kids apply to college. As for my sister? She’ll be attending Fitchburg State. It was a tough decision but she was glad to have a few choices to choose from.

My Public Relations Mentor

My teacher in college "got it."

One of the classes I initially dreaded the most at my alma mater, Auburn University, was Style and Design. I dreaded it not only because I was taking a very full load of classes, but also because he was pushing the limits of traditional teaching.

Early on my professor, Robert French, understood the value and effectiveness of using the Internet as a tool to communicate and learn. He had/has his own blog - infopinions? --and he pushed his students to learn. I now appreciate it.

One of many requirements was writing our own blog. Contributing regularly with thoughtful insight into happenings around the world, including public relations, was part of our final grade. It was a great exercise and is something that I carry with me today.

We were also required to contribute to MarComBlog.com. Robert set up this site and invited several PR Practitioners to post comments on insight and day-to-day work - David Forstrom, Bill French, Guillaume du Gardier,  Josh Hallett, Neville Hobson,  Dee Rambeau, Octavio Rojas, Dale Wolf. Relationships were formed. Thoughtful insight was given. Lessons were learned.

I guess my point is that Robert got it. He understood that the rules for communication were and are continuously changing. He knew that what he was teaching would follow us when we left Auburn and pursued a career. The class was more about learning to communicate outside of what was then deemed normal - a simple press release, a direct mailing, an interview with a television station. He taught us that the rules are in fact changing...something we think a lot about here with New Persuasion.

The Euro RSCG/Columbia study shows

...that more than 51 percent of journalists use blogs regularly, and 28 percent rely on them to help in their day-to-day reporting duties. By contrast, a recent Pew Internet and American Life Project survey showed that just 11 percent of the U.S. population as a whole reads blogs. 

So Robert was/is ahead of his time - he gets it.