Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eCampus News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Ex-student in Rutgers webcam spying case gets 30 days

Prosecutors had asked that Ravi be sent to prison; they did not say how much time he should get.

A former Rutgers University student who used a webcam to spy on his gay roommate was sentenced Monday to 30 days in jail—just a fraction of the maximum—in a case that focused attention on anti-gay bullying, teen suicide, and hate-crime laws in the fast-changing internet age.

Dharun Ravi, 20, was also placed on three years’ probation for his part in an episode that burst onto the front pages after his roommate, Tyler Clementi, threw himself to his death off the George Washington Bridge.

“Our society has every right to expect zero tolerance for intolerance,” Judge Glenn Berman said in imposing far less than the maximum, 10 years behind bars.…Read More

Rutgers student who secretly videotaped roommate texted friend about ‘viewing party’

Rutgers freshman Tyler Clementi killed himself just days after his encounter with another man was streamed live online, drawing attention to the issue of cyber bullying in schools and colleges nationwide.

Dharun Ravi texted a high school friend that Rutgers University students were having a “viewing party with a bottle of bacardi and beer” to watch an intimate encounter between his roommate and another man streamed online, reinforcing the prosecution’s contention that Ravi wanted to invade the privacy of Tyler Clementi and was biased against gays.

Ravi encouraged his friend Michelle Huang to take a look as well, explaining he had a webcam pointed at Clementi’s bed and “the monitor is off so he can’t see you,” she testified March 5 at Ravi’s trial.

Another text from Ravi to Huang read: “Yeah, keep the gays away.”…Read More

How to practice safe social networking

Nearly a quarter of college admissions officials check out an applicants’ Facebook page.

The popularity of smart phones and social networking sites is keeping a growing number of students connected—to danger, deception, and a loss of academic or career opportunities if they aren’t careful.

Many students haven’t set secure privacy settings on their profiles, and they might not realize how easy it is for a Facebook friend to spread embarrassing content from a private profile.

Add in impulsivity, multitasking, and the ability to instantly post or text from a mobile device, and the results can be disastrous, said Sameer Hinduja, the co-director of Florida Atlantic University’s Cyberbullying Research Center.…Read More

DePaul: ACT, SAT score submission now optional for applicants

After five years of deliberation, DePaul University has decided to make submission of ACT or SAT scores optional, starting with the 2012 admission cycle, making it likely the largest private non-profit school to do so, the Huffington Post reports. The decision reflects the school’s mission to serve their diverse student body, including many first-generation college students, Jon Boeckenstedt, associate vice president of enrollment management, told the Chicago Sun-Times…

Click here for the full story

…Read More