What you want, and what you’re worried about

Hopes of the class of 2013

Take a look at the Hopes and Concerns page to see what the Franklin Pierce University students in Rindge are hoping for this academic year, and what their concerns are.
First year students, take a look and see how much you have in common with other newbies to the academic scene. Upperclassmen and those that have graduated from college, what advice to you have for our new recruits? Click on the comment tool and share your experience and advice.

Extra Section of College Writing II

Due to popular demand, the College at Rindge is adding another section of College Writing II (IC 106) for Fall ‘09. It will meet MWF at 8 am. If you need the course, get an add/drop form and sign up. Steve Thurber will be the instructor.

Hyperword: Compare textbook prices, search, translate, post…

There’s an add-on called Hyperwords for the Firefox browser that I’ve been using for number conversions (square feet to acres, US dollar to other currencies), language translation, and searches, but I found a handy new use for it yesterday that I thought would be helpful to incoming students–comparison shopping for textbooks.

Hyperwords allows you to right-click on a word or phrase and search multiple online stores for the item.  That means that you can go to a page such as a college bookstore list for courses you’re taking in September, select and right-click the title of one of the texts, and then search one or many vendors for your books.  (I ended up using a combination of Amazon and AbeBooks for two courses I’m taking in the fall.) See the video below for a demonstration of Hyperwords.

Chegg.com rents textbooks

I just read a New York Times article about a company called Chegg that rents college textbooks. What a good idea!

Alan Bradford, a senior at Arizona State University, read about Chegg in a campus newspaper in 2008 and calculated that his bill for books that semester would have been $334 with Chegg, far less than the $657 he paid. Since then, he has ordered about a dozen textbooks from Chegg.

“Nobody likes paying for textbooks,” he said.

CHEGG is shorthand for “chicken and egg,” a reference to what Mr. Rashid called students’ quandary after graduation: they need experience to get a job, but can’t get experience without having a job.

As a test case, I looked up the price for the text that is being used for Microcomputer Applications this summer. Microsoft System 2003 sells for $100 new, and a used copy of the book costs $81 at the college bookstore. It is available for $25 on Half.com or Amazon, but costs only $9.99 to rent. I’m not sure what shipping costs. If anyone tries Chegg, write a comment below to tell us what it was like and whether you are happy with the service.

Writing Drop-in Help: Summer Hours

Need help with a writing assignment in your summer courses? The Academic Services Center offers individual assistance with essays and other writing projects. Contact us at 899-4107 to make an appointment, or come to drop-in hours 3-4:30 pm Monday through Thursday. Contact Tracy Mendham at 899-1168 or mendhamt@franklinpierce.edu for more information.

Take the Facebook Quiz

I’ve created a quiz on Facebook, “Which ASC staff member are you?”  Come on by and figure out your true Academic Services Center identity.
Tracy Mendham's Profile | Create Your Badge


Grades are up

Drumroll, please… Grades for the Spring 2009 semester have been posted on CampusWeb. Rindge students, grades are not mailed to you–you can check them and print them out online.

National Poem in Your Pocket Day

Pocket Logo Image

In our email here at the Rindge campus we just received an announcement reminding us about Poem in Your Pocket Day.  I’m going to carry the poem “First Lesson” by Philip Booth: “Daughter, believe / me, when you tire on the long thrash / to your island, lie up, and survive.” You can listen to Garrison Keillor read it here.

APRIL 30, 2009

Poem In Your Pocket Day at FPU

Celebrate the second national “Poem In Your Pocket Day” on Thursday, April 30, 2009! Join the Franklin Pierce Iota Omega Chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society, and the Academy of American Poets in celebrating Poem in Your Pocket Day at Franklin Pierce!

The idea is simple: select a poem you love then carry it with you (poem in your pocket) to share with co-workers, family, and friends throughout the day.

Thinking about summer classes at Rindge? Work for free housing!

Rindge students who’ll need to make up classes should consider taking summer courses on campus. If you work 24 hours or more per week at least a campus job for 12 weeks during the summer, your housing is free, and tuition is significantly less expensive than during the regular academic year.

There will be a summer employment fair on Wedesday, April 8 from 11:30 to 1:00 pm in the Glass Foyer.  Contact Beth Cindy Freda for details.

Writing Assistance

There’s lots of help for writing at the Rindge campus of Franklin Pierce! All of the offices and people below will work with students in any stage of the writing process.

The Writing Center in Edgewood is staffed by trained student tutors:
Monday-Thursday 10 am – 10 pm
Friday 11 am – 5 pm
Saturday Closed
Sunday 2 pm – 10 pm

Tracy Mendham is a writing specialist in the Academic Services Center (on the library first floor, go back and to the left). She provides writing help by appointment (call x4107) or during drop-in hours:
Monday-Friday 3 – 4:30 pm

The Reference Desk at the library can help you find sources for research papers, or expand or narrow topics. The reference desk is on your left immediately as you enter the library, and is staffed:
Monday-Thursday 10 am – 8 pm
Friday 10 am – 3 pm
Saturday No reference
Sunday 4 pm – 8 pm

If you have a quick writing question you can also instant message Tracy.
Go to the blog http://schoogle.wordpress.com and click in the “IM Tracy” window, or
Message her on Facebook (search for mendhamt@ franklinpierce.edu).

If you have a quick research question you can IM the reference desk.
fpclibrarian with AIM, Yahoo, or MSN, or call them at x1149.