SOUTHFIELD, MI (08/02/2012)(readMedia)-- Ali Sareini from Davenport, IA graduated Saturday, May 12th at Lawrence Technological University's 80th Commencement Exercises. Ceremonies were held at Ultimate Soccer Arenas at 1 p.m. Lawrence Tech's class of 2012 included some 900 graduates. About 5,000 students, their families and guests attended the event.

Sareini was awarded a Master of Engineering Management.

Lawrence Technological University, www.ltu.edu, was founded in 1932. Bloomberg BusinessWeek lists Lawrence Tech among the nation's upper third of universities for return on undergraduate tuition investment, and highest in the Detroit metropolitan area. Lawrence Tech is also listed in the top tier of Midwestern universities by U.S. News and World Report and the Princeton Review. Students benefit from small class sizes and experienced faculty who provide a real-world, hands-on, "theory and practice" education with an emphasis on leadership. Activities on Lawrence Tech's 102-acre campus include over 60 student clubs and organizations and a growing roster of NAIA varsity sports.

HOUSTON, TX (08/01/2012)(readMedia)-- Erin Steckel, a English, BA major and a resident of Davenport, IA, was among more than 4,200 students who graduated from the University of Houston (UH).

The UH Spring 2012 Commencement was held in May at Hofheinz Pavilion.

The University of Houston is a Carnegie-designated Tier One public research university recognized by The Princeton Review as one of the nation's best colleges for undergraduate education. UH serves the globally competitive Houston and Gulf Coast Region by providing world-class faculty, experiential learning and strategic industry partnerships. Located in the nation's fourth-largest city, UH serves more than 39,500 students in the most ethnically and culturally diverse region in the country.

Local farmers nominate school districts for America's Farmers Grow Rural Education?

DAVENPORT, IA. (August 1, 2012) - Winning a grant of $10,000 or $25,000 can enhance educational opportunities for a school district in a rural community. Davenport Community School District in Davenport was recently named as a finalist to receive consideration for an America's Farmers Grow Rural Education? grant. Davenport Community School District is one of 33 finalists in Iowa.

"We received so many outstanding applications from rural school districts across the county," said Deborah Patterson, President, Monsanto Fund. "The finalists truly went above and beyond what was expected and stand out as top tier choices."

More than 61,000 farmers shared their passion for rural education by nominating more than half the eligible school districts. Finalist schools were chosen for their program ideas and funding needs. Davenport Community School District also benefited from community support through numerous farmer nominations which strengthened the district's application.

The grant review process includes an online application scoring system based on merit, need and community support; a review by science and math teachers from ineligible school districts; and a farmer advisory council.

Now that the finalists have been chosen, the America's Farmers Grow Rural Education Advisory Council, a group of 26 farmer leaders from across the country, will select the winning grant applications. In 2012, the Monsanto Fund plans to award nearly $2.3 million to eligible school districts across the country. To see the full list of finalists please visit GrowRuralEducation.com

America's Farmers Grow Rural Education started with a successful pilot in Illinois and Minnesota, in which farmers were given the opportunity to nominate a public school district in 165 eligible counties in those two states. The Monsanto Fund awarded more than $266,000 to local schools in 16 CRDs. Now, the program has expanded to 1,245 eligible counties in 39 states.

America's Farmers Grow Rural Education is sponsored by the Monsanto Fund to help farmers positively impact their communities and support local rural school districts. This program is part of the Monsanto Fund's overall effort to support rural education and communities. Another program that is part of this effort is America's Farmers Grow Communities, giving farmers the opportunity to enter to win $2,500 to donate to their favorite community nonprofit organization in their county. You can participate in this program between Aug. 1 and Nov. 30 by visiting growcommunities.com.

About the Monsanto Fund

The Monsanto Fund, the philanthropic arm of the Monsanto Company, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the farm communities where farmers and Monsanto Company employees live and work. Visit the Monsanto Fund at www.monsantofund.org.

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"These were waivers, not scholarships," Morthland said. "Estimates suggest this unfunded mandate placed a $12 to $14 million burden annually on Illinois universities while the state already owes them tens of millions in overdue bills. In 2011, 1,327 tuition waivers were awarded in Illinois, costing approximately $13.5 million which was then passed on to tuition paying students. In these tough economic times, students and universities cannot afford to absorb this cost."

Recent investigations have uncovered a number of instances where General Assembly scholarships went to ineligible family members, campaign contributors and students outside of the legislative district.

"There has been too much misuse and fraud tied to legislative scholarships. Reform attempts didn't work and we continued to see instances of abuse. Eliminating these scholarships was the right thing to do."

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