Gov. Inslee Signs SSB 5195 into law, extending State Need Grant to WGU Washington students

OLYMPIA, Wash., May 15, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Governor Jay Inslee signed SSB 5195 into law today allowing WGU Washington students with financial need access to the State Need Grant Program. Previously, the state-endorsed, online university was unable to participate due to technicalities in the original language of the law, enacted long before online education was so pervasive.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130515/DC15266)

"This bill will give our students the same financial help that's available to other low-income Washingtonians who attend public universities, colleges, and commercial and trade schools in the state," said WGU Washington Chancellor Jean Floten. "Our students are mostly mid-career adults, trying to make ends meet while they work, raise families, and go to school. To some students, the State Need Grant will give them the help they need to pay the rent and feed their families, and not have to choose between the two. Our students are very grateful to the Washington Legislature and Governor Inslee. The bill will play an important role in educating future generations of Washingtonians who seek the flexibility online learning provides."

Current students and people considering returning to school from all over the state will benefit from this new law. That includes Tricia Elsner of Federal Way. She's a single mother of triplets, each with varying degrees of behavioral challenges; two of the 17-year-old boys have autism. Another is Jay Castro of Seattle. He's dealing with several, chronic health issues while working two jobs and going to school fulltime. For Tricia, Jay, and so many others, State Need Grant assistance would ease significant financial strain and help them on their path toward achieving their dreams of a college education.

WGU Washington's innovative model of higher education is producing graduates with the skills to meet the advanced demands of today's market. A recent Harris Interactive study shows that nearly 100 percent of employers who have hired a WGU graduate would not hesitate to hire another, 98 percent agree that WGU grads meet or exceed their expectations, and 98 percent consider WGU graduates equal to or better prepared than graduates of other universities.

Saturday, May 18, a record number of students – 543 – will graduate from WGU Washington in its second annual commencement ceremony at 3:00 pm at Benaroya Hall in Seattle. WGU Washington was created by the Washington State Legislature in 2011 and currently has 4,425 enrolled students from all over the state.

If you'd like more information about the bill's passage, or would like to speak with a student from your area or WGU Washington Chancellor Floten, please contact Jake Riddell at 206-512-0025, jake.riddell@wgu.edu , or Lee Keller at 206-799-3805, Lee@thekellergroup.com .

About WGU Washington

WGU Washington was established by the Washington State Legislature on April 22, 2011. WGU Washington is state-endorsed and offers degree programs that are accredited through Western Governors University.

WGU Washington offers more than 50 bachelor's and master's degree programs in Business, Information Technology, Teacher Education, and Health Professions, including Nursing. The university's online, competency-based learning model is designed to meet the needs of working adults by providing an affordable, flexible option for earning an accredited, respected college degree. It's non-profit and receives no money from the state.

Degrees are granted under the accreditation of Western Governors University, which is accredited through the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). Teachers College programs are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and Nursing programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE*).

The university has earned the support of more than 20 leading corporations and foundations. They include institutions such as AT&T, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Lilly Endowment, HCA, Hewlett-Packard, the Lumina Foundation, Microsoft, Oracle, SunGard Higher Education, and Zions Bank.

*Western Governors University offers nursing programs that are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 5380, Washington DC 20036, 202-877-6791).

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http://twitter.com/wgu
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Contact for media inquiries:
Jake Riddell – Public Relations Manager
(206) 512-0025
jake.riddell@wgu.edu

Contact for enrollment information: 
877.214.7004
washington.wgu.edu

SOURCE WGU Washington

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State senator comes out during gay marriage debate

State Senator Karen Peterson (photo: state of Delaware)

Delaware State Senator Karen Peterson came out as lesbian during the floor speeches of a debate about legalizing gay marriage, multiple outlets reported.

Sen. Peterson said, "If my happiness somehow demeans or diminishes your marriage, you need to work on your marriage," according to Think Progress.

Via Think Progress:

No one chose to be gay. We are what God made us. We don’t need to be fixed. We aren’t broken. [...] My partner Vicki and I have been together for 24 years. Last year, we entered into a civil union. [...] If my happiness somehow demeans or diminishes your marriage, you need to work on your marriage.

The Delaware Senate voted to approve marriage equality legislation, making Delaware the 11th state the recognizes the marriages of same-sex couples. Governor Jack Markell has said he will sign the bill into law.

Victory Fund broke the news about Sen. Peterson via Twitter:

Reactions were positive as others learned of the news via the social network.

A similar incident occurred earlier this year, when, during a debate on gay marriage, Nevada state Senator Kelvin Atkinson announced that was gay.

Last week, Rhode Island became the 10th state to legalize gay marriage.

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Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Speaks at the Millennium Challenge Corporation Forum on Global Development

WASHINGTON, April 26, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. government's Millennium Challenge Corporation is hosting its second-annual Forum on Global Development with top leaders and practitioners in international development to discuss the critical role of foreign assistance.

Who: 

• Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is expected to discuss the importance of foreign aid and its role in U.S. national security and diplomacy
• Senator Patrick Leahy
• Deputy National Security Advisor Michael Froman

Moderated by Frank Sesno, Director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University and former CNN Washington bureau chief.

When & Where:

• April 29, 2013, 9:00 AM EST – 11:00 AM EST, at the Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC.

Press must confirm attendance no later than 6:00 PM April 28 to fontainesa@mcc.gov or (202)499-9581. The event will be live-streamed at http://www.mcc.gov/2013-forum.

What:

MCC will honor four award recipients at the Forum. MCC's Corporate Award will recognize Green Mountain Coffee Roasters of Vermont for its commitment to partnering with local NGOs for sustainable community development. The company's projects have focused on diversifying the incomes of coffee roasters, helping advance food security in the communities where it works.

MCC's Country Commitment Award will recognize Sophia Mohapi, CEO of Millennium Challenge Account-Lesotho, for facilitating large-scale partnerships to promote economic growth in Lesotho. Mohapi helped facilitate the Government of Lesotho's commitment to contribute more than $150 million to MCC-funded poverty reduction programs.

D.C. United midfielder Dwayne De Rosario will present MCC's Next Generation Award, recognizing Jessica O. Matthews and Julia Silverman, co-founders of Uncharted Play, for advancing youth leadership and innovation in international development. Uncharted Play's flagship product is the SOCCKET, a soccer ball that stores kinetic energy and provides light for those living off the electrical grid in developing nations.

The Millennium Challenge Corporation, a U.S. Government agency designed to work with some of the poorest countries in the world, is based on the principle that aid is most effective when it reinforces good governance, economic freedom, and investments in people that promote economic growth and elimination of extreme poverty.

SOURCE Millennium Challenge Corporation

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Who is the Best-Looking State Attorney General? Richard Viguerie's ConservativeHQ.com Conducts Online Poll

MANASSAS, Va., April 9, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Richard Viguerie, Chairman of ConservativeHQ.com, is conducting an online poll of readers to determine who they believe to be the best looking state attorney general.

President Obama recently expressed the view that "by far" California Attorney General Kamala Harris was the most attractive.  But Viguerie said there were many state attorneys general who were also very pretty.

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so the only way to settle this is through an online poll," Viguerie said.

The ConservativeHQ.com website at http://www.conservativehq.com/ contains the pictures of all eight women serving as attorney general of their states. Readers can then vote on which one they think is the best looking. 

To prevent partisan bias, the pictures, names, and states of the eight women attorneys general are listed but not their political affiliations. "Hopefully, the voters will select he most attractive woman, Republican or Democrat," Viguerie said.

He stated that, if no one receives a majority, he will conduct a runoff poll of the women who finish in the top two in votes.

NOTE TO EDITORS:  Richard A. Viguerie pioneered political direct mail and has been called "one of the creators of the modern conservative movement" (The Nation) and one of the "conservatives of the century"(Washington Times).  He is the author of Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause .

Richard A. Viguerie	Contact Kassandra Smith, (703) 392-7676, ext 1123
ConservativeHQ.com	After 5 PM Eastern & on weekends,
9625 Surveyor Court, Suite 400	(703) 489-9124
Manassas, Virginia 20110	FOR RELEASE: April 9, 2013
rav@conservativeHQ.com

SOURCE ConservativeHQ.com

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North Carolina Won't Establish State Religion

North Carolina Wont Establish State Religion

It turns out North Carolina won't be establishing its own religion after all. A resolution proposed this week by GOP state lawmakers that said the state has the right to declare an official religion will never come to a vote.

The legislation, House Joint Resolution 494, filed Monday by two GOP legislators and co-signed by 12 others, says the Supreme Court cannot block a state "from making laws respecting an establishment of religion." But on Thursday, House Speaker Thom Tillis' said the resolution was dead, according to WRAL.

The bill was initially filed in response to a lawsuit filed last month by the American Civil Liberties Union against the Rowan County Board of Commissioners, which, the ACLU said, opened 97 percent of its meetings in 2007 with explicitly Christian prayers. Filing the lawsuit on behalf of three residents, the ACLU wrote in a press release, "the commissioners, who deliver the prayers themselves, routinely call on Jesus Christ and refer to other sectarian beliefs during invocations."

The legislation filed by Reps. Harry Warren and Carl Ford stated the "North Carolina General Assembly asserts that the Constitution of the United States of America does not prohibit states or their subsidiaries from making laws respecting an establishment of religion."

Warren and Ford did not return several requests for comment, but Warren told The Salisbury Post he never really expected the bill to go too far.

"I didn't expect it to go anywhere," Warren told the newspaper, noting that the bill was referred to the committee for Rules, Calendar and Operations of the House. "Quite often bills go there and never come out."

Co-signer Rep. Phil Shepard said in an interview before the bill was killed, "I don't support anything that would maintain a state religion, but … we have the right to assemble and pray."

"I wouldn't want anyone to say we would be an all Catholic state, an all Episcopalian state, an all Baptist state … there may be some that feel that way but I don't."

The crux of the resolution lay in the 10th Amendment, which leaves to the states powers not explicitly given to the federal government in the Constitution. In recent years states have used this "nullification" argument in attempts to defy federal laws and Supreme Court rulings, most recently about gun control and the Affordable Care Act.

The bill wouldn't have actually created a religion. But it would have made an argument that they could. And the bridge between arguing and doing is key.

University of North Carolina constitutional law professor Michael Gerhardt said "people can believe what they want to believe."

"They are entitled to believe it, they are entitled to think it, they are entitled to say it, but they aren't entitled to act on it," Gerhardt said. "However they are not entitled to reject applicable Supreme Court opinion."

"The issue they are raising is settled by constitutional law," Gerhardt said. "They are trying to turn the clock back on the First Amendment."

And now that won't happen.

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