Spring on the York College campus

Overheard

“It’s seen as a dog whistle. It’s not just about crime. It is a politics of fear, I think, rather than a politics of fighting crime. I don’t think until after the election will we know if it worked. It doesn’t need to work among the population in general, it needs to work amongst very targeted populations in very targeted states.” 

Peter Levy, Professor, History, York College, was quoted in an article, “Trump Revives Nixon’s Law and Order Message—Here’s Why It May Not Work This Time,” published online with Newsweek, September 8, 2020.

“Intelligence relations matter. If one doesn’t think so, they just need to revisit the 9/11 commission report from a decade-and-a-half ago. The report highlighted the issue of stove piping whereby intelligence agencies more interested in protecting what they saw as proprietary information, failed to share it with other members of the intelligence community (IC).” 

John Weaver, Associate Professor, Intelligence Analysis, in the article, “Relations between intelligence agencies matter—this is why,” published online in the Opinion section of the Pennsylvania- Capital Star, September 8, 2020. 

“So many things have happened since 1995, new things that were never even considered civil engineering then and now are. We’re looking at the role of data analytics now. No one was really doing that then. We know AI is coming forward. How is that going to impact buildings? The whole idea of the Internet of Things. How do we integrate all of this? It changes the way we can operate and should operate. And it means that as a profession we have to keep up.” 

Scott Hamilton, Professor and Chair, Civil and Mechanical Engineering, York College, was quoted in an article, “ASCE Releases Roadmap for the Future of Civil Engineering Education,” published online with ASCE News, July 9, 2020. 

“When we breathe in, we breathe in a whopping 6 liters of air per minute. You can imagine the number of foreign particles, including viruses that can be brought in by just a single breath. These viruses require the droplets they’re encased in to travel and maintain their ideal environment. By putting a mask on, any droplets that leave your mouth or nose, become trapped and cannot spread. We don’t always have the complete answers regarding COVID-19, but we do build from what we already know about similar viruses including other known coronaviruses. We’re not starting from scratch.” 

Meda Higa, Associate Professor, Biology, York College, was quoted in an article “COVID UPDATE 7/12: 1 death, 22 new confirmed cases reported in Butler County,” published online with the Butler Eagle, July 21, 2020. 

“General education is what makes people successful in a complicated society. The learning outcomes taught in these early courses, whether critical thinking, quantitative skills, or working in teams, are those that have been identified as the outcomes that make you successful.” 

Laura Niesen de Abruña, Provost, York College, was quoted in an article, “What are Gateway Courses and why do they matter to equity in higher ed?” published online with Every Learner Everywhere, June 2020.