Now that most of the team is back from the Faculty Learning Communities institute, I wanted to mention one other participant that we connected with and forgot to acknowledge in previous posts. Duane Coltharp of Trinity University in San Antonio is now part of our expanding network of resources. It is amusing that we had to go to California to meet but I guess that just illustrates the vastness of Texas. Franci Washburn's opinion piece on the correct use of the ellipsis is very entertaining. The point made is not really about the correct use of the ellipsis (or is it) but the attention to detail that it requires in its proper use. The brief piece is a nice commentary on teaching critical thinking skills. The message from a conference focused on the topic of Latino men is that they are "vanishing" from the higher-education pipeline, a trend that could spell serious trouble given current demographic trends. The speakers offered several explanations for the decline, including a sense of "machismo" that prevents male students from seeking help and a gender-equity movement that has focused attention on educational opportunities for women over the past three decades. Blackboard Inc. is apparently in talks with a buyer. Who knows what this may mean in terms of changes to the software now in heavy use at LU? Anthony P. Carnevale, with the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, released a report claiming that the United States needs 20 million more college-educated workers by 2025. There is an interesting article in the NY Times about the state of higher education reform in Texas.